WT/COMTD/AFT/W/86  
22 July  2021 
(21-5752) Page: 1/89 
Committee on Trade and Development  
Aid for Trade  Original: English  
 
AID FOR TRADE STOCKTAKING EVENT  
23-25 MARCH 2021  
SUMMARY REPORT1 
Table of Contents  
 
Overview by Ambassador  Mujtaba  Piracha , Chairperson  Designate , Committee  
on Trade and Development and Pakistan's Ambassador/Representative to the 
World Trade Organization  ................................ ................................ ...................  4 
Acknowledgments  ................................ ................................ ...............................  9 
SESSION 1: Recovery Through Open Trade : Towards Inclusive, Resilient and 
Sustainable Trade Policy Post COVID -19?, organized by CUTS International, 
Sweden and the United Republic of Tanzania  ................................ ....................  10 
SESSION 2: Mobilizing Resources to Build Resilient Local Pharmaceutical 
Manufacturing Industries in Developing Countries – Challenges and 
Opportunities, organized by the United Nations Industrial Development 
Organization (UNIDO) and Zambian mission to the WTO  ................................ .. 12 
SESSION 3: Developing Production and Supply Capacities of Medical Equipment 
and Pharmaceutical Capacities in LDCS – the Role of Aid for Trade , organized by 
the WTO LDC GROUP  ................................ ................................ .........................  14 
SESSION 4: Trade Finance to Power the Global Recovery , organize d by the 
International Chamber of Commerce  ................................ ................................  16 
SESSION 5: COVID -19 and Global Value Chains – an Opportunity for 
Diversification? , organize d by AsDB, OECD  and WTO  ................................ ........  18 
SESSION 6: Impact of COVID -19 on Landlocked Developing Countries and 
implications for resilient recovery , organize d by Kazakhstan  and UN-OHRLLS  . 20 
SESSION 7: High -Level Plenary Session , organized by the WTO  .......................  23 
SESSION 8: A New Direction for Aid for Trade: Promoting an Inclusive and 
Green Pandemic Recovery , organized by Canada, the European Union, and the 
International Trade Centre (ITC)  ................................ ................................ ...... 25 
SESSION 9: Financing for Development in the era of COVID -19, organized by the  
OECD  ................................ ................................ ................................ .................  27 
SESSION 1 0: Covid -related MSME Aid for T rade, organiz ed by  Uruguay  ............  29 
SESSION 1 1: Leveraging Pacific Regionalism to Support Economic Recovery and 
Resilience , organiz ed by  Australia and the Pacific I slands Forum  .....................  31 
 
1 This Summary Report is circulated under the responsibility of the WTO Secretariat and without 
prejudice to the positions of Members or to their rights and obligations under the WTO. It has been   
prepared  using reports provided  by the Secretariat and /or session organizers.  While every care has 
been taken  to faithfully and accurately reproduce the content of discussions , any error in facts or 
figures , is the sole responsibility of the author.  Some minor alterations  to the texts provided by 
session  organizers  have been made for editing and harmonization purposes.  
 WT/COMTD/AFT/W/86  
 
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  SESSION 1 2: Japan's Commitment to Increase Digital Capability and Address 
the Digital Divide: Increasing Agricultural Resilience of Small Farmers in 
with/post -COVID -19 Society , organize d by Japan  ................................ ............  34 
SESSION 1 3: Reviving Tourism Amid COVID -19 The Role of Aid for Trade ,  
organiz ed by the Asian Development Bank  and the United Nations World 
Tourism Organization  ................................ ................................ ........................  36 
SESSION 1 4: Aid-for-Trade Stocktaking Event: Promoting Sustainable Recovery 
and Economic Resilience in LDCs – the Contribution of Aid for Trade , organized 
by the WTO LDC Group  ................................ ................................ ......................  38 
SESSION 1 5: Implementing the AfCFTA: The Need for Deepening Priv ate Sector , 
organize d by the African Development Bank,  the UN Industrial Development 
Organization  and the International Trade Centre  ................................ ..............  41 
SESSION 1 6: COVID -19 recovery and Aid for Trade – Opportunities for 
Sustainable Economic Development and Transition to Circular Economy , 
organize d by the Mission of Finland to the WTO  ................................ ...............  42 
SESSION 1 7: Trading During the COVID -19 Pandemic Photo Contest , organize d 
by the EIF and the WTO  ................................ ................................ ....................  44 
SESSION 18: Investing in Safe Trade Systems to Protect Health and Market 
Access , organize d by the Standards and Trade Development Facility (STDF)  ... 46 
SESSION 1 9: MSMEs Promoting Economic Recovery in a Post -COVID -19 World: A 
Trade Facilitation Approach , organized by  El Salvador  ................................ ..... 49 
SESSION 2 0: Sovereign Debt Challenges and Reform of the International Debt 
Architecture , organized by the the International Monetary Fund (IMF)  ............  51 
SESSION 2 1: Facilitating Safe Trade Along Supply Chains: Digitizing 
SPS Certificates and Other Import/ Export Documentation , organize d by the 
Mission of the United States of America to the WTO  ................................ .........  53 
SESSION 2 2: Tourism Resilience: Building Forward Better , organize d by the  
World Bank Group  ................................ ................................ .............................  55 
SESSION 2 3: Dialogue Building on Paperless Trade – Development and the 
Enabling Environment for E -Commerce , organized by the Mission of the United 
States of America to the WTO  ................................ ................................ ...........  57 
SESSION 2 4: The Role of South -South Cooperation and Digital Technology in 
Structuring a G lobally  Inclusive  Post-COVID -19 Economic Architecture for 
Increased Trade Facilitation , organized by the United Nations Office for South -
South Cooperation  ................................ ................................ ............................  59 
SESSION 2 5: Innovation, Recovery Plan and Digital Transition toward Inclusive 
and Sustainable Trade: How Aid for Trade Has Accelerated Digital Transition in 
Cambodia , organized by Cambodia  ................................ ................................ ... 61 
SESSION 2 6: Digital Transformation in LDCs for Efficient and Safe Cross -Border 
E-Commerce and Customs Clearance , organized by Vanuatu  ............................  63 
SESSION 27: Impact of COVID -19 on Women Traders in Bangladesh, Bhutan, 
India, and Nepal , organized by CUTS International  ................................ ...........  67 
SESSION 28: Trade Intelligence for an Inclusive Recovery , organized by 
Switzerland  ................................ ................................ ................................ ....... 70 
SESSION 29: Promoting Safe Trade in Eastern Africa - Making ports, borders, 
and Critical Supply Chains Safe for Trade by Mitigatin g Risks for Cross-Border 
Transmission of COVID -19, organized by TradeMark East Africa .......................  72 
SESSION 3 0: Tech as a Driver of Gender Equality in the Digital Economy , 
organized by the Ministry of Communication, Information Technologies and 
Media and Ministry of Commerce, Transport, Industry, and Tourism of the 
Government of Burundi  ................................ ................................ .....................  74 WT/COMTD/AFT/W/86  
 
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  SESSION 3 1: Global and Regional Implications of COVID -19 on e -Commerce , 
organized by UNCTAD  ................................ ................................ .......................  76 
SESSION 3 2: Financial Response to Pandemic Crises Affecting LDCs , organized 
by the WTO LDC Group.  ................................ ................................ .....................  78 
SESSION 3 3: Contributions to Economic Recovery Post COVID -19 Through 
Inclusive Job Creation: AfTIAS 2.0 , organized by International Isalmic Trade 
Finance Corporation  ................................ ................................ ..........................  80 
SESSION 3 4: Strengthening Economic Resilience of the Informal Economy 
Through Aid -for-Trade Policies , organized by the Mission of the Netherlands to 
the WTO  ................................ ................................ ................................ ............  85 
SESSION 3 5: Trade Facilitation: Critical for COVID –19 Recovery , organized by 
the WTO LDC Group, World Bank Group and Trade Facilitation Agreement 
Facility  ................................ ................................ ................................ .............  87 
 
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  OVERVIEW BY AMBASSADOR MUJTABA PIRACHA, CHAIRPERSON DESIGNATE, 
COMMITTEE ON TRADE AND DEVELOPMENT AND PAKISTAN 'S 
AMBASSADOR/REPRESENTATIVE TO THE WORLD TRADE ORGANIZATION (WTO)  
Abstract  
1. This overview was given by Ambassador Mujtaba Piracha  during the closing session of the 
Aid-for-Trade Stocktaking Event . An edited version is reproduced here as an overview of the event . 
Some 40  online session s were held over the course of 23 -25 March 2021 . The sessions surveyed the 
trade and development challenges arising due to the COVID -19 pandemic and related response, 
recovery,  and future resilience measures . The sessions examined seven main themes:  
• Adapti ng trade formalities to COVID -19 and future pandemic risk;  
• COVID -19, debt and financing;  
• Digital connectivity and e -commerce;  
• Global value chains, supply -side capacity and the pandemic;  
• Promoting an inclusive, green recovery;  
• Promoting recovery among micro , small and medium -sized enterprises (MSMEs) and in the 
tourism sector; and  
• Regional approaches to COVID -19 recovery . 
 
2. More than 20 of the 35 sessions held over the course of the three days were hosted or 
co-hosted by Members or Groups of Members . The list  of Members organizing sessions is 
diverse:  Australia, Burundi, Cambodia,  Canada, El Salvador, European Union, Finland, Japan, 
Kazakhstan, Netherlands, Switzerland, and the United States . Other Members also spoke at the 
sessions organized by international financial institutions, by U nited Nations  and other international 
organizations, by civil society, including business and development support programmes.  
3. Noteworthy was the active engagement of the LDC Group which hosted or co -organized a to tal 
of four sessions . My thanks to the colleagues in the LDC Unit of the Development Division and the 
Enhanced Integrated Framework (EIF) for supporting the LDC Group in the organization of these 
sessions.  
4. All of which made for a geographically balanced pr ogramme and one that registered further 
progress in terms of women 's participation . Gender parity was achieved in the high -level session on 
Tuesday , 23 March  among the heads of agency . This was one of four sessions on the programme 
where parity was achieve d. Overall, women speakers represented 46% of those appearing on the 
agenda – significantly up on past Aid -for-Trade events.  
5. Two sessions took a gender -lens to the impact of COVID -19 on women 's participation in trade 
and trade -related activities . One focu sed on Southern Asian countries while the other looked at 
difficulties women entrepreneurs face in accessing digital tools to move their businesses online. 
Many other sessions also considered the impact of COVID -19 on women 's economic empowerment.  
6. The Aid -for-Trade Stocktaking Event reached a very broad audience . The high -level session 
has been viewed more than 1,000 times on YouTube . This is in addition to the 250 people who 
attended live on Zoom. Most sessions had around 100 participa nts, with several first day sessions 
attracting  participation in the many hundreds . Recordings of many of the sessions are available 
online, together with pictures from the photo competition run by the WTO and the EIF .  
High -level messages  
 
7. The aim of the Aid-for-Trade Stocktaking Event held was to survey the trade and development 
impacts of the COVID -19 pandemic . When Ambassador Mohammad Qurban Haqjo , former 
Ambassador and Permanent Representative of Afghanistan to the  WTO, first raised this idea last 
year in the CTD, I think we had all hoped that the pandemic would have passed by the time we held 
the Stocktaking Event. That we would have been talking about COVID -19 in the past tense . 
Unfortunately, as Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebr eyesus , Director -General of WHO, told us, we are still 
talking about COVID -19 very much in the present tense . The health crisis is still with us . The number 
of cases and deaths is on the rise again in most regions, and concerns are growing about the impact  
of variants.  WT/COMTD/AFT/W/86  
 
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  8. In his remarks, Dr Tedros issued a strong call to connect vaccine manufacturers with other 
companies that have excess production capacity, to push bilateral technology transfer harder, 
including through provisions for affordability and equit y and that provide more transparency . He also 
lent his voice in support of the proposal in the TRIPS Council to waive intellectual property rights.  
9. A clear picture of the economic and trade impact of the crisis emerged from the remarks made 
by the heads of the IMF, OECD, UNCTAD, World Bank and WTO . In their remarks they stressed that 
the pandemic is reversing hard -won development gains and exacerbating inequalities . Progress 
towards the central goal of the 2030 Agenda to eliminate extreme poverty ha s faltered in some 
places and fallen behind in others . A financing gap has opened  and is getting wider . We need to 
redouble our efforts to ensure that no  one is left behind .  
10. The recovery remains uncertain and uneven. Advanced economies and some emerging 
markets are on track to recover faster with the help of stimulus packages being delivered on a scale 
that cannot be matched by economies outside this group. Low -income countries risk weaker growth 
due to diminished access to vaccines, global capital markets  and fiscal policy space . Debt 
sustainability is also a concern.  
11. Global vaccine rollout is the best value global economic stimulus package currently available . 
And trade cooperation is essential to address supply bottlenecks, lower regulatory hurdles, fac ilitate 
trade, and finance vaccine purchases . Keeping global markets open is essential for vaccine delivery 
and a strong and sustained recovery . Delivering results at the WTO, including at the Twelfth WTO 
Ministerial Conference (MC12) , would provide greate r certainty and predictability for trade .  
12. One bright spot has been growth in digital trade. If the growth in the digital economy can be 
delivered inclusively, it can unlock tremendous economic benefits particularly for the marginalized, 
including MSMEs  and for women.  
13. Another message to highlight was that building back a greener, more equitable and inclusive, 
more prosperous global economy is a matter of economic self -interest for all countries . Future Aid  for 
Trade needs to consider climate change and t he promise of green growth.  
COVID -19, debt,  and finance  
 
14. The impact of COVID -19 on debt and finance was a prominent theme in the high -level panel . 
It was also picked up in several other sessions, notably one organized by the OECD on the pandemic 's 
impact on financing for development . This session confirmed the stress that the health crisis is 
placing on aid budgets. Even before the pandemic, official development assistance had been under 
strain . Countries are now facing what the OECD described as an SDG fi nancing gap that increased 
by 50% to some USD 4.2 trillion.  
15. A panel organized by the IMF highlighted how debt challenges have been exacerbated by the 
COVID -19 pandemic. More than half of low -income countries are now in debt distress or in high risk 
of debt  distress. Global public debt had reached 98% of gross domestic product ( GDP) in 2020, an 
increase of 14 percentage points on pre -pandemic levels . The session discussed the G20 debt service 
suspension initiative . So far, 46 countries had made use of the in itiative and several calls were made 
to extend it beyond 2021 . The G20 Common Framework for Debt Treatment was discussed together 
with the need for transparency not least given the increasing diversity among public and private 
actors holding debt .  
16. Mr Amadou Hott, Minister of the Economy, Planning and International Cooperation of Senegal, 
highlighted the critical importance for lower -middle income and low -income countries of accessing 
new liquidity on concessional terms before moving to commercial finan cing. He highlighted the 
importance of the official development assistance and called for support with strengthening domestic 
resource mobili zation. These issues were further explored in a session organized by the LDC Group 
on the financial response to the  pandemic held this afternoon.  
17. A session organized by the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) highlighted that trade 
finance transactions had suffered at the onset of the crisis from significant operational challenges, 
such as a high reliance on paper  documentation, as well as financing challenges stemming from the 
withdrawal of foreign banks from certain markets . Multilateral institutions and export credit agencies WT/COMTD/AFT/W/86  
 
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  had had to step in to provide guarantees. The trade finance safety net had facilitated the importation 
of PPE and medicine . Trade finance would also help deliver COVID -19 vaccines to low -income 
countries . Trade finance would continue to be a constraint to a recovery of trade in countries in 
which the perception of country and counterparty ri sk remained high.  
Global Value Chains and Supply -Side Capacity  constraints  
 
18. A second theme that emerged was the impact of COVID -19 on Global Value Chains (GVCs) 
and supply -side capacity . A session organized jointly by UNIDO and the Mission of Zambia on 
Tuesday morning , 23 March  shed light on the vulnerability of countries in the face of a global health 
challenge when they rely on imports for 60% to 70% of the domestic supply of their pharmaceutical 
products .  
19. This session discussed the challenges and opportunities involved in mobilizing resources to 
build local pharmaceutical manufacturing industries, with a focus on West Africa. Points raised 
included the need to build on progress in standards compliance and h armonization, upgrading 
infrastructure, using appropriate industrial policies,  and developing a conducive environment for 
investors that would facilitate technology transfer. The African Development Bank  (AfDB)  highlighted 
the scope for growth as per capit a spending on pharmaceuticals was low compared to the global 
average.  
20. Many of these themes were further elaborated in an LDC Group session that examined 
developing production and supply capacities for medical equipment and pharmaceutical capacities 
in LDC s. It suggested that we need to think beyond traditional ways to support the extension of local 
pharmaceutical production in LDCs. Free movement of raw material and skilled workers is crucial . 
MSMEs have led innovation and need support to compete at global level. A more flexible and 
adaptable approach was needed to address specific manufacturing capacity gaps, as well as establish 
a strong regulatory but innovation friendly environment.  
21. Another session, this time organized by the WTO Secretariat with the pa rticipation of the OECD 
and regional development banks, discussed whether or not the COVID -19 crisis is an opportunity for 
diversification and to include new suppliers in markets .  
22. The panellists provided an assessment of the impact of COVID -19 pandemic on  GVCs  in Africa, 
Asia, Latin America and the Caribbean, as well as advanced and transition economies. The discussion 
examined how the diversification of GVCs plays an important role to increase the resilience of 
production . Regional and international coope ration was essential to minimize the trade -off between 
diversification and efficiency. Measures such as addressing non -tariff measures, fostering digital 
trade and improved access to information are important determinants to successfully tackle not only 
the current pandemic but also future shocks . Both the Asian and Inter -American Development Banks 
highlighted that the pandemic has strengthened focus on reshoring of business activity . The AfDB 
highlighted the opportunity that the African Continental Free Tr ade Area  (AfCFTA) offered for 
economic diversification and upgrading Africa 's position in value chains.  
Regional approaches to COVID -19 recovery  
 
23. This theme of regional approaches to economic diversification and promoting supply capacity 
was also discussed in the context of COVID -19 recovery. A high -level panel organized by the AfDB, 
International Trade Centre and UNIDO set out the need to deepen pr ivate sector engagement and 
commitment in the AfCFTA 's implementation. Some private sector actors had been reticent to 
engage with the process . Given that the private sector accounts for 80% of total production and 
employs 90% of the workforce across Afric a, their engagement was essential . Most businesses are 
MSMEs or in the informal sector and the AfCFTA  would address many of their day -to-day concerns 
about regulations and bureaucracy that unnecessarily increased trade costs . Full implementation of 
the AfC FTA was expected to contribute to building Africa 's structural transformation and to reshape 
markets and economies.  
24. Regional approaches were also the focus of a session organized by Australia and the Pacific 
Island Forum Secretariat  (PIFS)  that explored re gional Aid -for-Trade approaches as a pathway for 
longer -term inclusive economic recovery and resilience . Countries in the region faced some common 
challenges that regional cooperation could help address . These included geographical fragmentation, WT/COMTD/AFT/W/86  
 
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  small pop ulation and domestic markets, limited infrastructure and connectivity capacity, high trade 
and transport costs and susceptibility to natural disasters . Aid-for-Trade efforts in the Pacific Region 
supported inclusive and sustainable economic growth by addressing key environmental issues, 
promoted private sector engagement,  and reduced red -tape through trade facilitation measures.  
25. Regional approaches to Aid for Trade and COVID -19 recovery were  also explored in an Islamic 
Trade Finance Corporation event that concluded in the  afternoon  of 25 March . This session explored 
the contribution of the Aid for Trade for Arab States Programme in promoting inclusive job creation 
and curbing migration. The s ession also showed that meeting these objectives would require a joint 
effort by Arab countries and international donors.  
Promoting recovery among MSMEs and in the tourism sector  
 
26. Another theme discussed was that of promoting recovery among MSMEs and the tourism 
sector . A session organized by Uruguay underscored the importance of ensuring targeted 
Aid-for-Trade disbursements to MSMEs. Speakers highlighted that MSMEs have been severely 
impacted by the economic fallout of the pandemic, indeed more so than large firms.  
27. Panellists highlighted initiatives undertaken over the past year to support international MS ME 
trade. Encouragingly, there was agreement that efforts to support MSME trade would remain a 
crucial component to supporting recovery and resilience.  
28. Among the hardest hit sectors on account by the pandemic is tourism. Reviving the sector is 
posing majo r challenges to governments around the world. With a focus on the Asia -Pacific Region, 
a session discussed options to help the tourism sector survive and how to prepare for a gradual 
re-opening. It also analysed how Aid for Trade could be used strategicall y to help the sector and to 
ensure that it delivered in terms of sustainability. Still on tourism, a panel provided insights into the 
power and path of Aid for Trade to affect the rebuilding of global tourism with greater resilience 
through diversification , digitalization and inclusion reflective of post -COVID -19 markets and new 
opportunities.  
29. A high -level session on Tourism Resilience organized by the World Bank Group also provided 
insights on how Aid  for Trade can positively affect global tourism. Featur ing the World Bank 's 
Managing Director for Partnerships and Development, Ms Mari Pangestu, the session highlighted the 
ways in which C OVID -19 has enabled an opportunity for a sector reset, through intensified 
collaboration amongst governments, donors and t he private sector. Country examples were also 
submitted. For instance, Sri Lanka noted a total government approach working with the private 
sector to implement green design and the national sustainability certificate. Kenya meanwhile placed 
a renewed focus  on protecting nature and wildlife, drawing upon local knowledge,  and creating 
innovative private sector partnerships for financing sustainable development.  
Digital connectivity and e -commerce  
 
30. During the pandemic, digital connectivity has played a crucial role in ensuring business 
continuity . The digital transition that was already well underway pre -pandemic has accelerated . 
Unsurprisingly this topic was high on the agenda and featured in several sessions.  
31. In 2021, UNCTAD 's eTrade for all initiativ e organi zed a review of its eTrade need assessment 
reports . This review was the subject of one of the sessions which was organized earlier today and 
discussed the finding of this global monitoring exercise. To address challenges brought forward by 
the COVID-19 pandemic, they proposed some mid and long -term policy solutions including 
collaboration and partnerships – both physical and digital. They also emphasi zed the importance of 
the regional dimension. For instance,  in Africa, the UN was involved in suppor ting the implementation 
of the AfCFTA in relation to e -commerce.  
32. Digital connectivity was also discussed in an LDC session on the promotion of sustainable 
recovery in LDCs and their economic resilience through the mobilization of Aid for Trade. The session  
discussed how to mobilize Aid for Trade for sustainable economic recovery. Accelerating aid for 
digital trade was one of the key takeaways . Other key points included maintaining support to LDCs, 
addressing supply -side challenges, channelling Aid for Trade  to support MSMEs and women and WT/COMTD/AFT/W/86  
 
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  supporting training of young people . The issue of digital divide attracted larger attention of all 
panellists throughout the session.  
33. Vanuatu organi zed a session which explained how LDCs and fragile States need to take 
meas ures to support their digital transformation to support efficient and safe cross -border 
e-commerce and customs clearance. Representatives of UNCTAD and Universal Postal Union  (UPU) 
suggested that Vanuatu 's digital transformation had positively contributed to Vanuatu 's graduation 
from LDC status . This could serve as a model for how to build strategies and implement systems for 
others.  
34. Cambodia also organi zed a session on 25 March which looked at how Aid for Trade had 
accelerated digital transiti on in Asian LDCs. The session discussed the growth prospects that 
e-commerce offers in Cambodia and the region. In the context of the measures taken to control the 
pandemic, "e -commerce has become all commerce".  
35. A session organi zed by Japan looked at meth ods towards increasing digital capability and 
addressing the digital divide in the context of agriculture to support small farmers . The Japan 
International Cooperation Agency (JICA) presented two case studies showing how digital 
technologies can help small  farmers at all value chain stages. The session made a case for Aid for 
Trade to support the deployment of such smart agricultural technology. It also underscored how 
COVID -19 had pushed digital approaches in the food sector.  
Adapting trade formalities to COVID -19 and future pandemic risk  
 
36. Another theme discussed is that of adapting trade formalities to COVID -19 and future 
pandemic risk . In his speech, President of the World Bank Group, Mr David Malpass, highlighted 
trade facilitation measures as critical to restarting growth in developing countries . He quoted the 
figure that two -thirds of the income gains, almost USD 300 billion, expected from the AfCFTA  would 
come from implementing trade facilitation measures.  
37. An immediate challenge that the pand emic presented was how to adapt trade formalities to 
COVID -19. A session organized this morning by TradeMark East Africa (TMEA) discussed how safe 
trade is being promoted in Eastern Africa . Physical distancing and testing measures for cross -border 
transpor t workers ha ve slowed the clearance of goods across borders . By harmonizing sanitary 
measures, the TMEA is seeking to help goods flow and mitigate risks associated with cross -border 
transmission of COVID -19. A session organized by the Netherlands that just  concluded also discussed 
the impact of COVID -19 on cross -border traders and how to promote an inclusive recovery that 
takes account of the informal economy.  
38. Ms Fekitamoeloa Katoa 'Utoikamanu, UN  Under -Secretary -General and High Representative 
for the Leas t Developed Countries, Landlocked Developing Countries and Small Island Developing 
States , also spoke to trade facilitation issues in a session organized jointly with Kazakhstan . She 
highlighted how landlocked countries are especially vulnerable to the eff ects of cross -border 
restrictions and border closures implemented by transit countries .  
39. A high -level panel featured the Minister of Trade of El Salvador, Ms Maria Luisa Hayem, and 
her opposite number in the government of Singapore, Ms Yen Ling Low, Ms Marion Jansen from the 
OECD and Mr Bill Gain from the World Bank . This session examined the importance of trade 
facilitation for a sustained recovery from an MSME perspective.  
40. Digitized customs procedures coordinated border management, and improvements in  
transparency were crucial to create trade opportunities for MSMEs. The value of e -commerce 
integration as a driver of market access and diversification for MSMEs, was also highlighted during 
the discussion.  
41. Many of these points were also picked up in the  two sessions organized by the U nited States. 
These drew the link between trade facilitation and the digital economy . Assistant U nited States Trade 
Representative , Ms Dawn Shackleford made a robust call for accelerated implementation of the 
WTO Trade Facil itation Agreement  (TFA)  and underscored the need for data to flow freely across 
borders.  WT/COMTD/AFT/W/86  
 
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  42. A session organized by the LDC Group, the World Bank and the Trade Facilitation A greement  
Facility covered this same area, but with a particular focus on distribution  of COVID -19 vaccines and 
supporting COVID -19 recovery . Like the session organized by CUTS International on women traders 
in Bangladesh, Bhutan, India and Nepal, the World Bank session also highlighted the important 
gender dimension to trade facilitation . This session also pointed to the promise of South -South 
cooperation on this theme – something that was further elaborated in a session organized by the 
United Nations Office for South -South Cooperation  (UNOSSC) . This session focused on the role of 
digital technology and South -South cooperation in structuring a globally -inclusive  post-COVID -19 
economic architecture for increased trade facilitation.  
Promoting an inclusive, green recovery  
 
43. Promoting an inclusive green recovery was another theme that emerged . One session that 
bridged the topics of adapting trade formalities to COVID -19 and green recovery was organized by 
the Standards and Trade Development Facility . In it, experts from the area of sanitary and 
phytosanitary measures explained how COVID -19 is a wake -up call . Animal and human diseases can 
spread rapidly across border as could plant pests. By following international standards and upgrading 
the soundness and robustness of SPS systems, safe trade could continue. Continued investment was 
needed though, including through Aid -for-Trade funding to promote new partnerships between 
governments and private sector to meet international standards and go digital.  
44. A session organized by Sweden, CUTS and Tanzania highlighted that economic recovery 
should  foster a green transition through inclusive, resilient,  and sustainable trade policies . Five 
strategies to achieve a free, fair, and sustainable trade were outlined by speakers. These included:  
• Using the December WTO MC12  to gain momentum towards eliminating barriers in 
climate -friendly goods and services trade;  
• Strengthening the trade and health agenda, especially given the role of trade in accessing 
medical products and services;  
• Fostering cooperation on vaccine produc tion;  
• Ensuring trade policy benefited women and men equally; and  
• Updating the rulebook on digitalization and e -commerce as to facilitate the growth of 
developing country businesses.  
 
