On August 15 last year, the eu and the us put forward a proposal as the basis for negotiations on agriculture at Cancun. It did not accommodate developing country concerns. So Brazil and India got together to work out an alternative one. Argentina and South Africa joined in. Brazilian foreign minister Celso Amorim roped in other Latin American countries. A conscious effort was made to include China, and on August 20 the g20 was born (the name comes from the date).

Cancun was the group's first test. It had to fight to keep the coalition in place and to make itself heard. It succeeded, but the ministerial itself failed (see 'World Trade Outcry', Down To Earth, October 15, 2003).
Post-Cancun Although Central American countries have left the group