WTO to Host First Trade for Peace Week
The WTO will host the first edition of the Trade for Peace Week
from 30 November to 4 December 2020. Ten virtual panel sessions will explore the
nexus between trade and peace, with the focus on fragile and conflict-affected countries
in accession which want to use trade and economic integration to promote sustainable
and inclusive peace.
In announcing
the Trade for Peace Week, Deputy Director-General Alan Wolff noted: "The 2030
Agenda for Sustainable Development recognizes international trade as an engine for
inclusive economic growth and poverty reduction that contributes to the promotion
of sustainable development. This in turn can facilitate building and maintaining
peace. The connection between trade and peace is the raison d'être for the creation
of the rules-based multilateral trading system that led to economic recovery and
prosperity after the devastation from World War II."
Currently,
23 countries are in the process of joining the WTO, and over a half of them suffer
from a fragile situation from years of conflicts. Launched in 2017, the Trade for
Peace initiative aims to assist fragile and conflict-affected (FCA) countries through
WTO accession, with the emphasis on institution building based on the principles
of non-discrimination, predictability, transparency and the rule of law. Based on
experiences of former FAC countries, WTO accession can help set the conditions to
move out of a state of fragility or conflict into a state of stability, economic
well-being and peace.
The first
edition of the Trade for Peace Week will bring together officials from the WTO community,
international partners involved in peacebuilding, the private sector and academia.
Building on earlier activities organized by the WTO Secretariat, this week-long
event is aimed at deepening the conversation on the linkages between trade and peace
and identifying areas of collaboration between the trade and peace communities,
especially in FCA countries in accession.
Each
session is organized in collaboration with a partner with distinct expertise and
experience which can make a unique contribution to the trade for peace debate. A
broad range of topics relevant to trade and peace are covered, including the use
of technology, the role of business, empirical work, job creation, and challenges
in the times of COVID-19. Some sessions will have a special focus on countries or
a region involved in WTO accession, such as Iraq, Libya, Somalia, Yemen and the
Horn of Africa.
The week
will kick off with a panel discussion on "Tech in Trade for Peace", organized
in collaboration with the United Nations Technology Bank, on Monday 30 October at
12:30 (CET). This will be followed by an official opening session with high-level
representatives of the WTO and the peace community at 15:30 (CET).
All sessions
will be held in the Zoom platform and are open to the public. Registration is required.
The Trade
for Peace through WTO Accessions initiative was launched by the WTO
Secretariat after being inspired by the establishment of the g7+ WTO Accessions
Group by fragile and conflict-affected least developed countries (LDCs) associated
with accession, which met on the margins of the 11th WTO Ministerial
Conference in Buenos Aires in December 2017. The Group consists of six acceding
LDCs (Comoros, Sao Tomé and Principe, Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan and Timor-Leste)
and three recently acceded LDCs (Afghanistan, Liberia and Yemen).
In addition
to those in the g7+ WTO Accessions Group, there are other FCA countries which are
in the process of accession, such as Iraq, Lebanon, Libya and Syria.
The Trade
for Peace initiative is aimed at assisting all FCA countries to use trade and economic
integration as a tool to rebuild their fragile economies and to promote sustainable
and inclusive peace.