45. A session organized by Canada, the European Union and the ITC also exp lored pathways for 
an inclusive and green recovery. Panellists echoed the importance of prioritizing a sustainable 
transition. They urged countries to not "waste this crisis" and emphasized the need to use the global 
disruption caused by COVID -19 to implem ent policies facilitating a resilient, sustainable and socially 
responsible international trade system . The development and trade community was urged to "green " 
Aid for Trade.  
46. These points were further reinforced in a session organized by Finland that discussed the 
opportunities arising from the transition to a circular economy and more sustainable economic 
development models . This session showcased examples of circular economy approaches .  
47. The Stocktaking Event harvested much useful input that can be i ntegrated into our response 
and the recovery actions. There is also much useful information that can be used to advance the 
Work Programme for 2020 -2022 "Empowering Connected, Sustainable Trade ".  
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS  
48. The 2021 Aid -for-Trade Stocktaking Event wa s organized by the Aid -for-Trade Unit in the 
Development Division  with the assistance of staff across the WTO.  This Summary Report has been 
compiled by the Aid -for-Trade Unit of the Development Division . The summary is an edited collection  
of the  reports submitted by session organizers . Where no report  was received , the text is an informal 
summary prepared by the WTO Secretariat staff.  Session numbering may diverge between the 
agenda and the summary report because Session 1 was a welcome video and others  were cancelled 
shortly before the event by the organizer.  
  WT/COMTD/AFT/W/86  
 
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  SESSION 1: RECOVERY THROUGH OPEN TRADE : TOWARDS INCLUSIVE, RESILIENT AND 
SUSTAINABLE TRADE POLICY POST  COVID -19? 
ORGANIZER(S) : CUTS International, Sweden and United Republic of Tanzania  
MODERATOR : Mr Robert Watt, Communications Director and Head of Strategic Policy Engagement, 
Stockholm Environment Institute  
PANELLISTS  
• Mr Anders  Ahnlid, Director -General, National Board of Trade, Sweden  
• Mr Per-Arne Hjelmborn, Director -General for Trade at the Ministry for Foreign Affairs, Sweden  
• Mr Mani Prasad Bhattarai, Ambassador and Permanent Representative of Nepal  
• Mr Rashid  S. Kaukab, Executive Director, CUTS International, Geneva  
• Ms Jane Nalunga, Executive Director, SEATINI Uganda  
• Ms Julia Nielson, Deputy Director, Trade and Agriculture Directorate, OECD  
 
Short Summary  
49. The C OVID -19 pandemic has shown the importance of free and open trade, not least for 
developing countries. Trade will be instrumental for sustainable recovery and em ployment, and for 
building back better and greener. Despite the enormity of the challenge, this can be an opportunity 
to build back better through inclusive, resilient,  and sustainable trade policy. This session focus es 
on identifying the pathways to assis t developing and Least Developed Countries  (LDCs)  in this 
regard.  
Long Summary  
50. Setting the scene, the Director -General for Trade at the Swedish Ministry for Foreign Affairs, 
Mr Per-Arne Hjelmborn, outlined five key areas to achieving a free, fair and sustainable trade and 
to help inclusive development prosper: (i) making trade a tool for sustainable development and 
green transition, taking advantage of the next WTO Ministerial Conference to take concrete steps 
towards removing barriers to climate -friendly goods and services; (ii) the need progress on the trade 
and health agenda, given the key role of trade in accessing medical products and services in the 
face of C OVID -19; (iii) the need more cooperation on vaccines; (iv) the need to ensure that trade 
policy benefits women and men equally; and (v) the need to update the rulebook on digitalization 
and e -commerce, for which the ongoing joint statement initiative is a unique opportunity to facilitate 
the operations and market access of businesses and MSMEs in this field. According to him, Aid for 
Trade has a crucial support role to play across these areas . 
51. Regarding  the role of the WTO, Mr Pradeep S. Mehta, Secretary -General of CUTS International, 
noted that bringing the WTO dispute settlement system back to  life was not the only elephant in the 
room. The ongoing pandemic was another issue that needed to be addressed. It would require 
Members to collaborate effectively , particularly on vaccines where agreeing on a TRIPS waiver was 
much needed.  There was also a need to recogni ze that there was no one -size-fits-all solution . 
Instead, tailor-made approaches were needed based on each country 's specificities.  
52. In the ensuing panel discussion, it was recalled that the C OVID -19 pandemic ha d had a 
devastating impact on LDC trade and poverty levels through, inter alia , shrinking supply and 
demand, disruptions in global supply chains, reduced investment , etc. Among the wide range of 
affected sectors, tourism, hospitality, transport,  and labour -intensive manufacturing were 
particularly mentioned. In reaction to the crisis, 335 trade -related measures were introduced by 
Members including restrictions (many of which were later lifted). Trade tensions among neighbouring 
countries had also been report ed. 
53. While leveraging e -commerce and digital innovation can be part of adaptation strategies, 
many developing countries were faced with challenges in this area and should be prioriti zed for 
capacity building and technical assistance. Key bottlenecks include d limited access to infrastructure, 
inadequate skills and capacities, lack of national or regional e -strategies , etc. WT/COMTD/AFT/W/86  
 
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  54. Trade in medical products was a key area of focus, especially since, for most countries,  
vaccines need ed to be imported. Reflecting on how  to ensure that trade in medical products 
continue d to flow in potential future crises, speakers mentioned the importance of, inter alia:  
(i) trade facilitation, both physical and digital; (ii) international cooperation; (iii) transparency on 
essential and  medical goods;  and (iv) disciplining export restrictions , etc. 
55. Looking ahead, speakers also explored possible avenues to build back better, by increasing 
trade resilience while leaving no one behind. The need to maintain economic integration and trade 
openness was stressed, as well as making sure that trade benefits were shared equally with a 
particular attention for women, youth,  and other vulnerable communities. It was recalled, for 
instance, that female entrepreneurs face d greater challenges in accessing finance, business 
networks, policy -making circles etc. In this regard, ongoing initiatives and policies promoting the 
participation of women in trade were welcome and  had to be prioriti zed for Aid-for-Trade support.  
Reporte r: CUTS International  
 
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  SESSION 2: MOBILIZING RESOURCES TO BUILD RESILIENT LOCAL PHARMACEUTICAL 
MANUFACTURING INDUSTRIES IN DEVELOPING COUNTRIES – CHALLENGES AND 
OPPORTUNITIES  
ORGANIZER(S) : United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) and Zambian 
mission to WTO  
MODERATOR : Mrs Martha Lungu Mwitumwa , Ambassador, Permanent Representative of Zambia to 
WTO and to the U nited Nations , and Chair of the Friends of Industry and Innovation  
PANELLISTS  
• Dr Bernardo  Calzadilla -Sarmiento, Managing Director, Directorate of Digitalization, Technology 
and Agri -Business, UNIDO  
• Dr Adbu Mukhtar, Director, Industrial and Trade Devel opment Department, African Development 
Bank (AfDB)  
• Mr Günter  Nooke, Personal Representative of the German Chancellor for Africa at the Federal 
Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ)  
• Pr Stanley  Okolo, Director -General, West African Health O rganization (WAHO)  
• Dr Christianah  Mojisola Adeyeye, Director -General, National Agency for Food and Drug 
Administration and Control (NAFDAC), Nigeria  
• Mr Greg Perry, Assistant Director General, International Federation of Pharmaceutical 
Manufacturers and Associations (IFPMA)  
 
 
Short Summary  
56. Participants agreed that the COVID -19 pandemic had underlined the imperative of 
strengthening the African pharmace utical industry to improve security of supply , and better prepare 
the region for future crises and pandemics. Participants agreed that a number of critical factors are 
in place to deliver on this agenda, such as the required political will as well as expan ded market 
opportunities under the AfCFTA. Participants agreed that the international community should play a 
catalytic role by targeting Official Development Assistance (ODA) and Other Official Flows (OOF) to 
the sector 's development through a combination  of capacity building, budget support, and market 
commitments/signalling.  
Long Summary  
57. The discussion  had three major threads, why, what and how : why strengthen the 
pharmaceutical industry, what needs to be done, and how to achieve the objectives. The following 
sub-sections identify some of the overarching themes from the discussion .  
58. "Time to Act " - Professor Okolo spoke passionately about the need to stop talking and to take 
action  as there had been discussion and theoretical debate about this issue for too long. The 
COVID -19 pandemic had highlighted the importance of building more resilient supply of essential 
medicines with a number of the panellists pointing to breaks in supply of antiretroviral medications 
(ARVs) and other essential medicines. Many of the building blocks had been put in place, particularly 
with regard to regulatory harmoni zation and defragmentation of markets, such as progress under 
the African Medicines Regulatory Harmonization (AMRH) and AfCFTA .  
59. "Quality is key" - A central theme of the discussion was the need for quality ; first for local 
production but also in rooting out subs tandard and falsified (SF) products  that were  imported from 
other continents. Dr Adeyeye noted that , on a daily basis , the National Agency for Food and Drug 
Administration and Control (NAFDAC) dealt with SF products destined for Nigeria through their 
pre-shipment testing initiative. She also spoke about the Good Manufacturing Practice (GMP) 
roadmap work conducted by UNIDO . She noted that there was a lot of work to be done to enable 
companies to become GMP compliant , however now that they had established a Q uality System at 
NAFDAC, they would be able to enforce the required standards.  
60. Professor Okolo noted that quality was vital and that enablers needed to be provided to 
achieve quality. He noted that only a handful of companies met the requisite standards a nd that it 
was necessary to become more radical in enforcing standards . A stand needed to be taken that if WT/COMTD/AFT/W/86  
 
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  companies did not meet the standards ; they needed to cease production. The AfDB estimated that 
roughly 20% of manufacturers met GMP requirements and that by 2030 their target was 50% . The 
issue of quality was also central to Mr Perry 's comments regarding the interest of the international 
research based Multi -National Companies ' enthusiasm for partnerships and joint ventures, referring 
to the example of the AstraZeneca partnership with the Serum Institute of India .  
61. Market size was a basis for progress. The need for sufficient volumes to support sustainable 
high-quality manufacturing was noted. The progress made under the African Medicin es Regulatory 
Harmonization (AMRH), the potential of the AfCFTA and the possible launch of the African Medicines 
Agency (AMA) were all cited as being important developments that could drive progress of the sector. 
Professor Okolo referred to the issue of p rocurement by the large international procurement funds 
such as the United Nations Children 's Fund (UNICEF) and the Global Fund. He commented that if 
local manufacturers could produce products that were required, they should not be imported from 
elsewhere.  Furthermore, the example of India was given where a large "single market " had been a 
key factor in the sector 's development . With 1.2 billion people (admittedly across 54  countries) a 
similar market effect could be achieved in Africa through harmoni zation and reduced barriers to 
trade .  
62. Vaccines were another level . Mr Nooke, Mr Calzadilla -Sarmiento and Professor Okolo spoke 
about the vaccine manufacturing capacity that then existed in Africa, with particular reference to 
Institut Pasteur Dakar, Biovac and Vacsera. There was a general agreement that vaccine 
manufacturing capacity expansion was critical in light of COVID -19. Mr Nooke expressed the 
commitment of Germany and the E uropean Union in supporting this objective, noting that capacity 
had to be flexibl e to cover the range of different technologies that could be involved in future 
vaccines. Mr Perry cautioned that vaccines were a different level involving cutting edge science, 
requiring very high -quality production facilities and more .  
63. Access to capital  was key . Professor Okolo mentioned access to capital as being a key enabler 
to achieving the requisite quality standards. Mr Calzadilla also emphasi zed the importance of the 
right type of investment. He cited UNIDO 's work with industrial parks, including the pharmaceutical 
park in Ethiopia, as being an approach that could encourage investment. The Af DB mentioned that 
it had USD 11 billion of its own money that it planned on investing in the private sector under their 
vision for 2030.  
64. Business environment was critical. The context within which manufacturers did business was 
highlighted on a number of fronts. The need to improve infrastructure such as utilities and roads 
was covered, as was the need for rule of law and suitable legal frameworks, s trong regulatory 
oversight, policy coherence and more.  
65. "Partnerships, partnerships, partnerships " was  Mr Mukhtar reply when a sked how to build on 
renewed interest in the pharmaceutic sector to put in place a long -term approach to support it.  He 
had previ ously noted the many organi zations and stakeholders involved and identified the need for 
strong coordination and collaboration.  
66. Political will – what was different this time?  Governments were seen to have a critical role to 
play and it was noted that gove rnments needed to work together on this agenda. Mr Mukhtar noted 
that, in the past , the level of political will had not been sufficient to drive progress over time across 
multiple nation states. He stressed that the COVID -19 pandemic ha d been a real wake -up call. The 
degree to which COVID -19 had influenced perspectives and emphasi zed the need to make progress 
was articulated by many participants.  
67. In conclusion, participants agreed that the COVID -19 pandemic ha d highlighted the 
importance of building more resilient supply of essential medicines to improve security of supply and 
to better prepare the region for future crises and pandemics. It was noted that the exceptional 
political will required to deliver on thi s agenda had been mobili zed in response to the crisis . There 
was also a need for partnerships with and between countries, agencies, international manufacturers 
and others. Expanded market opportunities under the AMRH, the AfCFTA and AMA was another area 
where progress had been made. These factors along with incentives for industry and robust business 
environments can facilitate access to capital and encourage technology transfer, two critical aspects 
to be addressed.  
Reporter: UNIDO  WT/COMTD/AFT/W/86  
 
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  SESSION 3: DEVELOPING PRODUCTION AND SUPPLY CAPACITIES OF MEDICAL 
EQUIPMENT AND PHARMACEUTICAL CAPACITIES IN LDCS – THE ROLE OF AID FOR TRADE  
ORGANIZER(S):  WTO LDC GROUP  
MODERATOR: Mr Mani Prasad Bhattarai, Ambassador/ Permanent Representative of Nepal to the 
United Nations Office, WTO and other International Organizations in Geneva  
PANELLISTS  
• Dr Nicaise  Ndembi , Director of Laboratory Research at Institute of Human Virology, Nigeria  
(IHVN), Senior Science Advisor to the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention 
(Africa -CDC)  
• Ms Spring  Gombe , Programme Manager, Technology Access Partnerships at UN Technology Bank 
for the Least Developed Countries  
• Mr Sayed  Ramin Ziwary , Ambassador, Permanent Representative of Afghanistan to the WTO  
• Ms Komal  Kalha, Associate Director, Intellectual Property and Trade Policy (IFPMA)  
• Ms Cécile  Billaux , Head of Unit for Micro -Economic Analysis, Investment Climate, Private Sector, 
Trade and Employment, Directorate -General of International Partnerships (INTPA), European  
Commission.  
 
Short Summary  
68. The meeting discussed : (i) global production and supply of medical equipment and 
pharmaceuticals for pandemic control; (ii) the strategy for local/subregional pr oduction and supply 
of medical equipment and pharmaceuticals for pandemic control; (iii) possible technical assistance 
and capacity -building measures for LDCs to produce medical equipment, pharmaceuticals, and 
procurement on a local/sub -regional basis; (iv) the challenges facing LDCs with regard to access to 
pharmaceutical supplies;  and (v) the role that Aid for Trade can play in assisting the LDCs to cope 
with the COVID -19 pandemic.  
Long Summary  
69. In his opening remarks Mr Sayed Ramin Ziwary  of Afghanistan  outlined the challenges faced 
by the LDCs in relation to  access  to pharmaceutical supplies. He mentioned that the LDCs ha d 
minimum production of pharmaceuticals, they were also facing challenge s with the  high price of  
medicines. Other challenge s include d the lack of safety in handling the pharmaceuticals and the 
infrastructure for transporting the medicines. Regarding the role that Aid for Trade could play in 
assisting the LDCs, he pointed to  assist ance for m edicine purchasing. LDCs could also b e assisted in 
increasing their own production of medicines, by mobili zing the resources to facilitate production 
within the LDCs. He added that the LDCs could also diversify their economies as a means to 
overcome the challenges of COVID -19. 
70. Mr Nicaise Ndem bi, IHVN, Africa -CDC, suggested the measures that could be put in place by 
African countries and the LDCs in order to cope with the COVID -19 pandemic. He mentioned the  
high need for collaboration and coordination of all stakeholders in pharmaceutical prod uction and 
suggested that the African countries should corporate with each other to meet their needs for better 
and more efficient pharmaceutical production.  
71. In her intervention, Ms Spring Gombe , UN Technology Bank for the LDCs , talked about 
measures that could bring the LDCs closer to coping with the shortage of the medical supplies. She 
stated that the LDCs could take advantage of the opportunities that they already ha d. For example, 
some LDCs had textile industries which they could use to produce face masks and other personal 
protective equipment ( PPE). She also mentioned that LDCs should go beyond their traditional ways 
of production . For example , the focus should move  away from the big exporting companies  to let 
the MSMEs produce the needed products to  be used against  COVID -19. She also added that the 
LDCs should put in place development policies that look ed at the most vulnerable first.  
72. Ms Komal Kalha (IFPMA ) came up with the suggestion that there existed a need to 
strengthening the global supply chain. She indicated that trade barriers should be removed  and WT/COMTD/AFT/W/86  
 
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  added that there should be free movement for skilled workers, production equipment and the raw 
materials needed to produc e the necessities needed to face the COVID -19 pandemic.  
73. Ms Cécile Billaux (EC, INTPA ) discussed the initiatives that the E uropean Union had taken to 
support the LDCs. She mentioned that the E uropean Union had donated EUR  40.5 billion of medical 
supply to the LDCs. She also added that  the European Union had been supporting COV AX in their 
initiatives to assist LDCs. She also mentioned that E uropean Union is planning to assist the LDCs to 
produce their own pharmaceuticals.  
Reporter: WTO 
 
 WT/COMTD/AFT/W/86  
 
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  SESSION 4: TRADE FINANCE TO POWER THE GLOBAL RECOVERY  
ORGANIZER(S): International Chamber of Commerce  
MODERATOR: Mr Marc Auboin, Counsellor, WTO  
PANELLISTS  
• Ms Amy Jadesimi, CEO of Lagos Deep Offshore Logistics Base (LADOL) and Member of the ICC 
Advisory Group on Tr ade Finance (ATF)  
• Mr Andrew Wilson, Global Policy Director, International Chamber of Commerce  
• Mr Rudolf Putz, Head of Trade Facilitation Program, European Bank for Reconstruction and 
Development  
• Ms Nathalie Louat, Director, Global Trade and Supply Chain, the International Financial 
Corporation  
• Mr Steven Beck, Head of Trade and Supply Chain Finance, Asian Development Bank  
 
Short Summary  
74. The panel session discussed issues related to the availability of trade finance during this 
COVID -19 pandemic. As noted in the description of this session on the ICC website, Trade finance 
is a vital lifeline for many small businesses and underpins a very large share of global trade.  
Long Summary  
75. The panel session organized by the International Chamber of Commerce ("Trade Finance to 
Power the Global Recovery") aimed at discussing issues related to the availabil ity of trade finance 
during this COVID -19 pandemic. As noted in the description of this session on the ICC website, Trade 
finance is a vital lifeline for many small businesses and underpins a very large share of global trade .  
76. The event was moderated by Mr Marc Auboin, Counsellor for Trade and Finance at the WTO. 
The speakers were: Ms Amy Jadesimi, CEO of Lagos Deep Offshore Logistics Base (LADOL) and 
Member of the ICC Advisory Group on Trade Finance (ATF); Mr Andrew Wilson, Global Policy Director, 
Internat ional Chamber of Commerce; Mr Rudolf Putz, Head of Trade Facilitation Program, European 
Bank for Reconstruction and Development; Ms Nathalie Louat, Director, Global Trade and Supply 
Chain, the International Financial Corporation; and Mr Steven Beck, Head o f Trade and Supply Chain 
Finance, Asian Development Bank . 
77. The moderator asked about the challenges and threats corporates and institutions had been 
facing regarding access to trade finance since the onset of the COVID -19 crisis, how they had been 
reacting to it, and, what were the prospects for improvement in the upcoming recovery .  
78. The general view was that trade finance transactions had suffered at the onset of the crisis 
from significant operational challenges, such as  a high reliance on paper documentation, as well as 
financing challenges stemming from the withdrawal of foreign banks from certain markets in which 
significant gaps already existed. While in the advanced economies stimulus measures supported 
business viab ility and demand, emerging and low -income countries experienced 
balance -of-payments difficulties and increased sovereign debt problems. This increased perception 
of sovereign and transactional risk in developing countries led confirming banks to reduce tra de 
finance facilities, credit limits and even correspondent banking relations further – thereby 
threatening the ability of the poorest countries to import and export vital products.  
79. While innovative solutions favouring local financing and productions have  emerged in countries 
with stronger local financial systems, multilateral institutions and export credit agencies had to step 
in to provide guarantees on the confirmation of letters of credit in countries with weaker financial 
system and provide working ca pital to smaller firms. The trade finance safety net deployed by these 
institutions allowed for the importation of personal protective equipment (PPE) , medicine, and in the 
coming weeks of vaccines in low -income countries .  
80. The outlook was mixed. The deman d for multilateral development banks ' trade finance 
programs had further increased at the beginning of the year 2021, mirroring a deteriorated trade WT/COMTD/AFT/W/86  
 
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  finance environment in many countries of Africa, Latin America and Central Europe. There was a 
danger that the debt overhang resulted in a long -lasting tightening of lending to local corporates. 
For the time being, private sector banks lacked the risk appetite to re -engage in cross -border 
transactions, as balance -sheet and capital resources were in high demand domestically. M ultilateral 
Development Banks (M DBs) saw no rapid return to normal. Trade finance would continue to be a 
constraint to a recovery of trade in countries in which the perception of country and counterparty 
risk remained high.  
81. Opportunities we re seen in further digitization of trade finance, to the extent that some 
legislative gaps could be filled, and in the gradual mobilization of domestic financial resources – for 
low-income developing countries to increase their capacity to fund their own t rade. This required a 
continued joint technical assistance effort of the institutions involved to joint disseminate knowledge 
on the use of modern trade finance instruments (such as supply chain finance), management of 
trade finance risk, and compliance wi th international business and regulatory standards.  
Reporter: WTO 
 
 WT/COMTD/AFT/W/86  
 
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  SESSION 5: COVID -19 AND GLOBAL VALUE CHAINS – AN OPPORTUNITY FOR 
DIVERSIFICATION?  
ORGANIZER(S) : AsDB, OECD, WTO  
MODERATOR : Dr Roberta Piermartini, Chief of Trade Costs Analysis, World Trade Organization  
PANELLISTS  
• Mr John Drummond, Head of the Trade in Services Division in the Trade and Agriculture 
Directorate, Organization for Economic Co -Operation and Development (OECD)  
• Mr Jaime Granados, Chief of the Integration and T rade Sector, Inter -American Development Bank 
(IaDB)   
• Mr Jean-Guy Afrika, Director of the Regional Integration Coordination Office, African Development 
Bank (AfDB)  
• Dr Jong Woo Kang, Principal Economist at the Economic Research and Cooperation Department, 
Asian Development Bank  (AsDB)  
• Dr Alexander Plekhanov, Director, Transition Impact and Global Economics, at the European Bank 
for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD)  
 
Short Summary  
82. This session provided both a global and regional perspectives  to the debate over the 
opportunity for diversification to increase resilience of GVCs. The panellists provided an assessment 
of the impact of COVID -19 pandemic on GVCs in Africa, Asia, Latina America and the Caribbean as 
well as advanced and transition ec onomies. The discussion showed that  the diversification of GVCs 
played an important role in increas ing the resilience of production and that regional and international 
cooperation was essential to minimize the trade -off between diversification and efficien cy. 
Facilitating trade was key in order to ensure flows of goods along GVCs and to avoid bottle necks in 
production. Measures such as addressing non -tariff measures, fostering digital trade and improved 
access to information were important determinants to successfully tackle not only the current 
pandemic but also future shocks.  
Long Summary  
83. In her introductory remarks to the session Ms Roberta Piermartini pointed out that while 
economists and policy makers ha d largely embraced participation into GVC as a wa y to foster 
development, the outbreak of the COVID -19 pandemic ha d triggered a new discussion about how 
GVCs were respond ing to the crisis and whether governments should promote a change in production 
structure s. She pointed out that COVID -19 had highlighted the risks associated with a lack of 
diversification: a country 's exposure to external supply shocks and to the risk of policy changes, 
such as export restrictions. She also stressed, however, that the costs o f diversification could be 
very high in certain sectors, such as those with high upfront costs .   
84. Mr John Drummond stressed that global supply chains boost ed resilience, while policy 
uncertainty undermine d resilience. In this context, he pointed to OECD ca se studies on essential 
products providing evidence for the fact that shortages in goods, like face masks and vaccines at 
the beginning of the pandemic, were essentially due to an unprecedented surge in demand rather 
than a failure of global value chains .  
85. To foster  the resilience of supply chains in the current pandemic and for future crises, t wo 
actions were needed at different levels. In view of current challenges, he argued for a collective 
international response to the global shock in order to coordina te measures across borders and to 
improve transparency in order to enable better risk management strategies. Moreover, he underlined 
the relevance of public -private cooperation to identify and to avoid bottlenecks in production along 
value chains by sharin g market information, organizing emergency supply and stock piling of core 
products. At the national level, Mr Drummond pointed to the need for investments in infrastructure, 
digital trade and highlighted the importance to avoid export restrictions .   
86. Mr Jean-Guy Afrika began by recalling the 2.1% GDP contraction seen in 2020. He then 
highlighted the drop in global demand for specific sectors like some raw materials (such as crude WT/COMTD/AFT/W/86  
 
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  oil, gold  or coffee), apparel & textile as well as tourism as a main source of economic vulnerability. 
In this context, he emphasized the importance of impro ving regional diversification by fostering 
intra-regional trade integration ; and maintain ing and upgrad ing position s in existing value chains. 
Then, he stressed the necessity to improve countries' infrastructure . With respect to possible actions 
to be taken by policy makers, he pointed to the importance of tackling general issues like markets 
access and the need to reform at the macro economic level while leaving space to meet 
country -specific needs at the micro economic  level.  
87. Mr Jaime Granados illustrated the situation of GVCs in Latin America and the Caribbean. In 
light of the COVID -19 outbreak, he detected a trend of Latin American and Caribbean economies to 
nearshore business activities . Aiming or the   diversification of the region 's economies , he stress ed 
the need to reduce logistic costs by fostering digital transformation as well as trade facilitation and 
to invest in trade -related infrastructure.  Mr Granados argued that diversification implie d 
opportunities to attract and keep foreign direct investment  (FDI) . However, he also warned against 
a "race to the bottom" , for instance, with respect to countries undercutting labour rights in their 
pursuit of FDI.  
88. Mr Jong Woo Kang, Principal Economist a t the Economic Research and Cooperation 
Department, Asian Development Bank , argued that reshoring of business activity was accelerated 
by the COVID -19 pandemic rather than initiated  by it. In this context, he showed that the global 
trade level in 2025 coul d be USD 5 trillion lower if reshoring increased by 10% compared to a 
baseline scenario of the current trade structure. He argued that robotisation and artificial intelligence 
could be identified as main drivers for the motivation of economies to internali ze part of their supply 
chain . Mr Jong Woo also argue d that the core policies to support resilience were the same in Asia as 
those Mr John Drummond highlighted. He also pointed at role of Asian megaregional as a policy 
response to avoid reshoring and claim ed that there was no basis for a  trade -off between 
diversification and efficiency .  
89. Mr Alexander Plekhanov argued that the question whether a firm should diversify or reshore 
its production need ed to consider  industry -specific circumstances. Thereby, he stressed that during 
the COVID -19 pandemic , industries had been exposed to demand shocks to a different extent . For 
example, as  restrictions on services triggered more spending on manufacturing products. In this 
context, he remarked that reshoring of production did not automatically imply a greater resilience 
to shocks as reshored business activities were not shielded from business interruptions when located 
in geographical proximity. He further concluded that a firm 's dec ision whether to increase 
diversification at the cost of efficiency vary across product categories. He also highlighted the 
relevance of MSMEs  and the importance of taking them  into account when discussing GVC resilience. 
Thereby, he particularly underline d the importance of information sharing and simplifications of 
non-tariff measures like certifications of standards.  
Reporter: WTO 
 
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  SESSION 6: IMPACT OF COVID -19 ON LANDLOCKED DEVELOPING COUNTRIES AND 
IMPLICATIONS FOR RESILIENT RECOVERY  
ORGANIZER(S) : Kazakhstan, UN -OHRLLS 
MODERATOR: Ms Fekitamoeloa Katoa 'Utoikamanu  – High Representative for the Least Developed 
Countries, Landlocked Developing Countries and Small Island Developing States (UN -OHRLLS)  
PANELLISTS  
• Dr Kunio Mikuriya, Secretary -General, W orld Customs Organization   
• Dr Yonov Frederick Agah, Deputy Director -General, WTO   
• Mr Paul Akiwumi, Director of the Division for Africa, Least Developed Countries and Special 
Programme, UNCTAD  
• Ms Elisabeth Tuerk, Director, Economic Cooperation and Trade, U nited Nations Economic 
Commission for Europe   
• Ms Susan Stone, Head of  Division Emerging Policy Issues, Trade and Agriculture Directorate, 
OECD  
 
