Briefing Paper

Trade and Poverty in the Republic of Congo

Trade liberalization within the framework of globalization and WTO since the end of the
20th century without any doubt is an area of predilection through which the international
trade and domestic trade can contribute to poverty reduction in Africa South of the
Sahara. In the Republic of Congo, after 30 years of a centrally planned economy, the introduction
of the market economy during 1990s and the ensuing trade liberalisation can be regarded
as benchmarks in order to lay the foundations of the contribution of trade liberalisation in
the process of growth and poverty reduction. It is important to point out that the trade sector experiences many problems: the non‐ observance of regulations; the sector’s low capacity of supervision; the low participation of the country in sub‐regional trade. The problem of this study is articulated around the following question: what are the effects of the increase in trade on poverty reduction in the Republic in Congo?