Marking the 20th anniversary of the Aid for Trade Initiative, WTO members
adopted a declaration on 30 October repositioning the initiative as "Aid for
Trade: partnerships for trade and development". The declaration was adopted
at a meeting of the Committee on Trade and Development, which wrapped up the two-day
10th Global Review of Aid for Trade held at WTO headquarters in Geneva.
·
Declaration
Adopted: WTO members adopted a declaration on 30 October 2026, marking the 20th
anniversary of the Aid for Trade Initiative and repositioning it as “Aid for Trade:
Partnerships for Trade and Development.”
·
Capacity
Building: The declaration recognises the importance of
technical assistance and capacity building to implement WTO rules and integrate
developing economies, including least-developed countries (LDCs), into the global
trading system.
·
Mobilisation of Finance: It calls for attracting and scaling up additional
resources through grants, concessional finance and blended finance, while encouraging
effective private-sector partnerships.
·
WTO
Reforms: WTO Director-General Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala described the declaration as an
important step towards renewing the WTO and strengthening its contribution to global
growth and development.
·
India's
Contribution: WTO members considered India's communication on trade-related capacity
building, highlighting India's South-South and triangular cooperation initiatives.
·
ITEC
Programme: India's Indian Technical and Economic Cooperation
(ITEC) Programme has strengthened the skills of over 80,000
participants since 2014.
·
Renewed
Cooperation: Peru's Ambassador and Chair of the Committee on Trade and Development,
Elmer José Germán Gonzalo Schialer Salcedo, highlighted
the declaration as the first multilateral outcome on this subject in 20 years.
·
Way
Forward: WTO members were encouraged to maintain momentum and build stronger international
partnerships to expand trade opportunities and promote
inclusive economic development.
[ABS News Service/02.11.2026]
The declaration recognises the importance
of technical assistance and capacity building for implementing WTO rules and facilitating
the integration of developing economies, including least developed countries (LDCs),
into the global trading system. It acknowledges the evolving development cooperation
context and recognises the need to explore, attract and scale up additional resources
through trade and development cooperation, including by leveraging grant, concessional
finance and blended finance to catalyze effective private
sector partnerships.
"This is an example of how we are working
to renew the WTO - brick by brick," WTO Director-General Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala
said in welcoming the declaration.
"Members made this declaration possible.
The challenge now will be to make it count - to work together to do much more for
growth and development worldwide. So let
us carry today's spirit beyond this room into greater opportunities people can see
- and seize," said the Director-General.
Ambassador Elmer José Germán Gonzalo Schialer Salcedo of Peru, Chair of the Committee on Trade and
Development, said: "This declaration is a result of active engagement of all
members. The leadership of Australia and Barbados has been exemplary. This is the
first multilateral outcome on this topic after 20 years, and it gives a renewed
impetus to this initiative."
Members also considered a communication
by India on trade-related capacity-building. The communication highlighted India's
South-South and triangular cooperation efforts, including through the Indian Technical
and Economic Cooperation (ITEC) Programme, which has helped strengthen skills of
over 80,000 participants since 2014.
The Chair encouraged members to maintain
momentum and to keep working on building stronger partnerships that help expand
trade opportunities for all. "Discussions over the past two days show what
sustained support can achieve, and they also remind us how much more remains to
be done," he said.