Short Summary  
90. The session discussed the impact of COVID -19 pandemic on Landlocked Developing Countries 
(LLDCs ), and identified challenges peculiarly faced by LLDCs over the past year. Cross -border 
restrictions enacted by transit economies and ineffectual trade -facilitating apparatus have resulted 
in pronounced negatives on LLDCs. Recommendations towards a resilience recovery for LLDCs 
included enhancing connectivity through digiti zation of border management measures, enhanced 
implementation of the TFA, and targeted Aid-for-Trade support for LLDCs.  
Long Summary  
91. Ms Fekitamoeloa Katoa 'Utoikamanu – High Representative for the Least Developed Countries, 
Landlocked Developing Countries and Small Island Developing States (UN -OHRLLS), opened the 
session by highlighting the challenges faced by Landlocked Developing Countries (LLDCs) as result 
of the COVID -19 global pandemic. In particular, she noted that LLDCs are especially vulnerable to 
the effects of necessary cross -border restrictions and border closures implemented by transit 
countries to stem the tide of the pandemic. In enhancing the resiliency of the economies of LLDCs, 
she underscored the need for a robust Aid -for-Trade support for LLDCs in dealing with the arduous 
task of recovery . 
92. In her opening remarks, Ambassador Aitzhanova of Kazakhstan, stated that the world had to 
acknowledge the unique challenges faced by LLDCs, which includ ed higher transit costs, and longer 
travel times of LLDC exports. She noted that the estimated LLDC G ross domestic Product  recovery 
of 4.1% w ould barely offset the economic losses of 2020. On crisis relief, she noted that such relief 
should pay special attention to the needs of LLDCs with particular attenti on to digital transformation. 
She went on to highlight Kazakhstan 's partnership with the International Trade Centre (ITC) and 
UNCTAD in the development of a regulatory framework on e -commerce, which she said was  essential 
to improving the capacity of LLDCs to appropriately engage in the evolving negotiations on 
e-commerce at the multilateral level . 
93. In her keynote address, Ms Peggy Onkutlwile Serame, Minister of Investment, Trade and 
Industry, Botswana, reiterated the peculiar challenges faced by LLDCs,  further exacerbated by 
COVID -19 prevention measures. In Botswana, she reported that border closures ha d had a 
devastating effect on the country's nascent manufacturing sector . With the pandemic abating, the 
Botswana economy was expected to grow at 8.8% in  2021. This expectation was buoyed by the 
government 's stabilization measures which include d wage subsidies and an emergency response 
fund for formal and informal businesses. She touted the government 's Economic Recovery and 
Transformation Plan (ERTP), whi ch ha d assisted 22 formal sector enterprises and 10,000 informal 
sector enterprises. Among Botswana 's government effort at enhancing its resiliency were the 
development of a Trade Facilitation Agreement Implementation Roadmap, the establishment of a 
Single Window, and an ongoing review of its Doing Business roadma p – all which were  aimed at 
easing cross -border trade .  WT/COMTD/AFT/W/86  
 
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  94. In his keynote address, Mr. Lekhraj Bhatta, Minister for Industry, Commerce and Supplies, 
Nepal, noted that LLDC transit cost was 42% higher than that of most countries due to their 
remoteness. He emphasized that the WTO should facilitate the smooth flow of vaccines especially to 
the LLDCs as these were  harder to reach. He reported that Nepal had integrated the Vienna 
Program me of Action (VP oA) into its national development plan. In addition, he acknowledged the 
WTO's support in Nepal 's effort to graduate from LDC status. He concluded his remarks by 
emphasizing the need for robust  Aid-for-Trade support in its development efforts .  
95. Opening the panel discussion, Mr Kunio Mikuriya, Secretary -General, WCO mentioned the 
WCO's support to ensure supply chain resilience amidst the global pandemic. He urged those 
countries, that had yet to do so, to commit to the Revised Kyoto Convention (RKC), which promote d 
trade facilitation and effective controls through its legal provisions. He stressed the importance of 
the need to coordinate modern border management with the private sector  and enhance its 
resilience. He called on LLDCs to digitize c ustoms procedures to enhance social distancing at borders 
and urged the use of data analysis for risk management. He wrapped up his intervention by stating 
the indispensability of facilitating e -commerce, which he noted ha d soared during the pandemic .  
Putting people at the cent re of recovery was critical to a resilient economy .  
96. Dr Yonov Frederick Aga, Deputy Director -General, WTO, noted that social distancing measures 
had reduced air freight capacity and limited port capacity , thus inducing severe decline s in economic 
activity especially in LLDCs. He mentioned that measures to fight the pandemic ha d had  
heterogenous effect s between countries . However , these had bee n more detrimental on LLDCs. He 
shared charts showing sharper declines for LLDCs exports compared to other countries. He concluded 
by stating that the challenges brought about by the pandemic require d an unprecedented level of 
international collaboration for a robust recovery . 
97. Mr Paul Akiwumi, Director of the Division for Africa, Least  Developed Countries and Special 
Programme, UNCTAD, highlighted the need for the diversification of LLDC export baskets. He 
reported that the pandemic ha d resulted in lower remittances and increased capital outflows from 
LLDCs, and that the GDP of LLDCs co ntracted by 2.4% in 2020. He mentioned the need for increased 
social expenditure in LLDCs in creating growing risks amidst reduced government revenue, and as 
such, debt repayment moratorium for fiscal space was necessary. At the core of his presentation 
was his emphasis on the need to build productive capacity. He reported that UNCTAD ha d developed 
a Productive Capacity Index (PCI), the PCI can help LLDCs take stock of their respective productive 
capacity for better policy formulation and structural transfo rmation. He equally noted that a 
productive -capacity gap assessment was now at the centr e of UNCTAD 's assistance to developing 
countries. He ended his intervention stressing that Aid for Trade should target LLDCs, and such 
support be aligned with their national development strategies .  
98. Ms Elisabeth Tuerk, Director, Economic Cooperation and Trade, UNECE,  counted  9 LLDCs in 
the pan -European continent. She reported that  the impact of the pandemic on them was not unlike 
the impact  experience d in other LLDCs . The lack of digital infrastructure festered a lack of 
transparency at the borders  of LLDCs . In its response to the pandemic, UNECE ha d developed a 
package of standards for digitization of trade, recommendations on Single Window and digital trade 
facilitation  alongside being part of the global initiative on the United Nations Development Account 
(UNDA) MSME resurgence. She also shared that UNECE consider ed circular economy to be key in 
building resiliency and sustainable trade for LLDCs. She ended by acknowledging that interagency 
cooperation was key to providing effect support to LLDCs .  
99. Ms Susan Stone, Head of Division Emerging Policy Issues, Trade and Ag riculture Directorate, 
OECD, in concluding the panel discussion pointed to digitalization and connectivity as keys to building 
economic resiliency. Ms Stone noted that COVID -19 pandemic ha d accelerated digitization and LLDCs 
needed to catch -up. She mention ed that less than 10% of LLDCs exporters were MSMEs, which was 
not a good indication of economic inclusiveness. More so, digital connectivity continue d to be a 
barrier for LLDCs as only 35% of LLDCs population h ad access to the internet. She concluded by 
reporting that the OECD ha d developed a toolkit for designing resilient supply chains and stated that 
Aid for Trade needed to support digitalization particularly in LLDCs .  
100.  For Ambassador Kham -Inh Kitchadeth of  the Lao People's Democratic Republic (PDR) the 
effect of the pandemic  on his country  has been severe as its manufacturing sector has particularly 
suffered. He reiterated Lao P DR's support for global efforts to expand access to vaccines, and WT/COMTD/AFT/W/86  
 
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  diagnostics for th e most vulnerable countries. He then called for continued support from the 
international community in its recovery efforts.  
101.  Ambassador Lina Annab  of Jordan, agreed with the OECD 's submission on the importance of 
digitalization to global recovery, particul arly for MSMEs. She noted the need for robust support to 
MSMEs to scale in order to take a fuller advantage of e -commerce. She also noted the digital divide 
from a gendered perspective, thereby calling enhanced capacity -building measures to bridge the 
divide.  
102.  Mr Purevsuren Lundeg, Ambassador, Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary Permanent 
Representative of Mongolia and Coordinator of Group of LLDCs in Geneva, in his closing remarks, 
summarized the discussion held noting the particular challenges faced by LLDCs. He noted the lack 
of capacity of LLDCs to the produce medical products needed to combat COVID -19 . He called for 
intensified international support for LLDCs and reminded the meeting that current financial supports 
still fell too short of what was truly needed to reverse  the tid al economic decline. Ultimately, 
multilateralism and transparency were essential elements to strengthening the resilienc e of the 
LLDCs. He reported that LLDCs ministers would meet on the side-lines of the WTO 's 12th Ministerial 
Conference and commit to the full implementation of Article 11 of the TFA. He ended his remarks by 
stating that Aid for Trade was critical to a robust and resilient recovery.  
Reporter: WTO  
 
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  SESSION 7: HIGH -LEVEL PLENARY SESSION  
ORGANIZER(S) : WTO 
MODERATOR: Ms Soumaya Keynes, Trade and Globalisation Editor, The Economist  
PANELLISTS  
• Dr Ngozi Okonjo -Iweala, Director -General, World Trade Organization   
• Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, Director -General, World Health Organization  
• Dr Kristalina Georgieva, Managing Director, International Monetary Fund  
• Mr David Malpass, President, World Bank Group (WBG)   
• Mr Ángel Gurría, Secretary -General, Organisation for Econ omic Co -operation and Development  
• Ms Isabelle Durant, Acting Secretary -General, United Nations Conference on Trade and 
Development  
 
Short Summary  
103.  In this high -level meeting, panellists concurred that the COVID -19 pandemic had not affected 
everyone on an equal footing. In particular, the production and distribution of vaccines highlighted 
relevant inequalities between developed and weaker economies. They emphasized the crucial role 
of trade in helping countries recover from the pandemic and welcomed work u nder the Aid -for-Trade 
Initiative in this respect. They also agreed that this crisis was an opportunity for the world to move 
towards a more digital, greener, resilient and inclusive economy.  
Long Summary  
104.  WTO Director -General, Dr Ngozi Okonjo -Iweala, said that open global trade had helped lift 
more than a billion people out of poverty. Developing countries had accelerated growth, created 
better jobs and started narrowing the gap with richer economies. However, the COVID -19 pandemic 
has reversed development gains and exacerbated inequalities, including gender roles within 
households and countries regarding economic recovery. South Asia and Africa are likely to be most 
impacted in terms of increased poverty and food insecurity. LDCs had least benefited from th e 
rebound. The post -COVID -19 recovery should not leave anyone behind. In this respect, a rapid, 
global vaccine rollout was necessary. Scaling up manufacturing, access to technology and know -how 
in emerging markets and low -income countries would be essentia l to achieve this. Keeping markets 
open would also allow for a stronger and sustained recovery. Delivering results at the WTO, including 
at MC12, would provide greater certainty and predictability for trade. Finally, she underscored the 
key role played by the Aid -for-Trade Initiative and invited attendees to read a recent WTO publication 
on "Strengthening Africa 's Capacity to Trade ".  
105.  Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, WHO Director -General, recalled the impressive number of 
COVID -19 cases (122 million) and casualties (2.7 million) since the COVID -19 outbreak. But relevant 
impacts go far beyond health considerations. Worldwide, the economic recession has also seriously 
impacted livelihoods and some worrying trends persist: the current rising number of cases and 
deaths, the impact of the relevant COVID -19 variants and the inequitable distribution of vaccines. A 
global vaccine rollout can insti l hope. Still, 76% of vaccine doses were administered in developed 
countries. He stressed that vaccine equity is not an act of charity but the most efficient way to fight 
the virus and in everyone 's best interest. COVAX, the vaccines pillar of the Access t o COVID -19 Tools 
(ACT) Accelerator, is working to accelerate global production and distribution. To facilitate the 
rollout, several options could be explored: (i) exploiting excess capacity to increase production 
volumes; (ii) facilitating and increasing t echnology transfers ; and (iii) considering I ntellectual 
Property  waivers for COVID -19 vaccines .   
106.  Dr Kristalina Georgieva, IMF Managing Director, said that the pandemic had tested countries ' 
ability to adapt, but prospects for recovery remain uncertain and uneven. Advanced economies and 
some emerging markets will recover faster from the pandemic. Lower -income countries risk weaker 
growth due to diminished access to vaccines, global capital ma rkets and fiscal policy space. Collective 
efforts were thus needed to address these challenges. Consequently, the COVAX initiative is crucial 
in scaling up the production of vaccines – including in low -income countries – and their distribution. 
Furthermore , trade barriers affecting access to vaccines and treatment work against everyone 's WT/COMTD/AFT/W/86  
 
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  common interest. Unleashing the full power of trade in fighting the pandemic is both a moral and 
economic necessity. Additionally, it is an opportunity to leverage trade fo r development and build a 
greener, more inclusive and digital economy. The IMF 's role in economic recovery is central in 
advising countries to move swiftly to policies that support workers and businesses. The fund has 
lent 107 billion USD to low -income and  commodity -dependent economies .  
107.  WBG President, Mr David Malpass, noted that trade facilitation and commerce are critical to 
alleviating extreme poverty, boosting shared prosperity and supporting economic recovery. 
Countries have been unequally impacted. W eaker economies have suffered on many fronts: health 
(casualties), economy (job losses and increased poverty), education (school closures). On trade 
performance, the decline in global trade was inferior to 2009. Trade was more sustained, including 
import/e xport markets which have stayed more open. The resilience of GVCs has also softened the 
blow of the crisis. Moreover, trade is crucial in responding to the pandemic. Policies were tempered 
and export restrictions limited. Finally, trade is key to a resilie nt recovery from the pandemic. 
Countries should continue to work within the WTO to reduce tariffs and other trade barriers. The 
WBG continues to work with governments to allocate resources into finance facilities, improve supply 
chains and efficiently deve lop countries ' etrade systems. The WBG and the IMF are working closely 
on the G20 Common Framework and Private  Sector Debt Restructuring to provide debt relief and to 
free resources for health, education and climate .  
108.  OECD Secretary -General, Mr Ángel Gurrí a, stressed that the pandemic had hindered 
development. The annual SDG financing gap in developing countries increased by about 50% in 
2020. Income is set to decrease by 50% more for women than for men. Most students in Africa do 
not have access to househo ld computers and cannot connect online. This highlights the inequalities 
in facing and recovering from the pandemic. Trade and GVCs ' resilience are important for the 
production and distribution of medical goods. In services, tourism and transport were part icularly 
affected. The growth of digital trade has accelerated as a result of the outbreak but has also 
underscored the need to address the existing digital divide. Finally, Aid for Trade has a role to play 
and should be revisited to better respond to the ambitions of the Sustainable Development Agenda .  
109.  Ms Isabelle Durant, Acting Secretary -General (UNCTAD), reiterated that trade has to be more 
engaged in economic recovery, and in greener, gender -sensitive and more inclusive economies. 
There is an unequal c apacity to fund and implement recovery measures across countries and sectors, 
trade in services being far worse off than trade in goods. A developed country spends on average 
eighty times more on stimulus packages than developing economies. Resources have to be used for 
economic recovery instead of repayment, hence the importance of debt relief. Furthermore, although 
it has been crucial in dealing with the crisis, the digital economy needs to foster development rather 
than furthering divides. As such, devel oping countries require support to develop relevant skills, 
infrastructure and regulatory frameworks. On climate, production methods have to be adapted, new 
comparative advantages have to be identified and economies have to diversify. Such measures 
require  funding and Aid for Trade is essential in this regard. Nevertheless, she underlined that only 
3% of Aid -for-Trade disbursements are allocated to climate action under SDG 14 and that more 
could be done.  
Reporter: WTO  
 
 
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  SESSION 8: A NEW DIRECTION FOR AID FOR TRADE: PROMOTING AN INCLUSIVE AND 
GREEN PANDEMIC RECOVERY  
ORGANIZER(S) : Canada, European Union, International Trade Centre (ITC)  
MODERATOR: Ms Vanessa Erogbogbo, Chief of the Sustainable and Inclusive Value Chains Section, 
Head of the  SheTrades Initiative, International Trade Centre  
PANELLISTS  
• Ms Cécile Billaux, Head of Unit for Micro -Economic Analysis, Investment Climate, Private Sector, 
Trade and Employment, Directorate -General for International Partnerships, 
European  Commission   
• Ms Pamela Coke -Hamilton, Executive Director, International Trade Centre  
• Ms Kendal Hembroff, Director -General, Global Affairs Canada  
• Mr Joao Aguiar Machado, Ambassador of the European Union to the WTO  
• Ms Eunice Mutua, Chief Executive Officer, S elect Fresh Produce, Kenya  
• Mr Don Stephenson, Trade and Investment Advisor, Expert Deployment Mechanism (EDM) for 
Trade and Development, Canada  
 
Short Summary  
110.  This session discussed approaches to enhance sustainability and social responsibility in the 
process of building back from the COVID -19 crisis, with a focus on the role of Aid for Trade. In 
general, global trade openness, transparent international regulati ons as well as the enforcement of 
digital acceleration were emphasi zed to be important factors for economic recovery. Panellists 
warned against letting the crisis go to waste. The  disruption of the world economy could be used to 
implement and integrat e suitable policies facilitating a more resilient, sustainable and socially 
responsible international trad ing system.  
Long Summary  
111.  Ambassador Joao Aguiar Machado pointed out that the outbreak of the COVID -19 pandemic 
had served as an opportunity to reassess the policies in the E uropean Union trade policy review 
strategy to facilitate the management of the crisis as well as a fast recovery. The aspiration to "build 
back better" require d the identification of policies that ensure d supply chain resilience, the benefit 
all parties  to be involved, to safeguard openness and predictability in the trading system, and make 
economic activit ies green er. Trade would be key to overcom ing the current economic downturn. Aid 
for Trade could help to support developing and least developed countries to benefit from its gains. 
The European Union provide d about EUR 13.5 billion annually and ha d already a solid Aid -for-Trade 
strategy  in place . This strategy focuse d on supporting developing count ries, making use of the 
European  Union's various trade agreements to support their sustainable and inclusive development 
objectives. The aim was to enable developing countries to attract investments, to build supply chain 
capacity in sustainable and resili ent value chains, upgrade skills and human capacity, create jobs 
and growth to reduce poverty, as well as to support inclusiveness, democracy, the environment, and 
gender equality. All of this could be achieved by implementing conventions such as labour ri ghts, 
good governance, and environmental integrity . "Building back better" would be possible if the right 
synergy of resources and tools was achieved and international collaboration fostered .   
112.  Ms Kendal Hembroff stated that the COVID -19 crisis ha d intensified Canada 's work on inclusive 
trade. By interventions such as the organi zation of trade missions for women entrepreneurs in Korea 
and Chinese Taipei  over the past months , the integration of underrepresented groups in an 
international trade contex t had been supported. Moreover, Canada s ought  to provide inclusiveness 
when negotiating trade agreements. For example, in the beginning of the pandemic the members of 
the Inclusive Trade Action Group (Chile, New Zealand, Canada) agreed on ramping up their 
negotiations about the global trade and gender arrangement which focuse d on mitigating barriers 
for women to participate in trade. The promotion and subsequent implementation of this 
arrangement, especially in developing countries, would contribute to an i nclusive recovery. 
Furthermore, providing access to supply chains for SMEs (especially if owned by underrepresented 
individuals) was essential for economic resilience. Finally, Canada 's support for and collaboration 
with international trade organi zations was a further component of its Aid -for-Trade efforts. The WT/COMTD/AFT/W/86  
 
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  ultimate goal was to extend benefits of trade to emerging economies, developing and least 
developed countries .  
113.  Ms Pamela Coke -Hamilton stated that the current crisis ha d strongly affected two out of  
three  small companies, and one -fourth of micro firms were at risk of shutting down permanently. 
Three factors identified had to be included in Aid -for-Trade interventions to make firms more 
competitive, which in turn ma de them more resilient. The first was sustainability. The development 
community need ed to show that it was willing to invest in the transfer of new and green technology 
to developing countries by committing to Aid for green Trade. Sustainability was also shown to be a 
critical factor of trad e diversification. The second characteristic was inclusiveness which was a key 
element of "building back better". ITC was eager to offer concrete solutions and share lessons 
learned to make trade agreements more gender -responsive. Finally, fostering digital acceleration 
was crucial. The pandemic h ad exposed a vast digital divide – with detrimental consequences for 
those who were not able to participate in the fast -growing digital trade network.  
114.  Mr Don Stephenson pointed out that LDCs need ed global support. During the implementation 
of Aid -for- Trade interventions, the following needs of LDCs were identified: stable funding in stead 
of temporary grants, export assistance, and most importantly assistance in building productive 
capacity. To cover the costs private sector investments in developing countries were necessary. The 
Canadian government was proactive in this field, e.g. b y implementing the feminist international 
assistance policy which indicate d that all assistance needed to include a gender -equality and 
inclusion perspective, as well as environmental stewardship. It was important to note that doing so 
was not only a quest ion of moral, it was also good for business. Branding exports as green and 
socially responsible had a positive impact on the marketplace. Furthermore, developing countries 
saw e-commerce as a way to rebuild trade post -COVID -19, but also fear ed that they wo uld be left 
behind. To avoid that export development support was critical .  
115.  Ms Cécile Billaux presented the E uropean Union  Green Deal which aims to turn climate and 
environmental challenges into opportunities by making the green transition just and inclusi ve for all, 
and reach  climate neutrality by 2050. It was critical to take advantage of the current crisis to 
integrate green policies in the recovery strategies of governments and to attract investments from 
the private sector in the creation of green jobs  and businesses. Countries needed to cooperate to 
bring up the funds needed and build synergies to push business activity in a more sustainable 
direction. Making trade more sustainable further was an important long -term investment as we could 
already obser ve an increased consumer demand for green products. A bottom -up approach c ould 
help to address issues such as gender and climate as well as to integrate underrepresented groups 
in global supply chains .  
116.  Ms Eunice Mutua shared an in -the-field perspective by giving insight on the situation of SME  
owners during the pandemic. As African countries strongly rely on agriculture strengthening their 
integration in the respective supply chains was critical. Furthermor e, the inclusion of women was a 
highly desirable issue, also for the sake of efficiency in production. The pandemic could be seen as 
an opportunity to achieve these goals by giving room for entrepreneurship and the enhancement of 
international partnerships . The pandemic had further exposed the need for value addition in African 
markets to mitigate the dependence on food production. To set up again after the shock of the 
COVID -19 crisis, SMEs would need patient capital. The fact that capital was often very e xpensive 
and not sustainable in African countries constitutes an important obstacle to the resilience of small 
companies.  
Reporter: WTO 
 
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  SESSION 9: FINANCING FOR DEVELOPMENT IN THE ERA OF COVID -19 
ORGANIZER(S) : OECD  
MODERATOR: Ms Annette Ssemuwemba, Deputy Executive Director, Enhanced Integrated 
Framework  
PANELLISTS  
• Mr Adel Abdellatif, Director, a.i., United Nations Office for South -South Cooperation  
• Mr Guillaume Chabert, Director, Development Co -operation Directorate / Deputy Dire ctor, 
Strategy, Policy, and Review Department, International Monetary Fund  
• Ms Mona Haddad, Director, Country Engagement Department, International Finance Corporation  
• Mr Navid  Hanif, Director, Financing for Sustainable Development Office, Department of Economic 
and Social Affairs at the United Nations  
• Mr Jorge Moreira Da Silva, Director, Development Co -operation Directorate, Organisation for 
Economic Co -operation and Developmen t 
 
Short Summary  
117.  Financing for development has been under increasing stress since the COVID -19 pandemic 
started. Disruptions in business activity and supply chains coupled with employee layoffs and 
education and health concerns have created pressing develo pment concerns. Even before the 
pandemic, official development assistance had been strained due to the rise of transactional trade 
costs derived from geopolitical tensions and trade finance constrains stemming from frictions in 
financial markets. As a resu lt, financing for development is at a risk of scarcity. With the aim to 
explore avenues for increasing development financing efforts, Session 10 explored opportunities and 
challenges for Aid-for-Trade initiatives to contribute to post -pandemic financing fo r development.  
Long Summary  
118.  Mr Jorge Moreira Da Silva, Director, Development Co -operation Directorate, Organisation for 
Economic Co -operation and Development, began the discussion by conceptualizing the scissor effect 
of the COVID -19 pandemic on developing  countries. Countries were now facing a SDG financing gap 
which had increased by 50% in comparison to the USD 2.5 trillion gap observed  before the pandemic. 
As a result, the SDG financing gap was now estimated at USD 4.2 trillion. COVID -19 consequences 
for developing countries meant they now had to face an additional USD 1 trillion gap in emergency 
response funding .  
119.  Mr Guillaume Chabert, Director, Development Co -operation Directorate / Deputy Dire ctor, 
Strategy, Policy, and Review Department, International Monetary Fund (IMF), followed the 
discussion by expressing concerns around the prevailing high  level of uncertainty due to nationalism 
around vaccine rollout, increases in commodity prices and sl ow policy actions. He also warned that 
COVID -19 had led to rising inequalities both among and within countries. Despite fiscal responses 
to reverse the socio -economic damage caused by COVID -19, Mr Chabert warned that emerging 
markets and develop ing countri es were lagging compared to advance d economies  in deploying fiscal 
and economic stimulus packages. This revealed stark differences across countries in terms of 
rebound and recovery capacities, potentially meaning that developing countries face d a higher ri sk 
of divergence. COVID -19 had ultimately exacerbated vulnerabilities predating  the crisis. However, 
Mr Chabert stressed that a revitalization of trade opportunities could help countries boost recovery 
and resilienc e and help to address ongoing challenges brought by the pandemic .  
120.  For Mr Navid Hanif, Director, Financing for Sustainable Development Office, Department of 
Economic and Social Affairs at the United Nations, shaping a diverging world was at stake in the 
aftermath of the COVID -19 pandemic. He expr essed concerns around the pandemic -induced effects 
observed in the millions of people that had fallen into poverty due to job losses, deaths and declining 
income s. He also warned that divergence could further increase due to the unequal distribution of 
vaccines. To reverse diverging trends, Mr Hanif stressed that countries worldwide need ed to work 
cooperatively to meet collective commitments for development and ext ernal debt relief, with 
concrete actions in improving worldwide access to life -saving vaccines and medical supplies. He 
added that vaccines should be accessible to everyone and not just to a few countries.  WT/COMTD/AFT/W/86  
 
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  121.  Mr Adel Abdellatif, Director, a.i., United Nation s Office for South -South Cooperation, 
highlighted two main issues facing pandemic response initiatives. The first one ha d to be with the 
need to extend socio -economic assessments on the COVID -19 impact in developing countries. As of 
now, Mr Abdellatif ment ioned that 54 assessments ha d been conducted , but more need ed to be done 
to better reflect the needs  of developing countries. The second issue was around the lack of a 
development assistance model that addresse d the  transitional shifts induced by the pande mic. In 
this regard, Mr  Abdellatif emphasized that development assistance programs could place an 
increasing focus on domestic means for countries to enhance their capabilities to recover after crises 
and build resilience through the process of modernizing  economic activities, investing in digitalization 
and health care and providing social protection and employment support .  
122.  Ms Mona Haddad, Director, Country Engagement Department, International Finance 
Corporation (IFC), began her remarks by providing an o utlook of the pandemic -induce effects in the 
global economy and trade. She stressed that trade policy uncertainty remains, in part due to the 
undone effects of the global tensions between some of the major economies of the world. However, 
she applauded rem arkable trade liberalization efforts at the regional level, such as the African 
Continental Free Trade Agreement (A fCFTA). Ms Haddad warned that the scale of government 
support to the private sector ha d been uneven and that estimates suggest that only a qu arter of 
private sector firms have been able to access some form of public sector support. With companies 
facing acute working capital and liquidity constrains, Ms Haddad stressed that the private sector was 
at risk and merit ed more attention by policy mak ers given their timely role in creating jobs and 
investment to lift up growth and accelerate post -pandemic recovery .  
123.  In a second round of questions, Ms Annette  Ssemuwemba asked pane llists their views on 
opportunities and challenges brought by the COVID -19 pandemic. Mr Jorge Moreira Da Silva from 
the OECD stressed that the pandemic ha d raised debt sustainability concerns, which could be 
overcome by implementing more effective debt tran sparency and debt management policies . 
Mr Guillaume Chabert from the IMF added that opening financing facilities for COVID -19 responses 
had helped to overcome challenges in both financial and health fronts. These facilities mean t 
opportunities for accelera ting the pace of vaccine availability and circulation . On the other hand, 
Mr Naviv  Hanif stressed that investments in human and social capital need ed to be complemented  
with investments in resilient infrastructure that enable d opportunities for more inform ation, 
employment and risk reduction programs. Mr Adel Abdellatif emphasized the need for developing 
countries to build domestic resilience and enhance institutional capacity in data collection. Lastly, 
Ms Mona Haddad highlighted that MSMEs have been affec ted the most by the pandemic, creating 
the need for mainstreaming sustainability, inclusion and economic growth in recovery and resilience 
efforts .  
124.  To conclude, Ms Annette Ssemuwemba surveyed panel list perspectives on the role of 
Aid-for-Trade initiatives  in contributing to post -pandemic recovery. Pane llists said that these c ould 
help increase resilience of GVCs  and obtain gains in digitali zation, climate change resilience and 
equality. To achieve this, pane llists stressed the need for Aid-for-Trade programs to address 
particular needs of least developed countries (LDCs), small islands and developing states, women, 
youth and MSMEs.  
Reporter: WTO  
 
