PRESS RELEASE
PRESS/294
9 May 2002
(02-2646)
WTO/ADB to cooperate on trade-related technical assistance
programmes for Asian and Pacific Countries
World Trade Organization Deputy Director-General  Paul-Henri Ravier and Asian Development Bank
Vice-President Myoung-Ho Shin signed on 9 May 2002 a memorandum of understanding under
which their institutions agreed to cooperate on joint technical assistance programmes for participants
from the ADB's developing member governments.
The document was signed at the Asian Development Bank 35th Annual Meeting of the Board of
Governors, in Shanghai, China, preceding an  ADB seminar on the Doha Development Agenda
negotiations and their implications for developing Asia.
To help member governments meet their multilateral trade challenges, the WTO and the ADB will
step up joint efforts working with members to streng then their participation in the multilateral trading
system.
The importance of capacity building was highlighted in the Doha Ministerial Declaration, in which
WTO Members sought to place the priorities and interests of developing countries and least
developed countries at the heart of the WTO's work programme.
The memorandum of understanding serves as a model for regional development banks to support their
borrowing member countries through technical assistance and capacity building programmes that will
allow them to play a larger role in the Doha Development Agenda.
Under the memorandum, the WTO and the ADB will work to establish joint programmes to support,
among other activities, regional and subregional workshops and meetings, training courses, distance
learning courses and analysis of trade policy and multilateral negotiations issues.
The WTO and ADB will also consider cooperating on technical assistance programmes to strengthen
Asian and Pacific countries' capacity in trade-related areas pertaining to the environment, competition,government procurement, investment and trade facilitation.
In recent years the WTO and the ADB have collaborated in numerous activities, including with the
participation of WTO officials as lecturers in seminars and workshops organized by the ADB.PRESS/294
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At the 10th of May Seminar, Mr. Ravier, in his presentation on the WTO strategic partnership with the
ADB for trade-related technical assistance and capacity building services to developing countries, will
highlight the fact that
"creative thinking will help create strategic partnerships to leverage more resources,
to expand our joint activities and meet the technical assistance expectations of
developing and least-developed countries highlighted in the Doha MinisterialDeclaration."
The importance of capacity building was prioritized in the Doha Development Agenda, on which
WTO Members placed the interests of developing and least-developed countries at the heart of the
WTO's work programme.  Furthermore, Mr. Mike  Moore, Director-General of the WTO, has
convened a meeting with heads of regional banks, funds and other development organizations, inGeneva on 3 May 2002.  He believes that regional banks and funds can play an important role in
helping countries to meet the capacity building challenges of the Doha Development Agenda.  The
WTO is already working closely with a number of regional banks especially in the area of technical
cooperation.  This meeting was an opportunity for the WTO to further develop our cooperation with
them in supporting countries to meet their WTO-related capacity building challenges and to discuss
how our respective organizations can work more closely together.  It was also an excellent
opportunity for these regional banks to explain to WTO Members and heads of other regionalorganizations their important work in WTO-related capacity building and to discuss possible avenues
for future cooperation.
ENDS