This paper starts from the position that trade liberalisation is not an end itself, and that for trade to be meaningful, it has to deliver some growth not just to a country, but also to all its citizens, especially the most disadvantaged. Trade policies should both protect and strengthen the capacity of nations and their citizens to address issues of poverty and social exclusion. Growth should be socially equitable and environmentally sustainable. Therefore, the central question for an analysis of the impact of trade policies from a gender perspective is whether trade liberalisation perpetuates, accentuates or erodes existing gender inequalities, and whether it promotes or hinders the eradication of poverty among women who are the poorest of poor.