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  SESSION 10: COVID -RELATED MSME AID FOR TRADE  
ORGANIZER(S) : Uruguay  
MODERATOR: Mr Felipe Llantada Soldi, Deputy Permanent Representative, Uruguay  
PANELLISTS  
• Ms Dorothy  Tembo, Deputy Executive Director, ITC  
• Ms Ines Rocha, Director Financial Products, EBRD  
• Dr Lucia Cusmano , Senior Economist, OECD  
• Dr Arti Grover, Senior Economist, World Bank  
• Mr Robert Cook, Ambassador and Deputy Permanent Representative, United Kingdom  
 
Short Summary  
125.  Organized by Uruguay in its position as the Coordinator of the WTO MSME Informal Working 
Group, the session focused on initiatives undertaken by international organizations over the past 
year of the COVID -19 pandemic to support international trade by MSMEs. Presentations included 
discussions by the International Trade Centre  (ITC); the European  Bank for Reconstruction and 
Development  (EBRD) ; the Organization for Economic Co -operation and Development  (OECD) ; the 
World  Bank; and the U nited Kingdom . MSMEs have been severely impacted from the economic 
fallout of the pandemic, more so than large firms. However, new evidence reveals that those 
businesses engaged in exports and able to pivot digitally have suffered relatively less. As 
international organizations move to support MSME recovery and resilience going forward, efforts to 
support MSME trad e will remain a crucial component.  
Long Summary  
126.  Mr Felipe Llantada Soldi, Deputy Permanent Representative for Uruguay introduced the 
session with an overview of the recently completed package of six recommendations and 
declarations endorsed by the WTO MSME  Group on 11 December 2020. Issues covered by this 
package include access to information through WTO trade policy reviews; support for the joint 
ITC-UNCTAD -WTO Global Trade Helpdesk; MSME inclusion in regulatory development;  support for 
the WTO IDB decisio n to ensure the availability of updated and accurate trade information; trade 
facilitation; and trade -related finance. The MSME Group 's package was an important achievement 
acknowledging the challenges MSMEs face d at this difficult time. In addition to the  package, the 
Group was also working to develop an online Trade4MSMEs platform to connect MSMEs to verified 
trade resources .  
127.  ITC Deputy Director Ms Dorothy Tembo followed, presenting the work undertaken by the ITC 
to reposition MSME businesses to adapt to  the evolving economic situation of the pandemic, including 
concrete examples of trade -related business support provided in developing economies. Noting that 
the virus ha d disrupted supply chains and certain sectors where many MSMEs were found, such as 
tourism and retail trade, the ITC had been working to respond in a targeted, strategic and innovative 
way. This ha d included support for businesses to rebuild by adopting new models; providing services 
to businesses by acting as an interlocutor; focusing on d eveloping new skills within these businesses; 
and bringing an environmental and sustainability lens to the work .  
128.  Speaking on behalf of the EBRD, Ms Ines Rocha, Director Financial Products discussed the 
direct support provided to small businesses by the ba nk in an advisory and financial capacity to 
improve the business environment, generating new trade opportunities for MSMEs through 
information and networking. Citing a specific example of the EBRD 's efforts in Mongolia, 
Ms Rocha  illustrated the challenges MSMEs face d finding trusted partners and navigating trade 
barriers. Of the lessons learned, Ms Rocha noted that it was important to improve cooperation 
between buyers and suppliers and international financial institutions could play a role, serving as 
intermediaries and helping to connect public and private entities .  
129.  Ms Lucia Cusmano, Senior Economist at the OECD followed  this discussion with a presentation 
on the work the OECD ha d undertaken during the pandemic, including monitoring policy responses 
across 60 economies and releasing a special C OVID -19 edition of the SME Finance Scoreboard. WT/COMTD/AFT/W/86  
 
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  Regarding trade, work by the OEC D had found that MSMEs in supply chains ha d been hit especially 
hard given structural vulnerabilities. MSMEs h ad very limited cash buffers, and without normal trade 
MSMEs were found to be able to survive for only a few weeks. Trade policies implemented by various 
economies ha d focused on MSMEs as suppliers to value chains, mostly in the form of increased 
liquidity. Other types of support ha d included access to information and finding alternative markets, 
especially through digital tools. The last point Ms C usmano made referred to trade finance in the 
digital era. The lack of interoperability in these products was hindering this branch of finance and 
banks were reluctant to implement this technology. This was noted as a potential area for 
consideration by the  MSME Group .  
130.  Next, stylized facts from a recent study titled COVID -19, Firms and Trade: The Impact of the 
Crisis on Exporters in Developing Countries was presented by Ms Arti Grover, Senior Economist, 
World Bank. This study provides evidence based on Worl d Bank survey data that although the impact 
of the crisis ha d been severe and widespread, exporting firms of all sizes were relatively less 
impacted than non -exporting firms: exporting firms ' sales declined relatively less; exporters were 
more likely to re main open; and exporting firms were less likely to be in financial arrears. Reasons 
for this include d the fact that exporting firms h ad more diversified markets, were more likely to 
digitize and were better able to adjust to the current crisis. Although th ese findings h eld for firms of 
all sizes, smaller firms  were fare d less well compared to medium -sized and large ones. Public 
support, although beneficial, did not  reach enough firms .  
131.  The United Kingdom's  Ambassador and Deputy Permanent Representative Mr Robert Cook  
concluded the presentations with a discussion of the challenges faced by MSMEs and the need to 
create an inclusive environment. The United Kingdom  looked to support MSME trade in a number of 
ways through Aid for Trade, including the United King dom's trade advocacy fund to support the WTO 
joint statement initiatives and ensure that developing and least developed WTO Members ha d the 
capacity to engage on these issues. Concrete measures the United Kingdom  had undertaken to 
support MSME trade during  this crisis included  two regional dialogues to bring the voice of MSMEs 
to policymakers and through support of the SheTrades Commonwealth Program in conjunction with 
the ITC .  
132.  To prepare for future crisis events it was noted that efforts like those of the  WTO MSME 
Informal Working Group  were exactly in the right direction. Communication among multilateral 
organizations and coordinated efforts were also welcomed. Separately, digitalization and access to 
information were seen as essential to support MSME tra de. Finally , MSMEs require d tailored solutions  
since t hey are not a homogenous group . 
Reporter: WTO  
 
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  SESSION 1 1: LEVERAGING PACIFIC REGIONALISM TO SUPPORT ECONOMIC RECOVERY 
AND RESILIENCE  
ORGANIZER(S) : Australia and the Pacific Islands Forum  
MODERATOR: Mr Zarak Khan, Director of Programs and Initiatives, Pacific Islands Forum 
Secretariat  
PANELLISTS  
• Ms Jenna  Diallo, Deputy Director, Office of Economic Development and Governance, 
United Nations Agency for International  Development, Philippines  
• Mr Bill Costello , Assistant Secretary, Labour Mobility and Economic Growth Branch, Office of the 
Pacific, Australian D epartment of Foreign Affairs and Trade   
• Mr Noriaki  Abe, Director for International Trade, Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan  
• Ms Erja Askola , Deputy Head of Delegation, Permanent Delegation of the E uropean Union to the 
Pacific  
• Mr Desmond Tupangaia, Unit Manager – People Trade and Culture, Pacific Regional Division, 
Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade ,New Zealand   
• Mr Stanley  Trief, Manager, Vanuatu Electronic Single Window Project  
• Ms Mary Elizabeth Ramosaea, Team Lead, KBC -Elevate Ltd, S olomon Islands  
 
Short Summary  
133.  The meeting discussed the importance of regional Aid  for Trade for the Pacific Region in light 
of the priorities established by the Pacific Aid -for-Trade Strategy 2020 -2025 and by the need for 
COVID -19 recovery and resilience.  Insights about current and planned regional Aid -for-Trade 
initiatives were provided by donor partners including United States , Australia, Japan, 
European  Union, and New  Zealand. Vanuatu and Solomon Island showcased regional Aid -for-Trade 
best-practices, including the Vanuatu Electronic Single Window project and Trade Finance Vehicle. 
Collective progress on regional Aid -for-Trade support to the Pacific Region would be further discussed 
at the Global Review in 2022 . 
Long Summary  
134.  In his openi ng remarks , Mr Zarak Khan discussed the importance of trade for the development 
of the Pacific Region. He further highlighted the priority areas for regional trade action which are 
enshrined in the Pacific Aid -for-Trade Strategy (PAfTS) 2020 -2025, includin g services, e -commerce,  
comprehensive connectivity and deepening forum market, with the latter including quality 
infrastructure, trade facilitation, access to trade finance, and trade agreements. He elaborated on 
some regional initiatives coordinated by th e PIFS to implement the PAfTS 2020 -2025, namely the 
Pacific Quality Infrastructure Initiative, the Pacific E -commerce Initiative, the implementation of the 
Strengthening Pacific Intra -Regional and International Trade project, and the moderni zation of the 
Pacific Island Countries Trade Agreement (PICTA). He concluded by illustrating the impact of 
COVID -19 on the Pacific Region and how regional Aid  for Trade could help recovery and resilience .  
135.  Ms Jenna Diallo provided insights about the United States ' Indo-Pacific Strategy, and how 
USAID supports this development approach. Ms Diallo stressed the importance to develop initiatives 
that create solid partnerships with the private sector and boost digiti zation. In these areas, USAID 
support was guided by its Private Sector Engagement Policy and its Digital Development Strategy. 
Global programs were already in place which support digital empowerment, including the Global 
E-Trade Alliance launched in 2019. The approach promoted by the Global E -Trade Alliance provides 
useful lessons which could inform the forthcoming Pacific regional projects supported by USAID .  
136.  Mr Bill Costello stressed that trade was part of the Australian Government 's Pacific Step -Up 
initiative, due to its potential to promote su stainable growth. Regional activities were a key 
component of Australia 's development work, noting the importance of regional integration to 
mitigate Pacific structural challenges such as isolation, fragmentation, vulnerability, limited 
productive capacity , high trade and transport costs, and inability to meet standards. Australia 
regional programs cover areas such as investment facilitation, private sector development, 
standards, labour mobility, skills development, and infrastructure. These programs were aligned WT/COMTD/AFT/W/86  
 
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  with the Pacific Aid for Trade Strategy which was a valuable regional guide, and a framework for 
collaboration and coordination.  
137.  In this context, Australia was a proud sponsor of the Pacific Quality Infrastructure and 
E-commerce Initiatives coordi nated by the PIFS. The impact of Australian development programs 
was further enhanced by the entry into force of PACER Plus, the main regional trade and 
development agreement. Mr Costello noted the great economic costs imposed on Pacific Island 
Countries b y COVID -19. Australia 's response to COVID ha d included new policy frameworks, 
emergency assistance worth AUD 304.7 million, as well as pivoting existing assistance to support 
recovery and resilience. Australia was providing a record AUD 1.44 billion in dev elopment assistance 
to the Pacific in 2020 -21 to support recovery efforts .  
138.  Mr Noriaki Abe discussed the Japanese approach to supporting trade development in the 
developing country members of the Pacific Island Forum. After highlighting the major trade pat terns 
characteri zing Pacific Island Countries, he went on highlighting the key features of Japanese 
development cooperation, with its progressive shift towards quality, people, and multilateralism. 
Japanese support to the development of high -quality Pacifi c infrastructure was then showcased, 
including through examples from selected beneficiaries. In the area of multilateral assistance, 
Mr Abe discussed that many capacity -building activities funded by Japan and undertaken through 
the World Customs Organi zation. In the area of governance, he  concluded by noting the key 
trade -related outcomes of Pacific Islands Leaders Meetings, the main forum between the 
Government of Japan and leaders in the Pacific Islands region .  
139.  Ms Erja Askola focused her intervention on the implications that the new 
European  Union  - Africa -Caribbean -Pacific Partnership (EU -ACP) Agreement, including on 
Aid-for-Trade programs. She provided an historical overview on the EU -ACP partnership, and 
stressed its long -term nature, and the mutual commitment to further nurture this relationship 
through the Post -Cotonou Agreement concluded in 2020. She noted that the new agreement defines 
future areas of cooperation which would be funded under the geographical envelope of the new 
Neighbourhood , Development and International Cooperation Instrument covering the period 
2021-2027. Under the new framework for cooperation, Aid for Trade and Trade Agreements 
(including EPAs and GSP) would remain crucial to support resilient development and sustainable  
growth .  
140.  Mr Desmond Tupangaia spoke about the New Zealand 's approach on Aid for Trade in the 
Pacific. He noted that this had changed significantly since 2018, when New Zealand started the 
Pacific Reset, a strategic framework for cooperation based on mutua l understanding, friendship, 
impact, and sustainability. As a result, the relationship with Pacific Island Countries ha d moved from 
a donor -recipient approach to a true partnership approach. In the regional trade space, Mr Tupangaia 
noted that New Zealand worked in a number of ways, including through PACER Plus, regional labour 
mobility schemes, as well as support to the Pacific Trade and Invest Network. With regard to 
COVID -19 assistance, Mr Tupangaia noted that after a first phase focusing on the protecti on of 
Pacific Islands, the focus in now shifting towards vaccinations and other tools to reopen borders, 
which would promote trade development .  
141.  Mr Stanley Trief discussed the Vanuatu Electronic Single Window project, its results, the main 
lessons learned,  and its potential for regional uptake. He provided a brief history of the project, 
which started with the upgrade to the Vanuatu 's customs automated system to ASYCUDA World, 
and was further developed through the full automation of Biosecurity border proce dures. Mr Trief 
noted that as a result of these developments, clearance time went from days to as little as 
10 minutes, and that significant environmental benefits were also obtained along the way. He also 
stressed the need to further expand the scope of t he project by interfacing, automating, and 
streamlining processes of other agencies. He noted that the Vanuatu model ha d the potential to be 
replicated to other Pacific Island Countries, and that this replication would promote further trade 
integration and  represent a practical bottom -up approach to regionalism. Mr. Trief highlighted the 
need for additional resources from development partners for the further expansion of the Vanuatu 
Single Window .  
142.  Ms Mary Elizabeth Ramosaea presented the case of Kaleko Ste ifree, a Pacific producer of 
reusable pads for women and girl. She highlighted how innovative regional approaches to trade 
finance, such as the Trade Finance Vehicle, had been crucial to address production constraints, 
through the bulk purchase of raw mate rial, and its distribution to small Pacific businesses through WT/COMTD/AFT/W/86  
 
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  contractual modalities tailored on their productive reality. She highlighted how this innovative 
regional trade finance approach ha d resulted the triple -win outcome of more jobs, addressing sch ool 
absenteeism, and promoting good hea lth practices in the Pacific .  
143.  A Questions and Answers session followed the main presentations by panellists. During this 
session a number of issues were briefly addressed, including but not limited to:   
• The PACER Plus agreement and its potential for further expansion in and beyond th e Pacific; 
• The forthcoming regional USAID programs on digital connectivity and economic growth;   
• Japanese regional cooperation with the ASEAN Secretariat, and implications for the Pacific;   
• The impact of regional labour mobility schemes on Pacific brain -drain and brain -gain;  
• Private sector support under PACER plus;  and  
• The interfacing of the Vanuatu Single Window system with the postal system to support 
e-commerce .  
 
144.  In his closing remarks, Mr Zarak Khan noted how the regional approach es highlighted at the 
meeting take different forms, ranging from voluntary coordination to the more binding forms of 
regional integration enshrined in regional trade agreements. He stressed that there is a clear case 
for bringing these approaches under the  umbrella of overarching regional initiatives, and that this 
was the very reason why the Pacific Islands Forum Secretariat was investing much of its energies in 
promoting and coordinating regional initiatives in the priority areas of the Pacific Aid -for-Trade 
Strategy. He thanked the event 's panellists, the WTO Secretariat, and the Government of Australia, 
which  had co-organi zed the event. He proposed to meet again on the occasion of the Global Review 
in 2022 to take further stock of collective progress on regional Aid -for-Trade support to the Pacific 
Region . 
Reporter: Pacific Islands Forum  
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  SESSION 12: JAPAN 'S COMMITMENT TO INCREASE DIGITAL CAPABILITY AND ADDRESS 
THE DIGITAL DIVIDE: INCREASING AGRICULTURAL RESILIENCE OF SMALL FARMERS IN 
WITH/POST -COVID -19 SOCIETY  
ORGANIZER(S) : Japan  
MODERATOR: Dr Hiroshi  Yamakawa , Senior Deputy Director, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Japan  
PANELLISTS  
• Mr Noriyuki Shikata , Director -General / Assistant Minister, Economic Affairs Bureau, Ministry of 
Foreign Affairs Japan  
• Ms Mihoko  Saito, Deputy Director, Agricultural and Rural Development Team 1, Economic 
Development Division, Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA)   
• Mr Yasuo Taniguchi , CEO, Long Term Industrial Development Co.Ltd.  
• Mr Tomonari Takeuchi , Manager, Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu LLC  
 
Short Summary  
145.  The COVID -19 pandemic ha s accelerated the digital transformation (DX), bringing about a 
surge in online activities. In this seminar, Japan highlighted the potential of DX in agriculture sector 
in light of COVID19. JICA explained the impact of COVID -19 on the agriculture value chain and 
discussed how DX could increase the resilience of small -scale farmers. Two experts from the private 
sector presented case studies in the Philippines and Indonesia on how DX could strengthen 
agricultural value chains to s upport small -scale farmers.  
Long Summary  
146.  Japan has advanced negotiations under the Joint Statement Initiative (JSI) on e -commerce 
with other co -conveners, Australia and Singapore. In order to accelerate the negotiations, Japan 
also established the "Osaka T rack", which is a process to promote international policy discussions 
on data and digital economy, taking the opportunity of the G20 Osaka Summit in 2019 .  
147.  In the meantime, the COVID -19 pandemic has accelerated the digital transformation (DX), 
bringing about a surge in online activities. The e -commerce JSI is an opportunity for the WTO to 
effectively respond to this urgent need. Japan, with other like -minded members, also intends to find  
solutions to address challenges faced by developing members in adapting to the needs of 
e-commerce . Specifically, the COVID -19 pandemic has brought unprecedented challenges to 
small -scale farmers in developing countries. Market demands have shrunk due to lockdowns and 
supply chains were disrupted. While many farmers are still struggling to recover from the significant 
shocks, there are some promising cases in which farmers have used digital technologies to 
re/connect to agricultural value chains .  
148.  Against this backdrop, in this seminar, Japan highlighted the potential of DX in agriculture 
sector in light of COVID19 . In the opening remark, Mr Noriyuki Shikata , the 
Director -General/Assistant Minister of the Economic Affairs Bureau of the Ministry of Foreign A ffairs 
of Japan, underlined the Japan 's long -term commitment on Aid for Trade. Mr. Shikata also 
highlighted the importance of "co-creation " with partner countries in the area of digital technologies 
to ensure free and fair access to digital technologies by  all countries .  
149.  Following the opening remark, Ms Mihoko  Saito, Deputy Director of the Economic Development 
Department of JICA, explained the impact of COVID -19 on the agriculture value chain and discussed 
how DX could increase the resilience of small -scale farmers .  
150.  Mr Yasuo  Taniguchi , CEO of the Long Term Industrial Development Co.Ltd. and his team 
presented the case from the Philippine, and explained how digital application could be used to form 
digital cooperatives by small -scale farmers and ensure bett er access to finance and to help build 
efficient agriculture supply chains .  
151.  Mr Tomonari  Takeuchi , Manager at the Deloitte Touche  Tohmatsu LLC, shared the results from 
the survey conducted in Indonesia on how digital technologies could be used to connect small -scale WT/COMTD/AFT/W/86  
 
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  horticulture farmers to the value chain, with special focus on e -commerce. Mr Takeuchi underlined 
that, although e -commerce is an important tool with high potential to connect small -scale farmers 
to the value chain, they cannot fully embrace the benefits from e -commerce and it is still essential 
to support them to produce high -quality agricultural products .  
152.  Active Q uestion & Answer  session followed the presentations. There were questions on 
pros-and cons on digital cooperatives, the roles middleman under DX, and how could JICA support 
the digitalization in LDCs . The seminar was attended by 137 participants from 30 countri es. 
Reporter: Japan  
 
 WT/COMTD/AFT/W/86  
 
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  SESSION 13: REVIVING TOURISM AMID COVID -19 THE ROLE OF AID  FOR TRADE  
ORGANIZER(S) : Asian Development Bank, United Nations World Tourism Organization  
MODERATOR: Ms Anna Fink, Asian Development Bank,  Economist in the Regional Cooperation and 
Integration Thematic Group in the Sustainable Development and Climate Change Department of 
AsDB.  
PANELLISTS  
• Dr Matthias Helble  Senior Economist, Economic Research and Regional Cooperation Department, 
Asian Developm ent Bank  (AsDB)  
• Ms Zoritsa Urosevic,  Director, Institutional Relations and Partnerships Department, Special 
Representative to the United Nations in Geneva and New York, World Tourism Organization  
• Ms Susanne Becken, Professor,  Sustainable Tourism, Griffith University in Australia and Research 
Fellow, University of Surrey, United Kingdom  
• Mr Paul Davis, Tourism Specialist , Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade, New Zealand   
• Ms Gunay Bayramova, Head of Tourism Industry and Project Management Division,  State Tourism 
Agency, Republic of Azerbaijan  
 
Short Summary  
153.  The impacts of COVID -19 had underscored the importance of looking at the tourism sector. 
The session looked at the impact of COVID -19 in the Asia and Pacific regions tourism sector. The 
session further discussed options to help the tourism sector survive and how to prepare for a gradual 
re-opening in the Asia and Pacific Region. It also analyse d how Aid for Trade c be used strategically  
to help the sector and to ensure that it delivers in terms of sustainability in the short and long run .  
Long Summary  
154.  Dr Matthias Helble (Asian Development Bank) shared his research on COVID -19. The 
pandemic broke out early in 2020 leading to travel restrictions . The Pacific had implemented travel 
restrictions earlier than the rest of the world. This had  had a serious impact on tourism. There was 
hope for a recovering in the tourism sector with the vaccinations, assuming that vaccinated people 
would  be able to travel again. By 2024 the sector should have recovered with the lifting of the travel 
bans. Recovery could also be driven by focusing on domestic tourism. Challenges that could hinder 
recov ery were low vaccinations rate  and less interest in domestic destinations. The recovery could 
also be enhanced by developing bilateral travel bubble agreement s, established travel certificate s to 
encourage travelling. In conclusion, a prolonged pandemic would lead to more damage and the 
sector need ed more Aid -for-Trade assistance .  
155.  Ms Zoritsa Urosevic (UNWTO) reported that international travel ha d been disrupted and with 
the new spread of new COVID -19 cases this ha d not improve d. LLDCs ha d been really affec ted but, 
the countries covered by the A sDB ha d been affected the most. The pandemic had caused more 
damage than anticipated  as travel restrictions severely  affected the tourism sector . Still, the regions  
under lockdown were least affected. There ha d been some assistance to save the economies in terms 
of inclusive green recovery and planning for quick packages for recovery. The intergovernmental 
and multilateral dialogue ha d been identified as  key for the recovery process . For tourism to recover , 
travelling bans need ed to be removed . This would  need public and private stakeholders'  
consultations and planning because  the responsibility to open up border s was not the single remit 
of the ministries of tourism.  Therefore, creating and stimulating intergovernmental dialogue was key 
and in addition  to creating a harmoni zed management framework that would harmoni ze common 
criteria on vaccinations, protocols and develop public health corridors to unlock trave lling. In 
addition, a new development finance architecture need ed to be developed .  
156.  Ms Susanne Becken (Griffith University) highlighted that a healthy thriving tourism sector was 
integrated with other parts of the economy. It ha d backward linkages with supply cha ins and 
infrastructure and the environmental impacts should also be considered. The government ha d 
provided some assistance to the sector by investing in trainings, policy support and this has led to 
small recovery. Future government investments should be in innovation to diversify the sector. There 
is a need for a long term plan that would include innovation, culture and environmental management WT/COMTD/AFT/W/86  
 
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  coordination with stakeholders in areas such as tourism statistics, competitiveness, extending 
traditional touri sm, sustainability and integration with other sectors . There are seven pathways for 
change namely value -led tourism, improve government sector governance etc . In conclusion 
Tourism policy needed  to be enhanced and consider other sectors leading to tourism diversification 
and long term strategies needs to be developed .  
157.  Mr Paul Davis (Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade, New Zealand) presented on reviving 
tourism in the Pacific. The populations were small, and resources were scare. Tourism was the largest 
industry in terms of economic value and employment. The Pre -COVID -19 Aid for Trade focused on 
amenities awareness, accessibility, attraction attitudes, creating an enabling environment and 
developing enabling infrastructure. In addition, before COVID -19 the focus had changed from 
volume to value focusing on community benef it and other. This approach ensure d that the 
community benefit from tourism value chain .  
158.  The impact of COVID -19 was fell more on employment since many people  had lost their jobs . 
The post COVID -19 should consider  stabili zation focusing on product diversif ication,  health and 
safety, marketing program, funding SME support program me and also restoration in terms of getting 
ready once the borders were open and prioriti ze travel bubble agreements. The post  COVID -19 
should also consider  the green tourism, short haul, longer stays, less frequent, economic 
diversification, reduce dependency, higher value and differentiated products/packages e.g. Pacific 
experience. This new approach would ensure short -term and long -term sustainability of the tourism 
sector .  
159.  Ms Gunay Bayramova (Azerbaijan) presented on how Azerbaijan had been affected and was 
coping with the pandemic. The COVID -19 pandemic affected Azerbaijan by reducing its tourism GDP 
by 58.99 %. The government aided  in terms of liquidity support and direct financial transfers to the 
salary fund and micro -business entities accounts. Government developed  the Sahman sanitary and 
hygiene program which labelled 83 accommodations establishments and these standards are audited 
and certified by PWC. Adapted marketing communication strategy through digital marketing, 
domestic tourism marketing platform, B2B meeting and publishing articles  and interviews. Online 
training support . Post-pandemic recovery policy adopted tourism as a key pillar in the new 
socio-economic development strategy 2021 -2025. The government was also focusing on travel and 
tourism protocols, marketing and promotion; pol icy transformation from assisting to regulating and 
incentivising the sector . COVID -19 had the importance of the tourism  sector for economic 
development hence, the government is was in negotiation with its neighbours for safe travel 
corridors.  
Reporter: WTO 
 
 WT/COMTD/AFT/W/86  
 
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  SESSION 14: AID-FOR-TRADE STOCKTAKING EVENT: PROMOTING SUSTAINABLE 
RECOVERY AND ECONOMIC RESILIENCE IN LDCS – THE CONTRIBUTION OF AID FOR 
TRADE  
ORGANIZER(S) : WTO LDC Group  
MODERATOR: Mr Jean-Marie Paugam, Ambassador, Permanent Representative of France to the 
WTO 
PANELLISTS  
• Dr Leila Baghdadi , WTO Chair Holder and Professor of International Economics, ESSECT 
University of Tunis  
• Ms Caroline Freund , Global Director of Trade, Investment and Competitiveness, WBG  
• Mr Henri Monceau , Director, Economic and digital Francophonie Directorate, Organisation 
internationale de la Francophonie (OIF)  
• Ms Song Wei , Deputy Director of the Institute for International Development Cooperation, 
Chinese Academy of International Trade and Economic Cooperation (CAITEC)  
• Ms Liz Fajber , Deputy Director, Trade for Development at the Foreign, Commonwealth and 
Development Office  / Department for International Trade (DIT)  
 
Short Summary  
160.  This session was organi zed by the LDC Group. It mainly focused on mobilizing Aid for Trade 
for the sustainable economic recovery of the LDCs in the C OVID -19 period and beyond. The 
discussions revolve d around two questions: (1) what support international organizations and 
countries can provide to ensure sustainable economic recovery of LDCs; and  (2) how can Aid for 
Trade accelerate inclusive economic development in LDCs? Some of the key takeaways from the 
session included, inter alia : supporting LDCs via Aid for Trade as well as aid through trade; 
collaboration among development partners in designing developmental schemes for LDCs; 
addressing supply -side challenges of the LDCs; accele rating aid for digital trade; channelling Aid for 
Trade to support MSMEs and women; training young people and capacity building; and ensuring 
access to affordable C OVID -19 related medical equipment including vaccines. The issue of the digital 
divide attrac ted the attention of all  the panellists throughout the session. It was also argued that 
Aid for Trade should combine both  the humanitarian and development needs of LDCs.  
Long Summary  
161.  In the opening remarks, Mr Jean-Marie Paugam, Ambassador, Permanent Representative of 
France to the WTO highlighted the importance of the session  as insufficient  efforts had been deployed 
to assess the impact of COVID -19 in the LDCs.  Yet, LDCs had been hit hard by the pandemic  as their 
trade in traditional goods and services  had been impacted . The issue of adapting the economy of 
LDCs to the reality of an evolving COVID -19 situation  has become  a critical one. The structural 
challenges they were facing remained well known, but which new priorities would really help  them 
recover from the pandemic sustainably ? How could Aid for Trade promote the development agenda 
of the LDCs during the ongoing pandemic period and beyond ? He noted that the reason for organizing 
this session by the LDC Group was to explore ways forward  to these difficult questions .  
162.  Ms Caroline Freund, Global Director of Trade, Investment and Competitiveness, WBG,  focused 
on five  issues of priority for the World Bank in the post -pandemic recovery plans for LDCs: 
(1) supporting trade at the cent re for th e global economy recovery; (2)  improving connectivity and 
reducing trade costs through trade facilitation; (3)  contributing towards minimi zing inequality both 
at country and gender level; (4)  new strategy for green economic recovery , in particular the carb on 
tax measures at the border level;  and (5) accelerating Aid for Trade for digital economy. She further 
highlighted the need for private and public partnership in leveraging Aid for Trade for trade 
facilitation in LDCs. Special emphasis was placed on ITC 's "SheTrade s" initiativ e to help women 
entrepreneurs successfully out of the COVID -19 crisis. The latter offered a new opportunity for 
countries to relaunch their green economic development plans in order to achieve SDGs. She 
concluded by reiterating that the existing digital divide between LDCs and developed countries 
remained a matter of serious concern for the World Bank .  WT/COMTD/AFT/W/86  
 
