All preparatory documents are downloadable in the 'Documents' section.

A working meeting on the issue of the economic practices of women in Asia will take place in Hyderabad in India from 8 to 11 January. This meeting, which precedes the 2004 World Social Forum, is organized in collaboration with the Hyderabad Center for World Solidarity. It will include people from India, Bangladesh, Philippines and Canada.

Organized as a follow up to the work of the Women and Economy Workshop, particularly the spread of women's economic practices as expressed in different Asian contexts, the meeting will be followed by the distribution of a report on the exchanges and discussions. The participants have already announced their intention to tackle the following questions: sustainable livelihoods, food safety, cooperative production and credit, and participation in local development. The relationship between local and global aspects, as well as strategies of resistance to the WTO's directions and policies will also be on the agenda.

The first day of the meeting will be used to visit Pastapur, a village where an alternative living environment is being set up for Dalit women living in rural areas.