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  163.  Ms Leila Baghdadi, WTO Chair Holder and Professor of International Economics, ESSECT 
University of Tunis , shared the vulnerability of  Tunisia in the face of  the COVID -19 pandemic . 
According to a recent report published by UNCTAD, Tunisia was one of the 20  countries affected 
most by the COVID -19 pandemic. Building productive capacity could be one potential driver for 
resilience. Due to e xport restrictions imposed by many countries Tunisia,  like many other low - and 
middle -income developing countries , did not have access to various products , including COVID -19 
essential products. It led to the need for producing these products domestically , yet her country was 
not able to produce a number of products due to various structural limitations. A permanent dialogue 
between private and public stakeholders at the national level could lead towards finding a new 
approach to tackle these emerging probl ems through enhancing local manufacturing capacity. The 
flexibility of using local content requirements for her country was essential to boost domestic 
manufacturing capacity. At the multilateral level, LDCs, other low income, and middle -income 
developing countries should be allowed to take new investment measures for development purposes. 
Aid for Trade should leverage participation of these countries in the global trade market. Lastly, she 
highlighted the role of the World Bank and IMF in addressing the de bt vulnerability of low - and 
middle -income developing countries .  
164.  Ms Song Wei, Deputy Director of the Institute for International Development Cooperation, 
Chinese Academy of International Trade and Economic Cooperation (CAITEC) underlined China 's 
prioritie s for the post -COVID -19 economic recovery of the LDCs. China had been focusing on 
development issues of the LDCs in order to align with the SDGs, boost export earnings and build 
capacity. China 's duty-free, quota -free ( DFQF ) scheme covered 97% of all tariff lines for LDCs. 
Several overseas industrial parks were jointly established by the Chinese and LDC Governments, 
which provided better infrastructure and attractive business opportunities for the foreign investors. 
Various s eminars were organi zed in LDCs to enhance capacity building in LDCs. She mentioned that 
extensive international cooperation to create a sustainable economic environment for LDCs was 
essential and China had always been ready to join the international commun ity's collective efforts 
to alleviate the sufferings of LDCs. Countries must come together to ensure affordable and accessible 
vaccines for LDCs. The sudden rise of tariff level s seriously undermined the smooth functioning of 
the multilateral trading syste m (MTS) . A predic table MTS was for the benefit of all Members , in 
particular for LDCs. She further presented one case study to show the significance of 
capacity -building training programmes run by Ali baba in Rwanda in enhancing the participation of 
women i n e-commerce. This online trading opened many windows of opportunities for women in 
LDCs, and proper channel ling of this benefit could reduce the gender gap in trade. She also shed 
light on the need for humanitarian assistance for LDCs along with developme ntal aids which were in 
place for the last several years .  
165.  Mr Henri Monceau, Director, Economic and Digital Francophonie Directorate, Organisation 
Internationale de la Francophonie (OIF) , provided an overview of the role of his organization in 
helping Fren ch-speaking African LDCs to join the international conversion on development. He 
elaborated Francophonie 's ongoing work on the connection between digital transformation and 
economic development. The crisis highlighted how people needed to use digital tools  for multiple 
reasons. This connected everybody in all countries, but the question of connection to digital 
equipment continued to remain critical for LDCs since these countries lacked access to many modern 
technologies. Eighty -one percent ( 81%) of people living in LDCs do not have access to the internet. 
The top priority for his organization was to reduce this digital divide through ensuring affordable 
access to the internet and other digital resources in LDCs. It was further added that developing 
digital infrastructure in LDCs would be essential for their sustainable economic recovery from the 
pandemic. A lot of tasks had to be carried out by development partners to create an inclusive digital 
environment. LDCs also needed to work on their regulatory frameworks facilitating  digital 
transformation. Aid for Trade should also target training young people , especially women , in LDCs 
that would lead to various digital entrepreneurial activities in the future .  
166.  Ms Liz Fajber, Deputy Director, Trade for Development at the Foreign, C ommonwealth and 
Development Office , Department of International Trade , United Kingdom Government, 
demonstrated that the Government of the United Kingdom, through its Department for International 
Development, was supporting UNCTAD 's trade facilitation work.  The primary objective of the U nited 
Kingdom' s support during the COVID -19 time-frame was to ensure that critical goods reach ed 
destinations to meet the pressing needs of the evolving situation. Her country also extended help to 
establish and maintain regi onal and national trade facilitation committees to implement the T rade 
Facilitation Agreement of the WTO. The U nited Kingdom  was also committed to boost trade links 
across Southern Africa during the COVID -19 pandemic so that traders could do business safel y. She WT/COMTD/AFT/W/86  
 
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  also focused on the United Kingdom 's funding to Gavi to ensure vaccination for all. The role of the 
United Kingdom's  Generalised Scheme of Preferences (UK GSP) in helping LDCs was highlighted. It 
was mentioned that COVID -19 exposed vulnerabilities o f SMEs  in several sectors including textiles 
and apparel. Many women -led firms had been significantly impacted by the pandemic. Aid for Trade 
needed to target women -owned businesses so that they could get through challenges and recover 
strongly from the pandemic. Embedding gender issues was at the heart of the U nited Kingdom 's 
longer -term economic recovery plans. Lastly, she hoped that the upcoming WTO 12th Ministerial 
Conference  would be a good opportu nity for development partners to discuss relevant measures 
which could be critical for the sustainable economic recovery of the LDCs.  
Reporter: WTO 
 
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  SESSION 15: IMPLEMENTING THE AFCFTA: THE NEED FOR DEEPENING PRIVATE SECTOR  
ORGANIZER(S) : African Development Bank, UN Industrial Development Organization, 
International Trade Centre  
MODERATOR: Ambassador Usha Dwarka -Canabady, Permanent Representative of Mauritius , 
Coordinator of the African Group at the World Trade Organization  
PANELLISTS  
• Mr Alan Kyerematen, Minister of Trade and Industry of Ghana  
• Ms Tania  Rödiger -Vorwerk, Director, Private Sector, Trade, Employment and Digital Technologies, 
Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development, Germany  
• Ms Glwadys Tawema, CEO, Karethic, B enin 
• Dr Emmanouil Davradakis, Senior Economist, European Investment Bank  
• Mr Paul Walters, Director for Trade & Development, United Kingdom  Foreign, Commonwealth and 
Development Office, U nited Kingdom  
• Mr Michael  Kottoh, Head of Strategy & Research, AfroCham pions  
 
Short Summary  
167.  The AfCFTA presents an opportunity for increased intra -regional trade and development but 
this can only be possible if there is meaningful investment in infrastructure and the right regulators 
support. There is a need for multi -stakeholder collaboration and increased private sector 
engagement to make AfCFTA implementation effective.  
Long Summary  
168.  At pres ent, documentation regulations and bureaucracy account for 14% of trade costs in 
Africa 's landlocked countries. AfCFTA presents an opportunity for these countries to reduce 
cross-border trade costs through the regulatory harmoni zation of non-tariff measures ( NTMs ) and 
increased investments in infrastructure . One issue thus far has been a lack of private sector 
engagement in the conception of the agreement itself. There is some enthusiasm but also scepticism 
as some in the private sector do  not believe AfCFTA can provide greater opportunities than already 
provided by existing regional economic unions. Statistically, the impact of these existing regional 
economic unions ha s had on intra -regional trade has not been substantial .  
169.  AfCFTA can inc rease FDI in Africa . The private sector needs to invest in technology 
capacity -building and logistic s to increase competitiveness as many businesses do not have the scale 
to export . The agreement provides an opportunity for collaboration so that countries are able to 
leverage their scale and increase effectiveness . The challenge is communicating the new potential 
for business that the agreement has ; for those businesses with export capacities , they shall increase 
the size of their markets. The private secto r would benefit greatly from the preferential rules of 
origin as a part of the AfCFTA .  
170.  To make implementation a success , stakeholders must commit to information sharing and 
developing trade and market -intelligence capacities . For business to engage, there  needs to be an 
open multi -stakeholder dialogue , with active  consult ation on the creation of new regulations as a 
result of the agreement. Fiscal packages, increasing credit facilities and creating export financing 
are necessary  components of supporting go vernment regulation. The private sector accounts for 
80% of total production and employs 90% of the population within Africa , with most businesses 
being MSMEs  or evolving in the informal sector.  
Reporter: WTO 
 
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  SESSION 1 6: COVID -19 RECOVERY AND AID FOR TRADE – OPPORTUNITIES FOR 
SUSTAINABLE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT AND TRANSITION TO CIRCULAR ECONOMY  
ORGANIZER(S) : Mission of Finland to the WTO  
MODERATOR: Ms Marianne Kettunen, Programme Manager, IEEP  
PANELLISTS  
• Mr Cleopa Kilonzo Mailu , Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary Permanent 
Representative of the Republic of Kenya to the United Nations Office in Geneva and other 
International Organizations in Switzerland  
• Mr Anthony Nyong, Director, Climate Change and Green Growth, Afric an Development Bank  
• Mr Robert Koech, CEO, Siomo Tea Factory  
• Ms Colette van der Ven, International Trade Lawyer, Founder of TULIP Consulting  
• Mr Kari Herlevi, Project Director, Finnish Innovation Fund  
 
Short Summary  
171.  This session aimed to bring together relevant perspectives from the government s, 
inter-government al organizations , businesses, and from experts . They can share concrete 
experiences and tools on how transition to circular economy can play a role in the COVID-19 
recovery, in particular how Aid for Trade can support that. The role of national circular economy 
roadmaps was highlighted as a key to give a direction to governments and businesses, with an 
emphasis in SMEs ' needs and opportunities when shifting towa rds circular economy.  
Long Summary  
172.  Mr Cleopa Kilonzo Mailu (Kenya) noted that h is country ha d made circular economy one of its 
focus areas. Through the Minister of Environment and Forestry, the National Environmental 
Management Authority, the private secto r and the Kenya Association of Manufacturers, a framework 
of cooperation ha d been signed. This partnership sought to reduce plastic waste in the environment 
through  collection and recycling. The Government was finalizing the National Sustainable Waste 
Management policy which aim ed to create and enable a regulatory environment for Kenya to 
effectively tackle waste challenges by implementing sustainable waste management and contribute 
to its circular economy .  
173.  Another project  under development  was setting  up recycling points that could receive 600 
tons of waste and compost per day. There were challenges: limited infrastructure for sorting, 
recycling and reuse of waste on a large scale, and absence of adequate technology. Aid for Trade 
could support trainin g and investment in proper technologies that were key to stimulate the growth 
of circular economy  in Kenya. Kenya had to create robust value chains for different actors involving  
collecting, refurbishing and reusing waste. The process ha d to be inclusive, involving more trade 
actors , such as  MSMEs, youth , and women entrepreneurs to recover from COVID -19.  
174.  Mr Anthony Nyong highlighted how  circular economy,  in the context of Africa, was important 
in the agriculture and manufacturing space. There were two spac es where Africa ha d played a role 
towards circular economy : the African Union had decided  that they want ed to provide a roadmap for 
circular economy  in the African continent and an action plan for "The Africa we W ant", an Africa that 
is sustainably developed . The African Ministerial Conference on the Environment was one of the 
largest to drive this agenda, to produce the African Green stimulus programme. C ircular economy  
was a very strong anchor of that. Africa ha d come together to create the African Circular Economy 
Alliance .  
175.  Mr Robert Koech note d that the Siomo Tea Factory was moving towards circular economy by 
making an efficient use of raw materials, energy, water and waste. This business ha d implemented 
an automat ed weathering system that was more energy efficient , used less labour , and improve d 
the product 's quality. Efficient use of raw materials was possible when plugging circular economy  
into the business model. Aid for Trade could support unrealized waste mana gement opportunities 
that had not been considered . It could also help in reskilling, upskilling,  and identifying the gaps  
together with  creating business opportunities for youth and entrepreneurs. Support for more WT/COMTD/AFT/W/86  
 
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  technology availability, investments and p olicy frameworks  would be an asset, as well as creating a  
common industrial fund and partnerships with NGOs .  
176.  Ms Colette van der Ven, TULIP Consulting, stated that Aid for Trade need ed to be aligned with 
other initiatives and domestic priorities. Actions c ould not be taken in isolat ion, they ha d to be 
integrated into exist ing frameworks . She pointed to a specific example of the AfCTA and the Annex 
on Technical Barriers to Trade ( TBT) where there was a reference to the African Organization for 
Standardization . Could there be certain initiatives advancing on circular economy -related standards 
under AfCTA? This could result in the removal or reduction of NTMs  creating the objective of movin g 
towards circular economy. Where Aid for Trade could specifically assist developing countries  was by 
creating their own standards, but also ensuring that products made in developing countries met th e 
higher standards set by developed countries. This could  also help provide  developing countries with 
the ability to properly differentiate between the types of waste they were importing.  
177.  Mr Kari Herlevi, Finnish Innovation Fund, focused on circular economy  for biodiversity. The 
World Circular Economy Forum  and Climate ( WEFT  + Climate)  had a big topic on the table with 
circular economy. Roadmaps were key as a strategy towards circular economy  at the national level. 
In Finland, 50% of the recovery fund was set for green transition. Finland ha d focused on two areas  
of con cern: integrating circular economy  at all levels of education ; i.e. how to make sure the 
industries were able to export and be competitive in the field  of business . Circular economy  was part 
of the global economy and what Aid for Trade could do is to connect different business opportunities . 
It could look at other countries ' roadmaps and make them visible , look at the export opportunities 
emerging from other countries transition , and find opportunities in GVC in areas such as s ervices.  
Reporter: WTO 
 
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  SESSION 17: TRADING DURING THE COVID -19 PANDEMIC PHOTO CONTEST  
ORGANIZER(S) : EIF, WTO  
MODERATOR: Mr Michael Roberts , Head, Aid -for-Trade Unit, Development Division, WTO  
PANELLISTS  
• Ms Annette  Ssemuwemba, Deputy Executive Director, Enhanced Integrated Framework  
• Ms Janaina Borges, Head of Audio Visio and Social Media, Information and External Relations 
Division, WTO  
• Ms Joan Apecu, Counsellor, Council Trade Negotiations Committee, WTO  
• Ms Doaa Abdel -Motaal, Counsellor, Agriculture and Commodity Division WTO  
 
Short Summary  
178.  This session presented the photos submitted in the "trading during a pandemic" photo contest  
with particular emphasis on highlight ing the impact of the pandemic on trade. Challenges requiring 
policy interventions , such as : the digital divide ; infrastructure and internet accessibility ; 
opportunities including accelerated usage of e -commerce ; building resilience and creation of new 
business opportunities for diversification ; and inclusivity ; were discussed. The session discus sed 
eight photo graph s selected by the panel and chose a winning entry.  
Long Summary  
179.  Mr Michael Roberts highlighted the aim of the contest to depict how trade is impacted by the 
COVID -19 pandemic and how it is helping to bring about economic recovery in di fferent parts of the 
world. There were more than 120 photos submitted from 52 contestants from different regions of 
the world. The coverage was 45% Africa, 20% Asia, 15% Eastern and Central Europe, 15% Central 
America,  5% Pacific .  
180.  Ms Doaa Abdel -Motaal exp ressed that agriculture has been resilient throughout this pandemic, 
and that governments have taken measures to facilitate trade and food , notwithstanding  the huge 
logistical disruption shock in the pandemic .  
181.  The photo presentation and comments:  
182.  "Deliver y is safety " by Mr Roman Baluk from the  Ukraine . Ms Janaina Borges highlighted that 
the photo depicted a busy tourist -attraction street which was empty , with the reminder  that trade 
in service had not recovered from the pandemic. There has been loss of revenue in tourism which 
had largely affected small developing countries and LDC s that depend heavily on tourism. Other 
services such as door -to-door delivery saw an increas e in demand in the midst of the pandemic .  
183.  "Car boot traders" by Ms Mary Mugure  from Kenya . Ms Annette Ssemuwemba explained that 
the photo depicts what happened in many African countries during the pandemic  - resilience, 
adaptation , diversification of inco me sources. In most LDC s, lost livelihoods led people to start new 
business ventures. LDCs faced logistical challenges which lead to food rotting coupled with the 
pandemic which made value add ed impossible . New businesses emerged to get food to the market.   
184.  "Wellness on wheels" by Mr Ismail Badjie  from The Gambia . Mr Michael Roberts highlighted 
that businesses in LDCs have been able to use the pandemic as an opportunity to advance usage of 
e-commerce and provide services needed during the pandemic .  
185.  "Wareho use of Hungary 's biggest online retailer " by Mr Simon Moricz Sabjan  from Hungary . 
Ms Janaina Borges stated that the photo shows the backstage of e -commerce. The submission is 
relatable as many people relied on online shopping with the pandemic . The digital  transformation 
had the potential to create new jobs, but the digital divide became more serious with developing 
countries still facing multiple challenges to catch -up.  
186.  "La Confection et Vente de Cache Bouch e en Tissues " à Madagascar – Ms Moira Rakotomala 
Radamarison. Ms Annette Ssemuwemba indicated that the photo shows women 's economic WT/COMTD/AFT/W/86  
 
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  empowerment. It shows unique ly an adaptation in situation of need. Textile and apparel industry 
being the largest formal employer and export source for Madagascar  was negatively affected by the 
pandemic and this negatively affected employment. As a result, people adapted and found 
alternative sources of income. There was increase in face masks exportation during the first half of 
2020, following recommendation by W HO to use them as a preventative measure .  
187.  "Trainer using Zoom" by Mr Anthony Babatunde Alabi  from Nigeria. Ms Joan Apecu stated that 
the potential for e -commerce is huge and the pandemic accelerated digital transformation by infusing 
the use of e -commerce  in daily life. The pandemic exposed several digital vulnerabilities and 
challenges such as the digital divide which needed to be bridged and which heightened the existing 
challenges faced by vulnerable groups, developing countries and LDCs. She highlighte d the need for 
long term responses for e -commerce to be more inclusive and contribute to recovery efforts . The 
experience from the pandemic could further strengthen cooperation and further policy development 
for e-commerce. She highlighted the ability to u se existing WTO tools to leverage development of 
e-commerce .  
188.  "Truck in Mpondwe Border " by Ms Nyembezi Mvunga and Mr Charles Kunaka . 
Ms Nyembezi  Mvunga  explained the problems in regional trade and the collaboration between 
countries to allow small -scale traders to move during the pandemic according to clusters they are 
in. Small -scale traders play a big role in the region as they are big players in econo mic activity. The 
need to have policies facilitating trade and addressing challenges faced by small -scale traders was 
highlighted .  
189.  "Costa Rica Truck Drivers " by Mr Andrey Rojas Corrales in Costa Rica . Mr Andrey Rojas  
explained that the pandemic enhanced s olidarity and the need for collaborative efforts to move 
goods. It also emphasi zed the need to strengthen trade facilitation and global supply chains. The 
pandemic forced institutions to expedite implementation of trade facilitation measures to deal with 
the challenges. Trade facilitation doesn 't only benefit private sectors but also low and middle -income 
countries .  
190.  Mr Michael Roberts closed by indicating that land borders have faced a lot of challenges, and 
that the implementation of the TFA can help addr ess the challenges.  
Reporter: WTO  
 
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  SESSION 18: INVESTING IN SAFE TRADE SYSTEMS TO PROTECT HEALTH AND MARKET 
ACCESS  
ORGANIZER(S) : Standards and Trade Development Facility (STDF)  
MODERATOR: Mr Melvin Spreij, Head, STDF Secretariat  
PANELLISTS  
• Ms Loraine Ronchi, Practice Manager, Food and Agriculture Global Practice, World Bank  
• Ms Emily Tagliaro, Head of Engagement & Investment Department, World Organisation for Animal 
Health  
• Dr Washington  Otieno, Plantwise  Programme Executive, CABI  
• Dr Unesu Ushewokunze -Obatolu, Principal Director, Department of Veterinary Serves, Zimbabwe  
 
Short Summary  
191.  COVID -19 has provided a clear reminder of the ease and speed at which pests and diseases 
can spread worldwide, and of the inter-connectedness of global supply chains. Protecting food safety 
and, animal and plant health across borders as a global public good is now more important than 
ever. With food security and livelihoods already under pressure, developing countries have be en hit 
hardest by the pandemic, threatening to undo progress achieved in economic growth and poverty 
reduction. The panel discussion explored how building their resilience will require long -term 
investments in SPS capacity and how action is needed to estab lish new partnerships between 
governments and the private sector to meet international standards. The One Health Approach that 
promotes a collaborative gathering point between plant, animal and human health agencies was also 
stressed throughout the discuss ion. The panel concluded by highlighting the need for a shared 
multi-stakeholder responsibility to invest and support SPS  capacity -building and knowledge -sharing 
to promote a holistic recovery and long -lasting resilience from present and future shocks.  
Long Summary  
192.  In his opening remarks, Mr Melvin Spreij introduced the topic of the panel discussion. He 
highlighted the very clear need for more Aid -for-Trade support to strengthen developing countries ' 
capacity to comply with the WTO SPS Agreement, includi ng the international standards that are used 
as benchmarks therein (Codex  Alimentarius , the World Organization for Animal Health ( OIE) and the 
International  Plant Protection Convention ( IPPC)) due to the immense short and long -term benefits 
such as recover y from COVID -19's shocks and resilience to future shocks .  
193.  The first panellist, Ms Unesu Ushewokunze -Obatolu , started the discussion and explained how 
veterinary services can mitigate risks in the trade of animal products and services. She stressed that 
effective veterinary services provide a consistent, reliable, and verifiable supply of information about 
animal health problems. Ms Ushewokunze -Obatolu called for an enhanced system of surveillance 
that serves a dual purpose of lowering human and animal heal th risks while also improving market 
access .  
194.  Ms Ushewokunze -Obatolu also spoke to Zimbabwe 's animal health system implementation. 
She highlighted the lack of human resources in the field of veterinary services as one of the main 
challenges for developing countries to comply with animal health requirements. Furthermore, she 
said that a challenge to implementing a robust system is ensuring that the team has the technical 
capacity and ability for inter -generational knowledge transfer .  
195.  The second panellist, Ms Emily Tagliaro, addressed the topic of wildlife trade. Ms Tagliaro 
addressed how the OIE approaches the surveillance of wildlife health and trade in comparison to 
livestock trade. She explained how wildlife trade, while being an important source of prote in and 
income for vulnerable and local communities, also can pose significant risks to biodiversity, natural 
resource depletion and zoonotic diseases if not done according to the right standards. Ms Tagliaro 
highlighted the OIE 's standard -setting research across thematic fields pertaining to wildlife trade to 
ensure that the risk mitigation measures represent a careful balancing of the benefits and risks .  WT/COMTD/AFT/W/86  
 
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  196.  Ms Tagliaro referred to the OIE 's Wildlife Working Group statement as an exa mple on how the 
OIE is a thought leader on sustainable and responsible practices in wildlife trade. She cited the OIE 's 
Wildlife Framework and associated theory of change as a good guide to multi -sectoral collaboration 
that promotes a One Health Approach t o managing risk .  
197.  In response to a follow -up question, Ms Ushewokunze -Obatolu  explained how Zimbabwe 
encouraged positive coexistence between wildlife and livestock farming by successfully creating 
national park and national conservation areas to ensure min imal interaction with the livestock 
farming zones. Further, she explained how game -proof fences in particularly vulnerable regions 
helped further mitigate risks such as the spread of Foot-and-Mouth disease. She too referred to a 
One Health Approach to harm onize and connect environmental, veterinary, health and plant 
services .  
198.  The third panellist, Ms Loraine Ronchi, explained how the World Bank Group is building food 
safety capacity in global agricultural value chains through a combination of lending, resea rch and 
dialogue and technical assistance. She stressed that there is a direct line of sight between food 
safety and sustainable development goals in the countries that they work with and that effective 
approaches include implementing projects that address  "hard" (i.e. computers, information 
technology tracking systems etc.) and "soft" needs (i.e. knowledge capacity, technical know -how, 
etc.). Further she stressed the importance of partnership with private sector stakeholders to enable 
compliance with food safety regulation , citing the successes in Bangladesh . Furthermore, Ms Ronchi 
stressed the importance of more specialized projects on food safety, and an integration of food 
safety into the multitude of activities in their portfolio as the best way to ensu re a scaling of food 
safety capacity activities .  
199.  Ms Ronchi also explained how approaches differ depending on a country 's goals (i.e. robust 
domestic consumer market vs. export -oriented growth). She found that the capacity gap in the 
private sector plays a n important role too as countries can also boast a robust entrepreneurial 
culture, like Bangladesh . The fourth panellist, Mr Washington Otieno, addressed plant health 
capacity. He stated how disruptions of crop supply systems can result in severe implicati ons on 
livelihoods around the world. For him, phytosanitary health is critical to ensuring that plant -related 
diseases are minimized, and further highlighted how countries must proactively implement IPPC 
standards to ensure crop movement and trade take pla ce in a way that limits exposure to pests .  
200.  Mr Otieno further explained how plant diseases continue to ravage the world even as 
COVID -19 took its human toll, creating a double problem. He cited desert locusts ' outbreaks as an 
example of a dual impact on da ily staples and vegetation amidst COVID -19. He called for a change 
from the current "reactive" response present in phytosanitary regulation to a more proactive one . 
Furthermore, Mr Otieno explained how "quick fixes" such as chemical pesticides can ultimate ly do 
more harm by introducing highly toxic levels of pesticide residues in food systems, ultimately posing 
human health and market access challenges. Washington stressed on the importance of balancing 
and prioritization as the best way to ensure that huma n health is not sacrificed at the cost of plant 
protection and vice -a-versa .  
201.  Ms Ushewokunze -Obatolu then addressed Zimbabwe 's journey in developing a strong animal 
health system. She explained that Zimbabwe had a very strong export sector for animals and animal 
products, but that a change in investment priorities led to a period of neglect in veterinary services 
that resulted in higher (often prohibitive) costs to re -equip and redevelop the technical capacity of 
its authorities . Mr Otieno  spoke  about Kenya 's SPS journey. He highlighted the post -independence 
Government 's decision to encourage greater private sector participation in agri -food businesses to 
improve stakeholder involvement in agricultural production. Using examples from horticulture  and 
coffee trade, he explained how Kenya struck an agri -food balance between effective regulation and 
private sector compliance to the regulation .  
202.  Ms Tagliaro explained the One Health Approach through the OIE perspective. She explained 
how it promotes a collaborative gathering point between plant, animal and human health agencies 
to ensure that best practices are developed to safeguard and improve health in the face of diseases. 
She further highlighted the Tripartite, a collaborative effort between the OI E, WHO and the Food and 
Agriculture Organization ( FAO), as a thought  leader in operationalizing One Health approaches. 
Ultimately, she stressed that health must be looked at holistically without any exclusivity to specific 
organizations .  WT/COMTD/AFT/W/86  
 
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  203.  Lastly, Ms Ronchi  addressed how SPS authorities can better get the attention of high -level 
policymakers and ministries of finance to support their initiatives. She pointed out two critical 
statistics: (1) unsafe food results in an estimated USD 110 billion in productivity costs in low and 
middle -income countries, annually ; and (2) children under the age of five, who only make up for 
9% of the world 's population, suffer an overwhelming 30% of deaths due to unsafe food . She used 
these statistics to show how policymakers canno t ignore the impact of unsafe food. She explained 
that policymakers will listen to ways in which they can recover lost productivity, lower costs to 
society , and boost sustainable growth through trade. Ms Ronchi also referred to Mr Otieno's example 
of Kenya  as a case study in private sector input assisting greater food safety initiatives .  
204.  In the Question & Answer Session Ms Ushewokunze -Obatolu first addressed a question about 
migratory birds and potential disease outbreak. She explained that veterinary servi ces, in 
collaboration with livestock farmers, track the birds to avoid potential outbreaks of avian diseases. 
Mr Otieno addressed a question on boosting investment in scientists by proposing an opportunity 
cost approach to highlight the potential economic losses if SPS systems are neglected. Ms Ronchi 
addressed a final question on food safety pushbacks by stressing the importance of drawing empirical 
lines between food safety, regulatory frameworks, private sector capacity and market access 
success .  
205.  In conclusion, all the panellists stressed the importance of public -private partnership, One 
Health Approaches, technical capacity building, investment prioritization for market access as ways 
to recover from COVID -19, while building a safe trade system th at is resilient.  
Reporter: WTO 
 
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  SESSION 19: MSMES PROMOTING ECONOMIC RECOVERY IN A POST -COVID -19 WORLD: A 
TRADE FACILITATION APPROACH  
ORGANIZER(S) : El Salvador  
MODERATOR: Ms Johanna Hill, Managing Partner, Central American Trade Consulting Group, 
El Salvador  
PANELLISTS  
• Ms Maria Luis Hayem, Minister of Economy, El Salvador  
• Ms Low Yen Ling, Minister of State in the Ministry for Trade and Industry and Ministry for Culture, 
Community and Youth, Singapore  
• Dr Marion Jansen, Director of the Trade and Agriculture Directorate, OECD  
• Mr William Gain, Global Product Specialist for Trade  Facilitation and Border Management, WBG 
 
Short Summary  
206.  This session looked at the importance of trade facilitation for a sustained economic recovery, 
especially as it relates to MSMEs. As economies have looked to diversify their trade following the 
massiv e economic shock of the COVID -19 pandemic, ease of trade through digitized customs 
procedures, coordinated border management, and improvements in transparency have been crucial 
for creating trade opportunities for MSMEs, which represent more than half of g lobal employment.  
Long Summary  
207.  Ms Maria Luisa Hayem, Minister of the Economy of El Salvador , began the panel discussion 
with a presentation on the importance of trade facilitation to El Salvador 's economy, especially during 
the COVID -19 pandemic. Even befo re the pandemic, El Salvador had begun to implement trade 
facilitation measures to boost trade and economic development since bureaucracy and red -tape were 
some of the greatest obstacles. In fact, trade facilitation measures put in place by an ad hoc 
government pandemic team, along with the support of bilateral and multilateral partners, ha d meant 
an increase in exports for 2020 over 2019 .  
208.  Part of this increase was attributable to the resilience of exporting El Salvadorian businesses, 
including MSMEs,  that were able to pivot to production of PPE. El Salvador was working to develop 
a long -term strategy to assist MSMEs to export more, recognizing the importance of trade to both 
their economy and these businesses especially. To support this goal, El Salva dor ha d both a national 
committee on trade facilitation and a national plan. To date, even with the pandemic in full force, 
El Salvador ha d successfully implemented 70 % of this plan, focusing on the implementation of 
electronic procedures to obtain license s and submit trade documentation; simplification of border 
procedures; and development of online resources. With the support of the Millennium  Challenge 
Corporation, El Salvador ha d also implemented a coordinated border management model with its 
neighbo urs that ha d reduced border total waiting times from hours  to minutes, and launched the 
pilot phase of a new Trusted Operator program with other Latin American countries .  
209.  Following this detailed discussion of El Salvador 's concrete trade facilitation measure s, 
Ms Low Yen Ling, Minister of State in the Ministry for Trade and Industry and Ministry for Culture, 
Community and Youth, Republic of Singapore , focused next on the importance of digitalization in an 
effort to counter the negative economic impacts of COVID-19. MSMEs ha d been disproportionately 
affected by the pandemic, but e -commerce could allow these businesses access to more and 
diversified markets. As a co -convener of the WTO Joint Statement Initiative  on e-commerce with 
Australia and Japan, Singapore was actively working to agree on rules to standardize the digital 
economy and increase i ts benefits and accessibility for MSMEs .  
210.  Ms Low also emphasized the importance of trade facilitation to promote digital commerce and 
has worked to assist developing countries and LDCs gain full advantage of the TFA. Singapore ha d 
partnered with the United  States to implement a program to help ASEAN members implement the 
TFA.  WT/COMTD/AFT/W/86  
 
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  211.  Dr Marion Jansen, Director of the Trade and Agriculture Directorate at the OECD focused on 
the role of trade facilitation for supporting MSMEs and smoothing the next phase of the pand emic. 
Trade facilitation reduce d trade costs for all enterprises, but it benefitted  MSMEs  more. Although the 
beginning of the pandemic was characterized by new border restrictions and challenges to trade, 
these measures ha d been reduced in the second phase  of the pandemic with the implementation of 
green lanes and new procedures to streamline the trade of certain products at the border , 
implemented during the summer of 2020. These measures would be even more critical as the 
pandemic move d into the vaccinati on phase given that many of the products related to the vaccines, 
from syringes to vials, require d cross-border transactions. As the future phase of the pandemic 
exerted itself, it would be important to review the border crossing of people which became str icter 
under the implemented health protection measures. It would also be important to continue the 
investment in digital capacity building .  
212.  Finally, Mr Bill Gain, Global Product Specialist for Trade Facilitation and Border Management, 
WBG,  discussed how the pandemic ha d underscored the need to facilitate the transport and transit 
of goods and the need to remove barriers at the borders. The WBG support ed border collaboration 
to reduce trade frictions and also facilitate d a whole -of-governmen t approach to trade facilitation 
reforms. Rather than focusing only on customs and tariffs, the importance o f includ ing all relevant 
agencies, such as SPS, was noted , with a focus on digital procedures. Trade facilitation changes 
would also require public -private dialogue, allowing for effective and efficient implementation of 
regimes to the benefit of MSMEs.  
Reporter: WTO 
 
 WT/COMTD/AFT/W/86  
 
- 51 - 
 
  SESSION 2 0: SOVEREIGN DEBT CHALLENGES AND REFORM OF THE INTERNATIONAL DEBT 
ARCHITECTURE  
ORGANIZER(S) : International Monetary Fund  (IMF)  
MODERATOR: Ms Ceyla Pazarbasioglu, Director, Strategy, Policy and Review Department, IMF  
PANELLISTS  
• Ms Carmen Reinhart, Vice President and Chief Economist, WBG  
• Mr Amadou Hott, Minister of Economy, Planning and Internation al Cooperation, Senegal  
• Mr Emmanuel  Moulin, Chairman of the Paris Club, Director -General of the Treasury, France  
• Mr Guillaume Chabert, Deputy Director, Strategy, Policy and Review Department, IMF  
 
Short Summary  
213.  The session provided a variety of perspectiv es on debt challenges which were exacerbated by 
the COVID -19 pandemic. The speakers acknowledged global solutions emerging from the 
pandemic  - the G20 debt services suspension initiative (DSSI) and the G20  Common Framework for 
Debt Treatments beyond the DS SI. The speakers called for an extension of the DSSI until the end 
of 2021. They also noted that the Common Framework allowed for case -by-case solutions. The 
speakers underlined the importance of transparency, while indicating that the topic of public 
disclosure was a bit more nuanced.  
Long Summary  
214.  Ms Ceyla Pazarbasioglu , Director, Strategy, Policy and Review Department, IMF, highlighted 
that global public debt reached the record even before the pandemic. The global public debt reached 
98% of GDP in 2020, an increase of 14 percentage points from the level projected pre -pandemic. In 
emerging economies, the debt levels increased by 10 percentage points reaching nearly 64% of 
GDP. For low -income developing countries, debt to GDP estimates are about 48.7%. Over the past 
decade the world saw changes in the composition of borrow ers, creditors, types of debt contracts, 
and the currency denomination of debt. While the levels of private debt increased substantially, the 
focus of the session was on sovereign debt. The pandemic increased the spending needs as the 
countries were seekin g to mitigate health and economic effects while the revenues were declining 
due to lower growth and lower trade , thereby raising the debt burden and vulnerabilities. Some 
countries were facing higher financing costs or a limited access to external financin g. As a result, 
the pandemic ha d impacted both solvency and liquidity indicators. At the same time, the fiscal and 
monetary policy actions helped to mitigate a systemic debt crisis, to prevent a lost decade and to 
sustain economic recovery .  
215.  Ms Carmen Rein hart, Vice President and Chief Economist, WBG, noted that even in a relatively 
benign scenario, where the interest rates would not go up by much and the vaccine would bring this 
pandemic to an end; uncertainties about the speed and magnitude of recovery re mained. She 
pointed out that currently more than half of low -income countries were in debt distress or in high 
risk of debt distress. She also indicated the uncertainty of the impact of the pandemic on the 
emerging markets. She provided a historical perspe ctive on the topic by indicating that the average 
post-1900s default episode took on average eight years requiring at least two  restructuring s to bring 
it to a close, highlighting possible future challenges for the Common Framework. She also stressed 
that one of the delay factors of debt crisis resolutions might be linked to the fact that the advanced 
economies and creditor countries were experiencing domestic challenges due to the pandemic with 
the development financed being scaled back. On the topic of tr ansparency, she pointed to the fact 
that transparency and public disclosure were very different. While acknowledging the importance of 
increasing transparency, the issue of public disclosure required a careful thought with respect to 
public release .  
216.  Mr Amadou Hott, Minister of Economy, Planning and International Cooperation, Senegal, 
highlighted the critical importance for lower -middle income and low -income countries of accessing 
new liquidity on concessional terms before moving to commercial financing. Mi nister Hott also noted 
that that the crisis had demonstrated the importance of the informal sector, the budgetary 
limitations, and scarce reserves of many countries. In this regard he welcomed the DSSI and WT/COMTD/AFT/W/86  
 
- 52 - 
 
  expressed hope that it would continue until the en d of 2021. He also noted that the Common 
Framework needed to be better understood. He highlighted the importance of the official 
development assistance and called for support with strengthening domestic resource mobili zation. 
The Minister also noted the im portance of continuing government spending for the next three years. 
On the point of transparency, he stressed the importance of having debt transparency from the 
borrowers and the lenders perspectives .  
217.  Mr Emmanuel Moulin, Chairman of the Paris Club, Dire ctor-General of the Treasury, France, 
stressed that the pandemic had increased debt vulnerabilities and it also had exacerbated the 
difficulties of low -income countries by increasing primary deficit . He noted that the international 
community had shown its ability to react and put in place initiatives such as the DSSI and the 
Common Framework. He noted that the IMF recently announced a possible allocation of new S pecial 
Drawing Rights of 650 billion at a time when countries needed buffers. He noted that the Paris Club 
was a multilateral informal forum of 22 members. The informal structure of the Paris Club had 
allowed it to be flexible in providing solutions to debt issues. The DSSI, adopted on 15 April 2020, 
enabled to put on hold principal payments and inte rest repayments for countries benefitting from 
the International Development Association. So far, 46 countries requested the DSSI totalling to 
USD 2.5 billion, half of which was due to the Paris Club creditors. While the DSSI is currently 
available until end of June 2021, he noted that in April 2021 the discussion would take place to 
extend it until the end of the year. After acknowledg ing the limitation s of the DSSI as an emergency 
response to the liquidity crisis with voluntary participation of the private sector, he stressed the 
importance of a long term solution  available  through the Common Framework . This allowed the 
issues of liquidity and debt sust ainability to be address ed.  
218.  Mr Guillaume Chabert, Deputy Director, Strategy, Policy and Review Department, IMF, 
stressed that high levels of debt were already pronounced even before the pandemic. The solutions 
emerging from the crisis included the G20 DSS I and the Common Framework. He noted that the 
Common Framework was tailored to the needs of the countries and that it should be implemented 
swiftly. He also indicated that many countries needed debt which could be put in good use. At the 
same time, such de bt should be transparent. He stressed the need of having accurate data for 
different needs that could follow a step -by-step approach when it comes to the availability of 
information to different stakeholders, including the International Financial Instituti ons, creditors, 
and the public .  
219.  In closing, Ms Ceyla Pazarbasioglu indicated that the IMF had a USD 1 trillion lending capacity 
to support countries in need. She also noted the importance of providing countries with 
capacity -building and stressed the need  to implement the Common Framework.  
Reporter:  WTO 
 WT/COMTD/AFT/W/86  
 
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  SESSION 21: FACILITATING SAFE TRADE ALONG SUPPLY CHAINS: DIGITIZING 
SPS CERTIFICATES AND OTHER IMPORT/EXPORT DOCUMENTATION  
ORGANIZER(S) : Mission of the United States of America to the WTO  
MODERATOR: Mr Paul Fekete , Senior International Trade Advisor, United States Agency for 
International Development   
PANELLISTS  
• Ms Dawn Shackelford, Assistant United States Trade Representative for WTO and Multilateral 
Affairs  
• Mr Christian Dellis, Deputy Dir ector, Phytosanitary Issues Management – Export Services, Animal 
and Plant Health Inspection Service  (USDA -APHIS )  
• Mr Rodrigo Robles, Coordinator eCert, Agriculture and Livestock Service of Chile  
• Mr Walter Alessandrini , National Food Safety and Quality Service of Argentina  
• Mr Charif C. Carvajal, Marketing Manager for Europe and Asia, Chile Fruit Exporters Association  
• Mr Gerald Masila, Executive Director, Eastern Africa Grain Council  
• Mr Alejandro Pernías, President & CEO, at Global Share S.A.  
 
Short Summary  
220.  Trade rules such as those outlined in the TFA and policies promoting free flows of data enable 
countries to build resilience into their supply chains and, ultimately, support the development of 
their domestic econo mies and trade regimes in response to COVID -19. To mark the theme of the 
Aid-for-Trade Work Program (2020 -2022) "Empowering connected, sustainable trade," this event 
looked at ways that trade rules and trade policy makers can respond to challenges arising from 
COVID -19. Speakers discussed responses and offered stories of recovery and a look into future 
resilience.  
Long Summary  
221.  As part of the Aid -for-Trade Stocktaking exercise on 23 -25 March 2021, the United States 
organized two events on (i) Adapting Trade Formalities to COVID -19 (in Session 23); and (ii) on 
Paperless Trade, Development and the Enabling Environment for e -commerce (in Session 25). Both 
themes are important to the U nited States Trade and Development Agenda at the WTO. A video 
(Part I and Part II) of these events is available on YouTube.  
222.  The United States events examined how trade rules, such as those outlined in the TFA, and 
policies promoting free flows of data enable countries to build resilience in their supply chains and, 
ultimately, support the development of their domestic economies and trade regimes in response to 
COVID -19. 
223.  A total of 104 participants joined the United States panel discussions  online. Featured 
panellists included government officials; bulk commodity traders; and women entrepreneurs from 
Chile; Argentina; El  Salvador, Guatemala Ivory Coast, Kenya; India; the Netherlands and the United 
States. For a full list of panellists see here. 
224.  Under the first of the two topics – adapting trade formalities to COVID -19 – the session gave 
voice to regulators from the United States , Chile and Argentina who engaged in an informed dialogue 
on the use of new technologies, like e-Phyto , in the context of strengthened customs clearance 
processes. The regulators ' presentations were followed by two value chain case studies on 
(i) horticulture trade with Chile, and (ii) bulk grain trade with Kenya.   
225.  The second panel foc used on e -commerce – the organizers were excited to have Cargill  
showcasing some compelling stories on the use of e -commerce and digital technol ogies in the cocoa 
value chain in Cote d'Ivoire. Along with Cargill, speakers were also featured from Etsy and two SME 
exporters from Guatemala  and El Salvador , that increased their e -commerce exports thanks to a 
project of the International Trade Centre .  WT/COMTD/AFT/W/86  
 
- 54 - 
 
  226.  The event demonstrated, with practical exam ples, how implementing WTO rules on trade 
facilitation, and working to enable e -commerce, can help developing economies foster resiliency and 
economic growth. More specifically, panellists were asked: What lessons can policy makers learn 
from these example s and from our collective experiences during the pandemic? Here are some key 
takeaways:  
• During today 's unprecedented global health crisis, traders, particularly MSMEs, are 
struggling to operate amid disrupted supply chains, hampered cross -border mobility, 
and sharp increases in trade costs due to the pandemic.   
• TFA matters. Some regulators and traders quickly confronted these challenges by 
increasing the use of electronic certifications and other documentation. They 
recognized that customs and border operat ions that are automated and use data and 
digital images, rather than paper documents and document couriers, are not only more 
efficient but also limit in -person contact, keeping traders, borders officers and citizens 
safe. We should explore how these trade -facilitating innovations can continue as the 
pandemic subsides.  
• Regarding digital trade, during the pandemic we have realized how much we all relied 
upon data flows to get through the pandemic. For example, digital trade and 
e-commerce enabled us to remot ely work and study, provided for the safe delivery of 
essential goods and services, facilitated the open exchange of data across borders to 
conduct pharmaceutical research, and enabled the enjoyment of creative content in 
our homes. The pandemic reminds us  all that digital trade is an essential foundation 
of the modern global economy.  
• Recognizing this, even before the pandemic, the United States embarked upon the 
important work of achieving a high -standard agreement on digital trade that would 
meaningfully  reduce digital trade barriers around the world. In December 2017, the 
United States joined 70 other WTO Members to announce the initiation of exploratory 
work towards a future agreement on the trade -related aspects of electronic  commerce 
and digital trade . A little over three years later, the United States  is deeply engaged 
in text discussions in a wide range of subject matters of critical importance to 
e-commerce and digital trade.  
• The United States'  focus remains on achieving high -standard outcomes, including 
high-standard obligations to ensure cross -border data flows, prohibit data localization, 
bar the forced disclosure of source code - including algorithms - and prohibit customs 
duties on electron ic transmissions.   
Reporter: United States  WT/COMTD/AFT/W/86  
 
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  SESSION 2 2: TOURISM RESILIENCE: BUILDING FORWARD BETTER  
ORGANIZER(S) : World Bank Group  
MODERATOR: Ms Anita Mendiratta, Special Advisor to the Secretary -General of the UNWTO  
PANELLISTS  
• Dr Mari Pangestu, Managing Director of Development Policy and Partnerships at the World Bank   
• Ms Kimarli Fernando, Chairperson of Sri Lanka Tourism   
• HRH Princess Dana Firas  of Jordan, UNESCO Goodwill Ambassador for Cultural Heritage   
• Mr Najib Balala, Cabinet Secretary for Tourism of Kenya   
• Mr Allan Flores, Associate at Central Law and former Tourism Minister of Costa Rica  
 
Short Summary  
227.  A high -level panel on tourism resilience and b uilding back better was organized by the World 
Bank. Panellist s addressed issues relating to the challenges that tourism faces in the coming years. 
Topics covered included COVID -19 effects on tourism, the relationship between tourism, and culture, 
the environment and conservation efforts, the problems faced by women who participate in the 
tourism sector, best practices in the sustainable environment efforts, private -public partnerships 
and the use of technology in the sector. The speaker from Sri Lanka  mentioned their Government 's 
quick response to face COVID -19. The speaker from Jordan talked about the preservation of cultural 
sites. The speaker from Kenya explained their efforts in the conservation field . And, the speaker 
from Costa Rica described their Government 's tools and practices in the area of sustainable tourism.  
Long Summary  
228.  This session was organized by the WBG. Ms Anita Mendiratta, special advisor to the 
Secretary -General of the UNWTO moderated the meeting and , as an introduction , said that the 
global restrictions and shutdowns had brought about a decline in travel  of almost 78%, amounting 
to USD 1.1 trillion .  
229.  Dr Mari Pangestu, Managing Director of Development Policy and Partnerships at the 
World  Bank said that her ex perience as Tourism Minister had shown the importance of the sector. It 
had a large local impact up to 10 or 20% of GDP. The WB G data showed that tourism was being 
impacted by travel restrictions and would have a slow and uncertain recovery. In East Asia, though, 
the recovery had begun, driven by China. When it recovered fully, tourism would be different. There 
would be less busine ss travel and more domestic travel. Adventure and ecotourism would grow by 
approximately 20%. Larger hotels and resorts would have to repurpose themselves. Governments 
with clear policies would restore confidence faster and attract tourism. Unclear restric tions had an 
impact on travelling. This crisis had provoked a decline that would take a long time to recover. 
Creating conditions to guarantee people 's safety would increase confidence for travel. For this, there 
must be collaboration at all levels: local,  national, and regional. The use of digital tools must address 
privacy and security issues .  
230.  Ms Kimarli Fernando, Chairperson of Sri Lanka Tourism, said that COVID -19 was not the first 
crisis that had hit her country. They had withstood  terrorism  and tsuna mis, and they had consistently 
risen through strong leadership and agility to make decisions. Quarantines and task forces to combat 
the pandemic were set up in January 2020, a long time before any case was reported in the country. 
Also, the Government impl emented a twice -daily communication strategy with the people, through 
which, inter alia , they reassured them that food and medicine stocks were guaranteed .  
231.  HRH Princess Dana Firas  of Jordan explained that the relation between tourism and culture is 
compli cated and nuanced. Sites were closed for months last year so this should be an opportunity 
to rethink their tourism base.  
232.  Mr Najib Balala, Cabinet Secretary for Tourism of Kenya said that the sector was down by 
72%. His country had not had a lockdown but had implemented a curfew system. Now, C OVID -19 
numbers were down. The decline in income from tourism had affected financing for conservation. 
The first measure taken to address this was to raise rangers ' salaries and then 5 ,000 more people WT/COMTD/AFT/W/86  
 
- 56 - 
 
  were recruited t o work in the conservation sector. He added that Kenya should not rely on tourism 
alone. They must find other sources of income. He also lamented that his country had ignored the 
local community in favour of international tourists .  
233.  Ms Mari Pangestu said that women in businesses were more strongly impacted by this crisis 
because of the constraints they faced, like caring for their families and particularly the sick. They 
were also less able to adapt to digital solutions, had less access to fi nance and markets, and in some 
places still faced legislation that hindered women 's possibilities of working in equal terms as men .  
234.  Ms Kimarli Fernando said that Sri Lanka was an island vulnerable to climate change. Fifty 
percent of the population of the country lived in the coastal areas. Climate change had created 
droughts and landslides. In response to this, working with other ministries on ocean pollution was 
ongoing. There were also efforts to try to form a protected area, with the involvement of loca l 
communities and cooperation with the private sector.  
235.  Mr Allan Flores, an Associate at Central Law and former Tourism Minister of Costa Rica said 
that the UN had estimated that , in 2021,  travel would fall by 70 -80% compared to 2019 and this 
would go on until 2024. In his view this was an opportunity to review present practices. In Costa  Rica 
there was a certification of sustainable tourism for hotels, restaurants, taxis and also local air lines. 
Ecotourism was a concept born in Costa Rica almost 30 years ago. To enhance their sustainable 
destination status, there were also environmental payment services which were contracts in which 
the Government paid landowners who had no other way to exp loit those lands in order to use them 
for conservation purposes .  
236.  Mr Najib Balala said that Kenya had to create multiple streams of revenue, one of which could 
be public private partnerships . The Government would keep control and monitoring of the animals,  
but private investors would build facilities and infrastructure. He said that Kenya  had to take better 
care of its natural environment . Princess Dana Firas said that there had to be investment in site 
readiness. It was not necessary to build enormous hote ls or highways but infrastructure that would 
help protect and give confidence to tourists when they would  arrive again. She highlighted that these 
projects needed to rely on local communities and local knowledge .  
237.  Ms Mari Pangestu said that technology play ed a big role in doing tracing, testing and 
treatment , and providing real time information. The value chain of the tourism sector had to reflect 
on how to develop systems that could help to protect people, for example in bubbles, to reactivate 
travel. For this, international cooperation would be essential. Providers also had to  upgrade their 
capabilities, which would entail part infrastructure  development and part training. This would have 
to be a sequential process. She added that all countries wanted to a ccelerate this technological 
aspect.  
Reporter: WTO  
 
 WT/COMTD/AFT/W/86  
 
- 57 - 
 
  SESSION 23: DIALOGUE BUILDING ON PAPERLESS TRADE – DEVELOPMENT AND THE 
ENABLING ENVIRONMENT FOR E -COMMERCE  
ORGANIZER(S):  Mission of the United States of America to the WTO  
MODERATOR: Mr Paul Fekete, Senior International Trade Advisor, United States Agency for 
International Development ( USAID ) 
PANELLISTS  
• Ms Suzanne Uittenbogaard, Global Sustainable Value Chain Manager , Cargill Cocoa & Chocolate   
• Mr Jean-Marie Delon, Sustainability Program Manager, West  Africa, Cargill Cocoa & Chocolate   
• Ms Judith Géraldine Ueberschaer, Associate E -Commerce Expert, International Trade Centre   
• Ms Eliza Babarczy, founder, Itza Wood, Guatemala   
• Ms Carmen Rengifo, founder, Rengifo, El Salv ador  
• Ms Ishani Mukherji, Senior Specialist, Etsy Team, India  
 
Short Summary  
238.  Trade rules such as those outlined in the TFA and policies promoting free flows of data enable 
countries to build resilience into their supply chains and, ultimately, support the development of 
their domestic economies and trade regimes in response to COVID -19. To mark the theme of the 
Aid-for-Trade Work Program me (2020 -2022) "Empowering connected, sustainable trade, " this event 
looked at ways that trade rules and trade policy makers can respond to challenges arising from 
COVID -19. Speakers discussed responses and offered stories of recovery and a look into future 
resilience.  
Long Summary  
239.  As part of the Aid -for-Trade S tocktaking exercise on 23 -25 March 2021, the United States 
organized two events on (i) Adapting Trade Formalities to COVID -19 (in Session 23); and (ii) on 
Paperless Trade, Development and the Enabling Environment for e -commerce (in Session 25). Both 
themes  are important to the United States  Trade and Development Agenda at the WTO. A video 
(Part I and Part II) of these events is available on YouTube.  
240.  The United States  events examined how trade rules, such as those outlined in the TFA, and 
policies promoting free flows of data enable countries to build resilience in their supply chains and, 
ultimately, support the development of their domestic economies and trade regimes in response to 
COVID -19.  
241.  A total of 104 participants joined the United States panel discussions online. Featured 
panellists included government officials; bulk commodity traders; and women entrepreneurs from 
Chile; Argentina; El Salvador, Guatemala Ivory Coast, Kenya; India; the Netherlands and the United 
States. For a full list of panellists see here. 
242.   Under the first of the  two topics – adapting trade formalities to COVID -19 – the session gave 
voice to regulators from the United States , Chile and Argentina who engaged in an informed dialogue 
on the use of new technologies, like e-Phyto , in the context of strengthened customs clearance 
processes. The regulators ' presentations w ere followed by two value chain case studies on 
(i) horticulture trade with Chile, and (ii) bulk grain trade with Kenya.  
243.   The second panel focused on e -commerce – the organizers were excited to have Cargill  
showcasing some compelling stories on the use of e -commerce and digital technologies in the cocoa 
value chain in Cote d'Ivoire. Along with Cargill, speakers were also featured from Etsy and two  SME 
exporters from Guatemala  and El Salvador , that increased their e -commerce exports thanks to a 
project of the International Trade Centre . 
244.  The event demonstrated, with practical examples, how implementing WTO rules on trade 
facilitation, and working to enable e -commerce, can help developing economies foster resiliency and 
economic growth. More specifi cally, panellists were asked: What lessons can policy makers learn WT/COMTD/AFT/W/86  
 
- 58 - 
 
  from these examples and from our collective experiences during the pandemic?  Here are some key 
takeaways:  
• During today 's unprecedented global health crisis, traders, particularly MSMEs, are  
struggling to operate amid disrupted supply chains, hampered cross -border mobility, 
and sharp increases in trade costs due to the pandemic.   
• TFA matters. Some regulators and traders quickly confronted these challenges by 
increasing the use of electronic c ertifications and other documentation. They 
recognized that customs and border operations that are automated and use data and 
digital images, rather than paper documents and document couriers, are not only more 
efficient but also limit in -person contact, k eeping traders, borders officers and citizens 
safe. We should explore how these trade -facilitating innovations can continue as the 
pandemic subsides.  
• Regarding digital trade, during the pandemic we have realized how much we all relied 
upon data flows to ge t through the pandemic. For example, digital trade and 
e-commerce enabled us to remotely work and study, provided for the safe delivery of 
essential goods and services, facilitated the open exchange of data across borders to 
conduct pharmaceutical research , and enabled the enjoyment of creative content in 
our homes. The pandemic reminds us all that digital trade is an essential foundation 
of the modern global economy.  
• Recognizing this, even before the pandemic, the United States embarked upon the 
important  work of achieving a high -standard agreement on digital trade that would 
meaningfully reduce digital trade barriers around the world. In December 2017, the 
United States joined 70 other WTO Members to announce the initiation of exploratory 
work towards a f uture agreement on the trade -related aspects of electronic  commerce 
and digital trade. A little over three years later, the United States is deeply engaged 
in text discussions in a wide range of subject matters of critical importance to e -
commerce and digi tal trade.  
• The United States'  focus remains on achieving high -standard outcomes, including 
high-standard obligations to ensure cross -border data flows, prohibit data localization, 
bar the forced disclosure of source code - including algorithms - and prohibit customs 
duties on electronic transmissions.  
Reporter:  United States  
 
 WT/COMTD/AFT/W/86  
 
- 59 - 
 
  SESSION 2 4: THE ROLE OF SOUTH -SOUTH COOPERATION AND DIGITAL TECHNOLOGY IN 
STRUCTURING A GLOBALLY INCLUSIVE  POST -COVID -19 ECONOMIC ARCHITECTURE FOR 
INCREASED TRADE  FACILITATION  
ORGANIZER(S) : United Nations Office for South-South Cooperation  
MODERATOR : Mr Hany Besada, Senior Research/Programme Advisor, United Nations Office for 
South -South Cooperation  
PANELLISTS  
• Dr Adel Abdellatif, Director ad interim, United Nations Office for South -South Cooperation  
• Ms Bineswaree Bolaky, Economic Affairs Officer, United Nations Economic Commission for Africa  
• Dr George Kararach, Lead Economist, African Development Bank  
• Dr Myriam Ramzy, Professor , Cairo University   
• Dr Chahir Zaki, Professor, Cairo University   
• Dr Nir Kshetri, Professor, University of North Carolina at Greensboro   
• Ms Xiaojun  Grace Wang, Deputy Director, Programme and Operations, United Nations Office for 
South -South Cooperation  
 
Short Summary  
245.  The session was organized by the UNOSSC  with technical support by the China Association of 
Trade in Services. Four new publications wer e discussed with presentations from their respective 
authors. These publications explore the role of South -South cooperation in facilitating trade and 
investment and provide policy recommendations to build resilience in a post -COVID -19 world, with 
particul ar focuses on challenges and opportunities in the areas of development finance, African 
regional trade, digitalization for trade integration and the use of financial technology.  
Long Summary  
246.  In his opening remarks, Mr Adel Abdellatif, Director ad interim , UNOSSC, noted that the 
COVID -19 pandemic ha d highlighted the importance of digitalization which provide d great 
opportunities for Southern economies to improve trade and business facilitation, to boost company 
competitiveness and efficiency, and to make pol icy execution easier. However, the lack of 
institutional and information and communication technology ( ICT) capacity in the Global South 
indicates a long way forward. Against this background, South -South and triangular 
cooperation  – which had proved effici ent in providing the political atmosphere for the increased 
facilitation of digital trade platforms without overlooking the elements that could nudge the global 
economy back to pre -pandemic trade protectionism - were essential tools of response and 
sustainable socio -economic recovery .  
247.  Mr Hany Besada, Senior Research/Programme Advisor, UNOSSC introduced the session by 
discussing four new publications written by the panellists which disseminate d an extensive and 
cross-disciplinary breadth of knowledge  on the topic of South -South cooperation .  
248.  Ms Bineswaree Bolaky, Economic Affairs Officer, United Nations Economic Commission for 
Africa (UNECA) discussed her paper titled "South -South Cooperation Finance for Mobilization of the 
Private Sector to Achieve t he Sustainable Development Goals ". The paper noted that the huge 
SDG-financing gap was likely to increase due to the COVID -19 pandemic; therefore, developing 
countries should leverage South -South development cooperation to stimulate local private sector 
finance in relation to SDG  17. The paper argued that it is necessary to establish a new South -South 
financial architecture which include d the following characteristics: a higher share of development 
finance in the form of : untied grants ; coverage of diverse sectors ; supports for enterprises with job 
creation potential ; integration of local content policies in development finance, technical and 
advisory services for debt sustainability ; creation of governing principles for country ownership ; 
transparency and a ccountability ; and adherence to additionality principle to avoid competition with 
private commercial finance .  
249.  Dr George Kararach, Lead Economist, AfDB , stressed that knowledge ought to be understood 
with reality of local context. Given that the content of  exchanges among the Global South ha d WT/COMTD/AFT/W/86  
 
- 60 - 
 
  significantly changed over time since the Bandung Conference, our theory and practice also need ed 
to change in essence. He went on to identify the constraints on trade and investment in Africa, 
including absence of int egrated trade and investment policies in line with national development 
agenda, lack of digital and logistical infrastructure, weak business and regulatory environment, and 
lack of regional perspectives to development initiatives. In this regard, South -South cooperation - a 
forum for exchange of resources, technology, knowledge among Southern countries - could address 
issues not only in the field of trade, but also in research and innovation in response to vaccine 
nationalism .  
250.  Professor Myriam Ramzy and Professor Chahir Zaki presented their paper titled "Trade 
Integration and South -South Cooperation: How Digitalization Matters in Africa ". The paper noted 
that digitalization was significantly shaping the structure of internationa l trade by changing 
composition of trade flows, reducing trade costs, and improving production processes. However, the 
total number of digital buyers in Africa and the Middle East was lagging behind the world due to 
inadequate digital infrastructure and IC T skills, onerous legal regimes and data privacy rules, limited 
use of digital technologies, and traditional barriers to cross -border trade. The paper also noted that 
the intra -Africa trade (16% in 2018) remain ed low compared to Europe (73%) and Asia (52%) . In 
this regard, digitalization could enhance regional trade by lowering entry barriers to foreign markets, 
increasing connectivity among regional traders, offering digital payment and logistics solutions, and 
automating customs procedures. To reap these digital opportunities, they suggested that Africa could 
improve digital infrastructure, adopt programmes for skills upgrading, formulate a regional 
e-commerce strategy, and enforce laws to regulate digital trade .  
251.  Professor Nir Kshetri introduced his paper  titled "South -South Cooperation and Financial 
Technology in a Globally -Inclusive Economic Architecture ". The paper noted that FinTech could shape 
the financial inclusion landscape by providing solutions to 1.7  billion unbanked adults and over 
200 million SMEs that lack access to financial services. He went on to identify two obstacles to get 
access to finance: information opacity (e.g. limited client data possessed by credit bureau) and 
transaction costs (e.g. high costs in bank visits and creditworthiness  verification) which were now 
being addressed by many FinTech companies based in the Global South. For example, a customer 
service chatbot based on artificial intelligence (AI) was utilized to enhance efficiency in providing 
financial services at reduced h uman agent costs and fraud rate. Blockchain was also used to solve 
problems in obtaining IDs at a very low cost. However, governments need ed to address issues 
concerning abuse and misuse of consumer data and other illegal practices of FinTech firms such as  
unlicensed peer -to-peer lenders .  
252.  Ms Xiaojun Grace Wang, Deputy Director for Programme and Operations, UNOSSC , began her 
closing remarks by stating that the Second High -Level United Nations Conference on South -South 
Cooperation (BAPA+40) h ad highlighted t rade and investment as an important modality for 
South -South cooperation. Aid for Trade, South -South cooperation, digital technology, and financing 
are interlinked and key modes of implementation of SDGs. International supports to developing 
counties shoul d improve domestic capacity of revenue generation and resource mobilization. This 
require d a focused additionality principle in partnerships with local private sector, as well as 
SDG-aligned impact investments. In addition, digitalization was fostering new  opportunities and 
areas of cooperation among developing countries, which not only include d trade agreements but 
also policy issues on enabling environment and capacity development for technology and finance. 
She also indicated that UNOSSC would soon launc h other publications, continuing to provide a 
platform for knowledge -sharing and policy thinking.  
Reporter:  WTO  WT/COMTD/AFT/W/86  
 
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  SESSION 2 5: INNOVATION, RECOVERY PLAN AND DIGITAL TRANSITION TOWARD 
INCLUSIVE AND SUSTAINABLE TRADE: HOW AID FOR TRADE HAS ACCELERATED DIGITAL 
TRANSITION IN CAMBODIA  
ORGANIZER(S) : Cambodia  
MODERATOR: Mr Sven Call ebaut, International Trade Advisor , Ministry of Commerce, Cambodia  
PANELLISTS  
• Ms Tekreth  Kamrang , Secretary of State Ministry of Commerce , Cambodia  
• Dr Ratnakar Adhikari , Executive Director, Executive Secretariat, Enhanced Integrated Framework  
• Mr Long Kemvichet, Deputy Director -General , General Department of International Trade , 
Ministry of Commerce , Cambodia  
• Ms Chea Ratha, CEO, Khmum and Versita PTY Limited , Vice President, Digital Tech Association , 
Cambodia   
• Mr Nick Beresford, Resident Representative , United Nations Development Programme,  Cambodia  
• Mr Jeremy  Green, Assistant Secretary,  Multilateral  Trade policy Branch , Australian Department 
of Foreign Affairs and Trade , Australia  
• Ms Violeta Gonzalez, Head of Partnerships, Communications and Resource Mobilization , Enhanced 
Integrated Framework  
 
Short  Summary  
253.  The session focused on the ongoing efforts of Cambodia in developing digital commerce. It 
sought to highlight successes to date, and challenges faced  in relation to the COVID -19 pandemic . 
Government officials from Cambodia 's Ministry of Commerce were joined in the discussion by a 
distinguished panel of international development partners as well as a representative from 
Cambodia 's private sector . All came  together to provide the audience with a detailed overview of the 
current situation while charting the way forward for Cambodia as a  least developed country.  
Long Summary  
254.  Cambodia has rapidly accelerated the incorporation of digital commerce technologies within 
its economy, including through the proactive efforts of the Cambodian Government and the 
involvement of the country 's private sector. From the development of an e -commerce strategy to a 
trade integration strategy and the development of supporting legislation, the country has moved to 
take advantage of the benefits of e -commerce in boosting trade both domestically and 
internationa lly.  
255.  Cambodia, as a least developed country , still lags behind the developed and developing world 
in some aspects with only 21.7% of the population holding a bank account with a financial institution, 
while 5.7% use mobile money accounts and less than 1% have a credit card . In the Business to 
Consumer (B2C) aspect, some 40 larger firms currently operate , whereas Business to Business (B2B) 
transactions have yet  to be fully embraced within the country. Cambodia 's e-commerce transactions 
are mostly domesti c with the country 's cross -border digital trade skewed inwards with popular sites 
such as Alibaba being for B2B, and e Bay being regularly for B2C imports.  
256.  Cambodia 's efforts towards digital advancement have been actively supported by international 
partner s ranging from the United Nations Development Program (UNDP), the Australian 
Government 's aid program and the Japan International Cooperation Agency . Government initiatives 
were seeking to further boost its cross -border trading prospects in the realm of e -commerce . 
Cambodia 's Ministry of Commerce ha s been  embarking on a bold new undertaking with the objective 
of providing increased opportunities for the country 's MSMEs to participate in the digital economy .  
257.  The initiative , dubbed GO -4-E-CAM, targets women entrepreneurs, youth and other provincial 
MSMEs  and focuses on three pillars of support , namely:  (1) enhancing of digital business 
environment through product and service onboarding via a central digital platform that can be further 
marketed and promoted b oth domestically and internationally via local exhibitions and international 
expos; (2) skills and capacity building in various thematic areas related to e -commerce; and 
(3) increased access to finance through leveraged support from various private sector partners.  WT/COMTD/AFT/W/86  
 
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  258.  Cambodia 's e-commerce community ha s supported the Government 's efforts but have 
reported ongoing struggles as the COVID -19 pandemic has taken hold. In a survey of the country 's 
e-commerce enterprises, 75% of respondents reported having supply chain issues directly due to 
the pandemic, resulting in 33% having to close some of their physical locations. Fifty per cent  
reported not having enough merchandise to maintain sales for the next few months. Domestic 
e-commerce demand has largely been focused on four main areas including fashion, electronics, 
furniture & appliances and food & personal care. With consumer demand falling because of the 
pandemic, a gradual priority shift from consumers towards essential products has taken a toll on the 
sector .  
259.  Despite these short -term setbacks, businesses are optimistic about their long -term prospects 
as the country 's e-commerce revenue is projected to see a near 50% increase over t he next four 
years, with a USD 359 million revenue count in 2020 expected to reach USD 537 million by 2024 . 
In order to achieve the projected growth, the private sector ha s identified access to finance 
(62.5%  of respondents) as the main area of support nee ded, with the remaining 37.5% of 
respondents pointing to regulatory and policy reform as another area of government intervention .   
260.  The international community ha s supported Cambodia 's efforts towards reforms and proactive 
e-commerce trade development. UND P's Mr Nick Beresford offered insights as to why e -commerce 
development was so important for Cambodia 's COVID-19 recovery prospects. The UNDPs 
conclusions from a recent study in Cambodia was that e -commerce was becoming an alternative to 
mitigate COVID -19 impacts as 7% to 11% of MSMEs started selling their products online as a means 
of coping with lockdowns and other measures relating to the pandemic, most of these being 
women -owned enterprises. Of these , 40% reportedly started a delivery service .  
261.  While it was clearly noted that these online sales had been largely limited to the use of social 
media , as opposed to a full online transaction in the traditional sense of e -commerce, this 
nonetheless gave clear indication of an emerging trend towards dema nd for digital commerce and 
provides support towards the Government 's Go-4-E-CAM initiative, and in particular the project 's 
onboarding of domestic products and services. The EIF, along with the Australian aid program 
representative, echoed their support f or enhancement of digital trade in Cambodia and briefly 
highlighted some of the ongoing efforts to fund this objective.  
Reporter: WTO 
 
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  SESSION 2 6: DIGITAL TRANSFORMATION IN LDCS FOR EFFICIENT AND SAFE 
CROSS -BORDER E -COMMERCE AND CUSTOMS CLEARANCE  
ORGANIZER(S) : Vanuatu  
MODERATORS :  
• Ms Luisa Letlet, Principal Trade Development Officer, Ministry of Tourism, Trade, Industry, 
Commerce and Ni -Vanuatu Business   
• Mr Walter Trezek, Chair , UPU Consultative Committee, UPU  
 
PANELLISTS  
• Mr Roy Mickey Joy,  Director -General of Trade, Vanuatu   
• Ms Shamika N. Sirimanne , Director of the Division on Technology and Logistics, UNCTAD   
• Mr Siva Somasundram, Director of Policy, Regulations and Markets, UP U  
• Mr Stanley Trief, Manager, Vanuatu Electronic Single Window Project   
• Mr Constantin  Ciuta, ASYCUDA Senior Customs Adviser, UNCTAD   
• Mr Javier Garcia, Customs Programme Expert, UPU  
• Mr Andrew Liunamel, CEO Vanuatu Post   
• Mr Alessandro Vitale, eT Ready Progr amme Management Officer, UNCTAD   
• Ms Sophia Fogarty, General Manager, Dynamic Vanuatu  
 
Short Summary  
262.  Vanuatu organi zed a session which explained how LDCs and fragile states needed to take 
measures to support their digital transformation in order to support efficient and safe cross -border 
e-commerce and customs clearance. Representatives of UNCTAD and UPU and their initi atives 
participated in the session . Vanuatu 's digital transformation has influenced its graduation from LDC 
status and could serve as a model for how to build strategies and implement systems with a view to 
ensuring all stakeholders could benefit from the opportunities of greater and more efficient 
e-commerce.  
Long Summary  
263.  In his opening remarks, Mr Roy Mickey Joy, Director -General of Trade, Vanuatu, said that 
Vanuatu was fortunate to have strong partnerships with organizations supportive of least developed  
countries , and that the transformation demonstrated by Vanuatu was made possible through this 
support. With e -commerce and technologies rapidly changing the world economy, based on the 
experience of Vanuatu, it was possible for such digital transformation  to have positive impacts on 
both the economy and the environment, driving change, creating jobs, and fostering 
entrepreneurship among women and rural enterprises. It was hoped that sharing Vanuatu 's 
experiences in the session would prove interesting for o ther LDCs and for developing countries in 
general .  
264.  Ms Shamika N. Sirimanne, Director of the Division on Technology and Logistics, UNCTAD, 
congratulated  Vanuatu for organizing such a timely and important session. Vanuatu  had built up 
large amount s of expertise to support automated customs clearance , and the strides they ha d made 
on both e -commerce and customs clearance issues offer ed lessons for other countries . The year 
2021 marked the 25 th anniversary of UNCTAD programmes with Vanuatu customs  - a big milestone 
for organization and country alike. Starting with the ASYCUDA++ project and moving to the 
ASYCUDA  World, from use of the ASY CUDA Passenger Processing  Module to a phytosanitary module 
that reduced the SPS application process from days to as little as 10 minutes, Vanuatu realized the 
potential and flexibility of the system and determined it could be useful for building an e -gover nment 
platform .  
265.  The pandemic ha d made it even more urgent to accelerate the digital transformation, with 
increased awareness of the benefits of e -commerce as a digital solution for coping with lockdowns 
and social distancing requirements; some studies sho w that it is likely this trend will continue after 
the pandemic. At the same time, the pandemic further exposed gaps in policy, support, and access 
which need to be addressed for countries to succeed in making the most of the opportunities WT/COMTD/AFT/W/86  
 
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  transformation a ffords. UNCTAD 's eTrade Readiness Assessments, such as the one performed with 
Vanuatu in 2018, help ed countries build strategies using a multi -stakeholder process engaging 
government agencies, international partners, and others. However, while an assessmen t could 
provide an analysis and evaluation of what should be done, reforms and advances require d 
involvement of the whole government and support from the development communities to build skills, 
improve logistics, and bring experience from elsewhere for th e benefit of all .  
266.  Vanuatu 's digital transformation efforts greatly influenced their graduation from LDC  status. 
UNCTAD pledge d to continue their role in helping connect the dots of the e -commerce system and 
breaking down silos between international partne rs to help countries accelerate their digital 
transformation . Mr Siva Somasundram, Director of Policy, Regulations and Markets, UPU , spoke 
about the UPU 's efforts  - through such initiatives as eTrade for All  - to encourage governments and 
donors to recogni ze the role of trade in development and help address trade -related constraints 
through whole -government approaches. The role of the postal sector could be undervalued; 
restrictions on the postal sector impact cross -border e -commerce, affecting the volume of parcels 
and the efficiency and expediency with which they were handled. E -commerce, digitization, and 
technological advances were revolutionizing lives and how business was conducted. The convenience 
for consumers, to purc hase from anyone, anywhere, anytime, changes the way the post did 
business, creating new opportunities and requiring adapting of services and business models .   
267.  The COVID -19 pandemic had reframed how governments view ed the post, with the system 
now recogni zed as an essential service. Following a temporary decline due to capacity disruptions, 
the pandemic had seen an increase in packages crossing borders due , in part , to changes in 
consumer and enterprise behaviour. Rapid growth in online shopping and cloud -based services 
transformed the ability to engage in e -commerce from a "nice to have" to a "must have" feature. It 
was fundamentally important to help LDCs and developing countries prepare for the surge in 
international parcels that would  result from the di gital transformation, enabling business of all sizes, 
especially MSMEs , to move materials and products across borders. It was vital to have an intelligent 
network, through technical assistance, tools, and communication between systems, to assist in all 
steps of e -commerce in all countries, and a next step would be to bring the post and customs 
together . Beginning the panel discussion segment of the session, Mr Stanley Trief, Manager, Vanuatu 
Electronic Single Window Project , briefly described Vanuatu 's succ ess story  on how the country was 
able to compensate for a small domestic market size and lack of physical proximity to other markets 
and enable increased custom service across borders. Recognizing that investment in a digital 
transformation was required to  ensure agencies could support businesses and others involved in 
commerce, options had been considered to facilitate cross -border trade  in 2014 .  
268.  With the endorsement of the Trade Development Committee, the Government funded an 
upgrade from ASYCUDA++ to ASYCUDA  World, thus completing the first phase of the Single Window 
Project. Vanuatu had received support from EIF and the Government of Australia for a second  phase, 
to automate other regulatory agencies. This was a first  as no such automated system had ever been 
put in place in the country . All payments, certificates, clearance of shipments, etc. was done in an 
exclusively paper -based environment. Following the instatement of the system in 2020, just as the 
country went into lockdown for the pandemic, it  was possible for much of the process to be not only 
digitalized but automated, rendering the process both more efficient and more transparent. The 
transformation from manual to digital resulted in a huge saving of time and a reduction in paper 
usage and f uel consumption, having a  direct impact on the environment. Though it was challenging 
to convince agencies to be involved in the modernization process, especially if there was no 
experience with automation in the past which  was never a priority, it helped that the project had a 
strong governance structure and dynamic public relations. This ensured that there was good 
communication with the agencies and provided them with a feeling of project ownership, integral for 
the success of any modernization scheme . With regards to the next steps for the Single Window 
system, it was hoped that countries , not covered in the first phase of implementation due to budget 
constraints , would now be covered in the second phase, provided funding could be obtained .  
269.  Mr Constanti n Ciuta, ASYCUDA Senior Customs Adviser, UNCTAD, provided insight on the role 
of UNCTAD and its initiatives. Currently there were initiatives for digitization of global trade and 
facilitation of cross -border commerce, focused on facilitating sharing of ele ctronic data from the post 
and customs to enable efficient, timely delivery of postal items. The outputs of the project include d, 
inter alia , the implementation of the use of electronic advance data (EAD) to allow completion of 
CN 22 and 23 forms in electr onic format;  the provision of support to interagency communication and 
information sharing, to allow rapid clearance of legitimate shipments and management of risks with WT/COMTD/AFT/W/86  
 
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  minimal delay; and the introduction of efficient revenue collection through electronic  payment 
options. Initiatives were being implemented  in several locations, with progress already seen in the 
processing of consignments and efficient handling of customs transactions. It was anticipated that 
the new modules will be added to ASYCUDA, includ ing implementation of a link with the e -Phyto 
solution .  
270.  To the question of scalability and replicability for other countries in the region, it was clear 
that the goal was to achieve a solution that was not only effective and efficient but also scalable and 
replicable for other countries, with Vanuatu 's project serving as a successful pilot endeavour. Lessons 
learned include d that timely information  sharing at all stages was critical to streamlined clearance 
of shipments; while there was still co untries and postal operators  that were not yet in a position to 
accept EAD and information had to be captured manually, there would still be delays. In the short 
term, creating fast lanes for those already providing EAD could help, when coupled with an ef fort to 
accelerate the process of digitalization in other countries. Secondly, for revenue collection, regular 
reviews and assessments would be useful for risk management evaluation . The potential for 
assigning unique identifiers to e -vendors or e -commerce  platforms could help speed the process by 
labelling those with reliably completed information as trusted sources, and whose shipments could 
be more quickly released upon arrival . Responding to a question on the critical challenges faced by 
postal systems in LDCs in making a digital transformation, Mr Javier Garcia, Customs Programme 
Expert, UPU, identified three key areas : project change management ; technology ; and funding. 
Clear objectives, targets, metrics, and performance indicators were critical, and everyone in an 
organization needed to be on board with , and involved in , the effort of making the change  happen . 
Despite the boom of the pandemic, the digital divide remained real  in 2021, and many took for 
granted the availability of both technology and th e associated expertise. Technology adoption was 
important at not only an organization or government level but at the level of all partners, from 
agencies and operators to businesses and customers. Finally, every transformation requires 
investment and the c ost of the transformation must be budgeted .  
271.  A key lesson from projects in which UPU was involved is the importance of collaboration 
between postal services and customs; clear communications at different levels is critical. Top -down 
support, from heads of customs services and postal operators, is required to champion projects and 
move things forward. Finally, it was better to make incremental developments and changes, adapting 
agilely  as the project progresse d through  its phases, than to attempt to design a perfect system and 
then implement it all in one go .  
272.  Mr Andrew Liunamel, CEO Vanuatu Post, considered how the full implementation of EAD could 
affect the volume managed by the postal system. A three -year project with UPU focused  on helping 
the pos tal system develop e -commerce capabilities, improve service quality through an integrated 
system approach, and address obstacles preventing customers from making cross -border purchases. 
Despite the implementation of the customs declaration system, custom c learance on inbound items 
was still impacted by lack of interface between systems . It was therefore a welcome development 
that efforts would now be focused on an interface between the two systems, which would expedite 
processing and translate to an improve d and more predictable delivery services. Processing time in 
Vanuatu was currently 1.625 days, depending on the volume, but the expectation was that with the 
exchange of electronic data it could be possible to reduce this to 0.5 days , or less. The new proc ess 
would create benefits for imports and exports in the long run, increased volume of shipments, and 
better integration MSMEs .  
273.  Mr Alessandro Vitale, eT Ready Programme Management Officer, UNCTAD, explained that, for 
LDCs looking for graduation, a number of barriers to participating in a larger share of e -commerce  
still existed . The absence of e -commerce from national development plans or coordination 
mechanisms, delay in adoption of legislation on data and consumer protection, could all contribute 
to the lack of trust in online transactions. The issue of connectivity was not to be discounted, as a 
quarter of the populations of LDCs and half of small island developing countries not having access 
to mobile broadband and, in cases where mobile broadband was available, not having the 
subscriptions required to use them. Logistics challenges, remoteness of islands , and challenges for 
transportation infrastructure could mean high costs for freight. Reliance on cash -on-delivery culture 
in LDCs and issues of interop erability between systems hinders digital payment solutions, and digital 
literacy must be advanced, especially for women and M SMEs. An acceleration of reforms and projects 
with clear policy frameworks would be invaluable in addressing these obstacles .  WT/COMTD/AFT/W/86  
 
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  274.  Aid for Trade could support developing countries and LDCs in addressing e -commerce 
challenges through an increase in funds available from donors for e -commerce and digital 
transformation support. The challenges had become even more visible during the pandemic and it 
was critical that governments steer ed digital transformation in collaboration with international 
partners, but also with the involvement and  inclusiveness of women, young entrepreneurs, 
consumer associations, and stakeholders located outside capitals and urban areas. Vanuatu had 
made a tactical choice to invest in infrastructure, technology, and capacity building to make their 
digital transfor mation possible , and could serve as a successful model for other  countries  to follow .  
275.  Speaking as an entrepreneur, Ms Sophia Fogarty, General Manager, Dynamic Vanuatu, shared 
her experience of the impact of the Single Window on how business can be conduct ed and what she 
would wish to see in terms of developments and support for M SMEs. The system created efficiencies, 
the ability to apply online and have a 24 -hour turnaround time was not only useful in maximizing 
human resources and improving delivery speed , but also ensuring that perishable products were 
received and handled promptly. There was greater visibility for her business, the option of centralized 
storage of previously submitted applications for reference and reuse, and environmental benefits in 
fewer trips to and from offices and less paper used for preparing documentation. The Government 's 
support would be valuable in efforts to take Vanuatu -focused products to a more global audience, 
as the country 's position as a valued and trusted trade partner  using the same systems as other 
countries will help open doors. There was also interest in the implementation of blockchain 
technology for traceability within a supply chain and management of secure payments. Much 
depend ed on government prioritization of related projects and the rollout of available technology, 
but these efforts would be a boon for businesses, particularly MS MEs. 
Reporter: WTO  
 
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  SESSION 27: IMPACT OF COVID -19 ON WOMEN TRADERS IN BANGLADESH, BHUTAN, 
INDIA, AND NEPAL  
ORGANIZER(S) : CUTS International  
MODERATOR: Mr Bipul Chatterjee, Executive Director, CUTS International  
PANELLISTS  
• Ms Kamala Gurung, Gender and Natural Resource Management Specialist, International Centre 
for Integrated Mountain Development, Kathmandu  
• Dr Cyn-Young Park, Director, Regional Cooperation and Integration Division, Economics Research 
and Regional Cooperation Department, Asian Development Bank   
• Ms Mandakini Kaul, Senior Regional Cooperatio n Officer for South Asia, World Bank Group   
• Ms Selima Ahmad, Member of Parliament, Bangladesh and President, Bangladesh Women 
Chambers of Commerce and Industry   
• Ms Kunzang Lhamu, Director -General, Department of Employment and Human Resources, 
Ministry of Labour and Human Resources, Royal Government of Bhutan   
• Ms Anoush der Boghossian, Head of Trade and Gender, WTO  
 
Short Summary  
276.  Women 's participation in trade and trade -related activities in Bangladesh, Bhutan, India and 
Nepal (BBIN) needs speci al attention in the wake of COVID -19. Women in this sub -region are majorly 
concentrated in the informal sector which is currently bearing the brunt of the cris is. Creating an 
enabling environment through easy access to finance and technology, and skill dev elopment 
programmes can lead to a speedy recovery from economic shocks. Gender -inclusive policies, 
recovery packages including conditional and unconditional cash transfers, food subsidies and 
technical assistance are vital pillars for such an environment. Joint action of state and non -state 
actors is required towards this end.  
Long Summary  
277.  Women entrepreneurs are disproportionately affected by COVID -19 due to the nature of their 
businesse s and the prevailing uncertainties. Tourism is one such sector that was severely impacted 
by the pandemic and has implications on other sectors such as handlooms and handicrafts through 
its backward and forward linkages. Women entrepreneurs are much more vu lnerable to dealing with 
the risks of uncertainty. There is extensive evidence to show that countries that are more open to 
giving opportunities to women have more positive economic outcomes. However, the link between 
gender equality and trade is missing.  
278.  Findings of research conducted by the World Bank reveal that: trade can dramatically improve 
women 's lives by creating new jobs, choices and increased bargaining power; countries with a more 
favourable economic environment for women have lower gaps in wag es leading to an increase in 
economic equality; digital technology and virtual platforms are opening new opportunit ies for women 
to overcome traditional trade barriers . It is important to bring new understanding and solutions to 
overcome longstanding trade  facilitation barriers , and to spotlight the negative impact of connectivity 
and infrastructure that may affect women 's economic empowerment .  
279.  Since most of the enterprises in the BBIN sub -region are in the informal agriculture sector, 
female workers invol ved in these enterprises are heavily impacted by the pandemic. In India, 
36 million MSMEs employ 60  million people ; while in Nepal , MSMEs generate over two million jobs 
and contribute 22 % of the country 's gross domestic product. Women workers also face dau nting 
challenges due to the wage gap between male and female employees .  
280.  The pandemic has led to "SHE-cession " because employment and labour force participation 
has dropped significantly for women. Around 40 % of women employed in industries such as 
manufac turing (textile and garments), hospitality services, wholesale and retail trade, real estate, 
business and administrative activities , are severely affected by COVID. Women are highly 
concentrated in low skill labour jobs in the manufacturing and traditiona l services sector, and the 
health and social sector. Labour market participation during COVID -19 lockdown in the formal 
manufacturing sector was very low in BBIN countries in general , notably  India and Bangladesh, in WT/COMTD/AFT/W/86  
 
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  comparison to some of the East Asian co untries such as Indonesia, Thailand and Viet  Nam. Many 
women entrepreneurs , who completely relied on international trade fairs and border markets , were 
impacted by travel and transportation restrictions. The Border Haats , which is an initiative to 
promote the livelihood of women living in border areas , were also shut down due to COVID -19. 
Further, mental health issues due to lockdown have increased , leading to more violence and 
discrimination against women and young girls , including sexual abuse, transactional sex, unplanned 
pregnancies, early marriage and dowry. Increased care work at home has contributed to the mental 
stress of women in the midst of financial cris is due to loss of jobs .  
281.  COVID -19 has perpetrated the exist ing disadvantage in the workplace and household that is 
leading to an uneven impact on men and women. Women are at a disadvantage when it comes to 
opportunities, wages, academic and financial literacy and access to technology. It was highlighted 
that highe r-income Asian countries such as Singapore, the Republic of Korea and Japan exhibit lower 
discrimination and inequality than those from South and Southeast Asia . In general, men are more 
susceptible than women to COVID -19 due to comorbidity factors. Howeve r, women have also 
become vulnerable to the disease , especially those who are engaged in industries that require more 
human -to-human interaction such as healthcare, personal care, hospitality and tourism .  
282.  Women are also much less likely to be employed in  Science, Technology, Engineering and 
Mathematics (STEM) or in professional jobs that allow work from home as a means of maintaining 
social distanc ing. Rather, they are  concentrated in the informal sector that was heavily hit. Thus,  
women are more vulnerabl e to losing jobs and contracting the disease . The engagement of women 
entrepreneurs is mainly in smaller businesses where they work in low -return sectors, for example, 
agriculture. Due to border closure, there has been  a complete disruption in the underval ued market 
of food and livestock products in developing countries . Reports have shown there has been an 
increase  in domestic violence – physical, emotional and sexual abuse . Economic hardships pushed 
families to marry off their daughter and engage in trans actional sex. The issue of gender -based 
violence is under -reported in BBIN countries. There were also cases in South Asia, wherein the 
inability to pay  a dowry has delayed marriages .  
283.  Women are over -represented in many sectors with low returns but high ris ks like the 
hospitality industry. A survey conducted by the Bangladesh Women Chamber of Commerce and 
Industry reveals that among 7 ,000 women entrepreneurs, almost 80 % did not receive any direct 
financial support from the Government agencies. Existing power imbalances in the society prevented 
the packages to reach the right beneficiaries. There is a need for providing an enabling environment 
for women entrepreneurs , not only in Bangladesh but also in other countries , for the ir speedy 
recovery from economic shock due to the pandemic .  
284.  While the government can create an enabling environment through relief measures, safety 
protocols, social safety mechanisms, capacity building and liquidity support, civil society 
organi zations c an undertake evidence -based advocacy, create awareness about various government 
programmes and organi ze capacity -building programmes on financial literacy and digital technology. 
The private sector can promote women entrepreneurs through the strengthening of supply chains . 
Joint efforts by state and non -state actors through trade facilitation efforts, collection of data and 
success stories, wide dissemination of research findings, awareness generation, capacity building, 
and representation of different voic es can lead to positive changes .  
Recommendations:  
• Protective measures for women workers/labour through insurance, workplace safety, 
skill-up-gradation, livelihood diversification, financial literacy, and education for their 
children ;  
• Supporting women -led businesses by ensuring equal access to financial and non -financial 
services, access and use of digital technologies and platform s;  
• Stimulus packages including conditional and unconditional cash transfers, food subsidies and 
technical assistance for wome n entrepreneur s and workers ; 
• Create gender -responsive education by ensuring girls ha ve equal access to quality, relevant 
and safe educational practices ; and  WT/COMTD/AFT/W/86  
 
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  • Further encourage girls to take up STEM to narrow gender gaps through skill development 
and job creation.  
Reporter: CUTS International  WT/COMTD/AFT/W/86  
 
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  SESSION 28: TRADE INTELLIGENCE FOR AN INCLUSIVE RECOVERY  
ORGANIZER(S) : Switzerland  
MODERATOR: Ms Emmanuelle Ganne, Senior Analyst, Economic Research and Statistics Division , 
WTO 
PANELLISTS  
• Ms Pamela Coke -Hamilton, Executive Director, International Trade Centre   
• Ms Eunice Huang, Trade Policy Manager, Google   
• Ms Sandra Uwera, Chief Executive Officer, Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa 
Business Council   
• Ms Monica Rubiolo, Head of Trade Promotion, State Secretariat for Economic Affairs, Switzerland   
• Mr John Denton, Secretary -General, International Chamber of Commerce  
• Ms Isabelle Durant, Acting Secretary -General, United Nations Conference on Trade and 
Development  
 
Short Summary  
285.  The session discussed how the Global Trade Helpdesk, an ITC -UNCTAD -WTO-led initiative, as 
well as other intelligence tools could help MSMEs in acc essing international markets. Access to 
market intelligence, mobility of people, access to trade finance and digitali zation, including digital 
trade facilitation, were highlighted as essential for MSMEs and economic recovery. To make the 
Global Trade Helpd esk a success, it would be essential that it remain ed agile, adapting to the needs 
of users, and be linked to institutions at the national level, regional and global levels. It was 
important for MSMEs to get involved with local business support organizatio ns (BSOs) and make use 
of the tools and support provided . 
Long Summary  
286.  Ms Isabelle Durant, Acting Secretary -General of UNCTAD, highlighted that MSMEs were the 
backbone of the global economy, representing around two -thirds of all companies. COVID -19 
resulte d in a year of loss, with the economic impact being particularly severe in sectors such as 
tourism and for vulnerable groups such as women and migrant workers. Trade was essential for 
economic recovery, and important for the deliver y of medicines and other  essential goods. The 
Global Trade Helpdesk (GTH) helped MSME s access critical trade information, including trade 
measures imposed by governments, regulatory measures, and trade data. Besides access to 
information provided  by initiatives such the GTH, MSME s needed additional capacity -building support 
to engage in trade. To ensure relevance, the GTH needed to remain an agile tool that adapt ed and 
evolve d in line with the needs of users. For MSMEs, sector selection was an importance aspect, with 
sectors that contribute d to a green and inclusive recovery offering promising opportunities .  
287.  Ms Pamela Coke -Hamilton, Executive Director of ITC, highlighted that the pandemic illustrated 
the connectedness of the globalized world . Global problems require d global solutions. The ongoing 
crisis ha d been an exceptionally difficult period for MSMEs, as many had to close their doors. MSMEs 
continue d to struggle, particularly in the area of tourism. MSMEs needed certainty and access to 
timely and reliable informa tion. MSMEs were at the heart of ITC 's market -intelligence efforts, with 
initiatives such as the ITC Market Access Map (passed one million users in 2020), the African Trade 
Observatory (provides intelligence and monitors implementation of the AfCFTA) , as well as the GTH. 
The GTH constituted a comprehensive source of trade intelligence and was an example of a strong 
partnership in action between multilateral, regional and national agencies (chambers of commer ce 
and other business support organizations). ITC had already provided trainings on the GTH in over 
50 countries .  
288.  Mr John Denton, Secretary -General of International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) highlighted 
the that best support for economic recovery was not proving money , but rather, ending the pandemic  
altogether . Problems in vaccination supply chains, also caused by trade measures such as export 
controls, required an independent global clearing house to improve the governance of vaccine supply 
chains, e.g.  by monitoring supply chains, creating matchmaking and facilitating investments. For 
economic recovery, it was important to make progress on the digitalization of trade, including WT/COMTD/AFT/W/86  
 
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  e-commerce, and to ensure that businesses can keep pace with the requirements of the digital 
economy. ICC was collaborating wit h WTO on the work on e -commerce and MSMEs and  had recently 
launched the Digital Standards Initiative (DSI) to enable the standardi zation of digital trade. To 
enable trade for MSMEs in the pandemic , three issues were vital: (1) restoring global mobility ( the 
ICC AOKpass provide d digitally -authenticated COVID -19 status es and was the  most widely -used 
such tool in the European  Union); (2) market access ( the Global Trade Helpdesk was  key in that 
context ); and (3) access to capital (ICC had committed to help M SMEs access trade finance through 
its TradeNow initiative) .  
289.  Ms Eunice Huang, Trade Policy Manager at Google , highlighted lack of access to information 
as a key barrier for MSMEs. Google collaborated with ITC on incorporating real time information on 
global  trade measures that is powered by ITC Market Access Map. Google 's digital tools and product 
provide d complementary information to the GTH. Google search facilitated 100  billion visits of 
business sites every month and helped MSMEs stay connected with thei r customers during the 
pandemic. Google Market Finder helped MSMEs identify potential markets and business opportunities 
(e.g. information on markets; average cost of advertising; assessment tool on export readiness). 
The tool Travel Insights with Google p rovided information on travel demand and travel trends as 
well as insights on accommodation demand by source, which can help with advertising strategies. 
Google provided USD  800 million during COVID -19, a third of which was given as advertisement 
credits t o MSMEs. Google also provided free courses and trainings in support of MSMEs .  
290.  Ms Sandra Uwera, CEO, COMESA Business Council highlighted that businesses in the 
COMESA  region ha d been facing cash flow problems and the challenge to adapt their business 
strategies. Airlines switched from passenger to cargo transport, hotels leased their rooms as offices, 
and MSMEs diversified into personal protective equipment. Border closures disru pted supply chains 
and there was a need to strengthen manufacturing output and fragmented supply chains in Africa. 
Here, implementation of the AfCFTA provided important opportunities. While tourism has suffered 
greatly, the crisis has also created new oppo rtunities in the area of services, particularly on 
e-commerce, mobile and e -payment facilitates, audio -visual services and business process 
outsourcing. For economic recovery, it was essential that MSMEs embraced digitali zation and that 
governments promote d digital trade facilitation. Regarding digitali zation, there was a need for 
increased awareness of MSMEs and for the customi zation of digital tools to socio -economic systems, 
promoting the digital inclusiveness of women. The COMESA Business Council ha d created an 
initiative for digital financial inclusion for MSMEs .  
291.  Ms Monica Rubiolo, Head of Trade Promotion, State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (SECO) 
highlighted multilateral and bilateral support provided by Switzerland as part of the pandemic. 
Suppor t to MSMES has been a priority for Switzerland over past years. This support covers two 
dimensions: (1) supporting MSMES with access to international markets and competitiveness, and 
(2) supporting the institutional and regulatory environment at national a nd international levels 
(including the GTH). The GTH was a global public good which reduced the asymmetry in access to 
information among firms, helping MSMEs to access international markets. Switzerland also 
supported ITC 's Sustainability Map which helped consumers and MSMEs navigate through standards. 
At the bilateral level the Swiss Import Promotion Programme (SIPPO) supported BSOs in different 
countries to increase their export promotion capacity and service provision to export -ready 
companies. It was im portant that the GTH be supported by institutions at the national level 
(e.g. customs and tax authorities, BSOs), regional , as well as multilateral level. Social responsibility, 
inclusiveness and environmentally  friendly were important ingredients for a go od recovery.  
Reporter: WTO 
 
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  SESSION 29: PROMOTING SAFE TRADE IN EASTERN AFRICA - MAKING PORTS, BORDERS, 
AND CRITICAL SUPPLY CHAINS SAFE FOR TRADE  BY MITIGATING RISKS FOR 
CROSS -BORDER TRANSMISSION OF COVID -19 
ORGANIZER(S): TradeMark  East Africa  
MODERATOR: Mr Frank Matsaert, CEO, TradeMark East Africa  
PANELLISTS  
• Ms Nalan Yuksel, Deputy Director, Pan -Africa and Regional Development, Embassy of Canada, 
Addis Ababa, Ethiopia   
• Mr Mogens Strunge  Larsen, Sustainable Jobs and Trade, Team Leader, Embassy of Denmark, 
Nairobi, Kenya   
• Mr Martijn Boelen, Trade Advisor, European Union Delegation to Kenya   
• Mr Daniel Murenzi, Principal Information Technology Officer, E ast African Community  Secretariat 
(EAC) 
• Mr Atek Kagirita, Director Public Health, Ministry of Health, Uganda   
• Ms Sheila Kawamara, Executive Director , The Eastern African Sub -Regional Support Initiative for 
the Advancement of Women  (EASSI ) 
• Mr Joachim Osur, Director, Regional Programmes and Fiel d Offices, African Medical and Research 
Foundation ( AMREF ) 
• Ms Hinda Abdi Ali, Vice Chair Tog Wagaale Traders and Chair of Mothers Collective  
• Mr Alban Odhiambo, Senior Director, Trade Environment, TradeMark East Africa  
• Ms Wanjiku Kimamo, Director, Gender an d Inclusion, TradeMark East Africa  
 
Short Summary  
292.  The session showcased efforts by several institutions and TMEA , in ensuring seamless border 
crossings during the COVID -19 pandemic in the East African Community ( EAC). Importantly, the  
session presented  Regional Electronic Cargo and Driver Tracking System (RECDTS)  which  is a mobile 
phone app that allows cargo drivers to cross borders with COVID -19 digital certificates. It allows 
sharing COVID -19 test results of drivers between EAC state s, hence reducing the need for testing in 
multiple countries, and facilitating the timely delivery of essential goods.  As the pandemic exposed 
the interlinkages between trade, health, education and other key sectors, it called for deeper 
cooperation amongs t sectoral policymakers.  
Long Summary  
293.  The session on " Promoting Safe Trade in Eastern Africa - Making Ports, Borders, and Critical 
Supply Chains Safe for Trade - by Mitigating Risks for Cross-Border Transmission of COVID -19" 
showcased joint efforts by several institutions, ministries, development partners, donors and TMEA , 
in ensuring seamless border crossings in the EAC, during the COVID -19 pandemic . The session was 
moderated by Mr Frank Matsaert, CEO, TradeMark East Africa , who demonstrated several initiatives 
on the ground to facilitate trade during these challenging times. It is clear from the discussions that 
the COVID -19 pandemic h ad exacerbated existing barriers to trade, and that it had exposed the 
interlinkages betwe en trade, health, education and other key sectors. The Director of Public Health, 
in the Ugandan Ministry of Health, called for deeper cooperation amongst trade and health officials. 
The session shed light on some innovative and sustainable ideas and measu res put in place to 
mitigate the effects of the current and future pandemics .  
294.  TradeMark East Africa ha d launched a Safe Trade Emergency Facility (STEF) Programme . The 
programme extend ed to Burundi, Djibouti, D emocratic Republic of the Congo, Ethiopia, Ken ya, 
Malawi, Rwanda, Somaliland, South Sudan, Tanzania, Uganda, and Zambia . The STEF was 
established due to mounting concern expressed by many governments in the region and the need 
for special efforts to keep trade safely running along the main transport c orridors . It was essential  
that people access ed goods affordably; markets continued to be well supplied;  and traders could 
still operate despite  the movement restrictions and loss of incomes. The US D 20 million STEF, funded 
by Canada, Denmark, European Un ion, Finland, Ireland, Netherlands, and the United Kingdom, was 
aimed at supporting governments to undertake critical measures along the transport and trade WT/COMTD/AFT/W/86  
 
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  routes that will ensure that trade continues safely and timely across EAC borders, while protecting 
livelihoods .  
295.  STEF components include d: making the ports, borders and critical supply chains safe for trade; 
ensuring food security and access to critically required medicines; and supporting measures that 
reduce d jobs losses and supported  expor ts. Specific interventions would range from apps for tracking 
truck drivers, to e -health passports for online certification of documents to safe trade zones .  
296.  RECDTS was a mobile phone app that allow ed cargo drivers to cross EAC borders with 
COVID -19 digital certificates, and it help ed to track drivers ' travel in real time as they move. A 
Regional Electronic Cargo Tracking System Centrali zed Monitoring Centre overs aw all movements. 
This app allow ed sharing COVID -19 test results of drivers between EAC states , hence reducing the 
need for testing in multiple countries, and facilitating the timely delivery of essential goods and 
services. The drivers were assigned a QR -code to be presented for verification. The code was 
scanned and five seconds later, the authen ticity of the test result was guaranteed .  
297.  Participants sought to know whether it was feasible to expand the coverage of the mobile app 
(including translating it into more languages), to a continent -wide level, particular ly in light of the 
implementation o f the AfCTA . Panellists and development partners such as Canada, Denmark, and 
the European Union reiterated the importance of STEF to ensure a harmonized approach to allow 
the free movement of people and services, especially essential medical goods .  
298.  The session also included some success stories and lessons learned from a gender  perspective, 
following the pandemic. It is worth noting that there was a call for women traders to be given a safe 
place to trade. Access to finance remain ed crucial and the n eed for capacity building for resilience, 
for women in trade. In this regard, it was important to prioritize the creation of a Safe Trade Zone 
and the need to convert the EAC marketplace into regional markets .  
299.  Panellists also stressed the importance of Ai d-for-Trade programmes, pointing out that 
infrastructural investment was pivotal. It was agreed that every crisis present ed an opportunity, 
hence the COVID -19 pandemic should provide governments the incentive to build permanent and 
better structures, inclu ding long -term solutions for women to trade in a safe space, with facilities 
such as prayer rooms, nursing rooms, childcare, and cold rooms.  
Reporter: WTO  WT/COMTD/AFT/W/86  
 
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  SESSION 30: TECH AS A DRIVER OF GENDER EQUALITY IN THE DIGITAL ECONOMY  
ORGANIZER(S) : Ministry of Communication, Information Technologies and Media and Ministry of 
Commerce, Transport, Industry, and Tourism of the Government of Burundi   
MODERATOR: Ms Anne Rita Ssemboga, Programme Officer, Regional Office for Africa, I nternatio nal 
Telecommunication Union (I TU) 
PANELLISTS  
• Ms Annette  Ssemuwemba, Deputy Executive Director, Enhanced Integrated Framework  
• Ms Barbara Kotschwar , Executive Director, Visa Economic Empowerment Institute  
• Ms Tamara Dancheva,  International Relations Manager, Global System for Mobile 
Communications Association ( GSMA )  
• Mr Francis Oliver Cubahiro, Director of ICT Infrastructure, ITU Focal Point, Ministr y of 
Communication, Information Technologies and Media, Burundi  
• Ms Robyn Smith, Gender, Inclusive and Sustainable Trade Policy Lead, Trade for Development 
Department, Foreign and Commonwealth Office, United Kingdom  
• Ms Ginette Karire, Vice President, Chamb re Féderale de Commerce et d 'Industrie du Burundi  
• Ms Eliane Gasoni, Finance Manager, Burundi Friends International   
• Mr Andrew Rugege, Director, Regional Office for Africa, ITU  
 
Short Summary  
300.  The session was co -organized by the Ministry of Communication, Information Technologies 
and Media and Ministry of Commerce, Transport, Industry, and Tourism of the Government of 
Burundi, the EQUALS Global Partnership and the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), 
under the framework of the EIF -ITU Project Enhancing the Digital Ecosystem and Digital Skills for 
the economic empowerment of women in LDCs . The session focused on how women could be part 
of the digital revolution and how the digital gender gap in low -income countries such as Burundi 
could be reduced. Participants highlighted that the benefits of digital gender equity were very large 
and looked at the barriers to economic empowermen t of women and how to overcome them.  
Long Summary  
301.  In her opening remarks, Ms Annette Ssemuwemba put the spotlight on gender equality and 
SDG 5. In the course of 2020 , more women and girls in the developing world had had to leave 
education and  were enjoy ing fewer economic opportunities. At the same time, e -commerce ha d 
accelerated during the global pandemic and the gender digital gap ha d widened , which required 
urgent action . She stressed the need to ensure that women and girls were included in digital 
devel opment. Data suggest ed that, in Africa , the proportion of women using the internet was much 
lower than that of men. Research led by the EIF  had identifie d several barriers for women such as 
the educational gap, costs, and affordability. EIF 's approach to i nclusive trade for better lives and 
livelihoods brought together resources to provide a global dedicated platform for innovative solutions 
to key challenges. The EIF ha d contributed to the creation of more than 30,000 jobs and remain ed 
committed to gender equality and women empowerment in LDCs. EIF support ed LDCs to integrate 
gender -related measures and considerations in their policies, and advocate d women 's participation 
in decision making and integrated value chains. EIF 's collaboration with ITU in Burundi sought to 
ensure that women were part of the digital economy and to improve women 's access to e -commerce 
to reverse the increasing gender digital divide .   
302.  Mr Francis Oliver Cubahiro spoke about the launch of the project  "Tech as a driver of women 's 
economic opportunity" in Burundi on 14 September 2020. The project support ed the agricultural 
sector as many women in Burundi work in this field. It target ed established farmer associations and 
women farmers . Workshops had bee n organi zed within the framework of the project to improve 
women 's skills .   
303.  Ms Barbara Kotschwar said that the area of digitalization was very promising for women. 
Digital sales and payments c ould overcome some of the social and cultural barriers that wom en still 
encounter ed when transacting face to face. The export sector ha d also suffered from a gender 
imbalance. According to ITC's data, o nly 15% of exporting firms globally were women -led. Women WT/COMTD/AFT/W/86  
 
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  were more likely to invest in their families or reinvest in  their communities. Connecting women to 
better and broader -reaching export jobs was important. As governments look ed to rebuild the ir 
econom ies, they need ed to think about how to help women entrepreneurs to succeed. Therefore, 
the following  areas for empowerment had to become pro -gender initiatives : (1) digitalization (since 
more that  than 1 .5 billion women in low -income countries did not own a phone ); (2) s mall business 
support ; (3) education ; (4) and  finance. As more women entrepreneurs d igitaliz ed and went out to 
export , they need support in finding the best way to do so and improve their financial literacy .   
304.  Ms Robyn Smith stressed that digital technology was transforming the way people access ed 
information and markets. Women and girls risked being left even further behind because they did 
not have the same access es. Improving the inclusion of girls through technology was key. The U nited 
Kingdom  was working with its partners to develop a programme to catalyse  affordable connectivity 
for women . As well as access and connectivity, the U nited Kingdom  was focusing on increasing digital 
literacy. The current pandemic had prove n how digital could move  us to business online, but this 
requir ed critical skills which was important  for success in this environment. She Trades partnership 
quickly identified the needs and provided coaching and training to build women's  skills to run a 
business online. Sixty -seven percent of women who participated in this project reported that (thanks 
to capacity building on digital and commerce) they had able to make improvements in their digital 
business. Digitalization was no longer a nice-to-have feature  but a requirement for succeed in 
international trade .  
305.  Ms Tamara Dancheva reminded that the pandem ic had highlighted the critical necessity of 
access to mobile phone s. For many women in low and middle -income countries , access to the 
internet is made mainly via phone. Phones were not only used to share information but also to 
support livelihoods. Women were 30% less likely to own mobile money. Since 2016, 40 mobile 
operators ha d made commitments to reduce the gender gap through various initiatives. Improving 
access, education, leadership and skills and bringing public and private sector together to close  the 
digital divide was critical .  
306.  Ms Eliane Gasoni spoke about her work with women in Burundi Friends International. Their 
objective was to help women 's economic development and they were currently supporting over 
3,200 women. Women group their savings to launch a business in the form of a cooperative. The 
integration of digital was very important in all levels of this work to facilitate communication , 
knowledge transfer and capacity building. The speaker highlighted the benefits that an online 
platform would represent for sellers and buyers .  
307.  Ms Ginette Karire said that the project can help women at three levels. First, to promote 
electronic commerce in Burundi , applied to agribusiness. Second, at the national level, to f acilitate 
connectivity between digital platforms and banks. Third, to help women access digital trade 
platforms via mobile phones so they can make easier and faster transactions .  
308.  Mr Andrew Rugege said that different stakeholders joining efforts was the mo st effective way 
to advance opportunities for women worldwide. ITU need ed to make sure women saw the potential 
of information communication technology as it would facilitate their learning, networking 
opportunities, empower them by transfer ring knowledge, and help them to become active members 
of society. Women were suffering disproportionately from the pandemic especially in low -income 
countries where they were more likely to face limited economic opportunities . Technology open ed 
opportunities for women to  become economically independent.  
309.  Connectivity, digital skills, and devices would help women to be empowered through these 
technologies. He called for action towards prioritizing opportunities, to engage and succeed in the 
ever-changing but progressively technologically saturated  jobs. In the future , every job would 
require some level o f digital skills, so women should not be left behind. Mainstreaming gender issues 
in policies was a key element to unlock ing opportunities for women. This is why ITU promote d 
strategic dialogue on policies, provide d tools to enable inclusive dialogue and e nhance cooperation. 
ITU also le d projects assisting women to boost entrepreneurship activities and improve access to 
capacity building to help women to benefit from digital entrepreneurship. If women benefit ed from 
digital technology the entire world would  too. 
Reporter: WTO 
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  SESSION 31: GLOBAL AND REGIONAL IMPLICATIONS OF COVID -19 ON E -COMMERCE  
ORGANIZER(S): UNCTAD  
MODERATOR: Mr Torbjörn Fredriksson, Chief of the ICT Policy Section, UNCTAD  
PANELLISTS  
• Ms Shamika  N. Sirimanne, Director of the Division on Technology and Logistics, UNCTAD   
• Mr Ayman El -Sherbiny, Chief ICT Policies Section, United Nations Economic and Social 
Commission for Western Africa (ESCWA)   
• Mr Nanno  Mulder, Chief International Trade Unit, Economic Commission for Latin America and 
the Caribbean ( ECLAC )  
• Ms Sandra Corcuera Santamaria, Customs and trade senior specialist, Inter -American 
Development Bank   
• Ms Elisabeth Tuerk, Director, Economic Cooperatio n and Trade , United Nations Economic 
Commission for Europe ( UNECE)  
• Mr James Howe, ITC – Testimonials from MSMEs   
• Mr Buddhi Upadhya, Counsellor and Deputy Permanent Representative of the Permanent Mission 
of Nepal to the UN and other International Organiza tions in Geneva  
 
Short Summary  
310.  The COVID -19 pandemic has accelerated digital transformation and e -commerce has also 
been experiencing a spike in growth with long -term implications, especially for developing countries. 
Speakers from UNCTAD, the United Nations regional commissions, and relevant partners of the 
eTrade came together to present major findin gs on the impacts, the challenges, and the way forward 
for recovery from the COVID -19 pandemic. These findings would be collected into a major study on 
the impact of COVID -19 on e-commerce and digital trade.  
Long Summary  
311.  Mr Torbjörn Fredriksson introduced the session by noting that this was the first  example of 
such a data-driven study o n the effect on the pandemic on developing countries and e -commerce 
and that it was necessary to ensure that developing countries and least developed countries were 
not left  behind in the digital transformation .  
312.  Ms Shamika N. Sirimanne, introduced the primary findings of the study as well as global and 
regional implications of COVID -19 on e-commerce. The retail share of e -commerce had increased 
from 14% to 17%  - a figure whi ch could have been  underestimat ed due to a lack of data. Most of 
the gains ha d been made by a few large companies in China and the United States. However, 
consumer behaviour in developing countries ha d experienced the largest shift toward digital 
consumpti on. Barriers include d a lack of connectivity and infrastructure. She stressed that dialogue 
and collaboration were needed to identify new pathways for the digital economy . The panel then 
turned to the main findings and drivers for change from a regional pe rspective.  
313.  Ms Sandra Corcuera Santamaria noted that in the Latin America, the pandemic had been 
severe . GDP per capita had regressed to 2010 leve ls with over 30% of the population living in 
poverty. Evidence suggest ed that e -commerce and data trade had made a leap forward . There was  
a 173% increase of households buying online ; a five -fold increase in credit card use in May  2020 as 
compared to the month of February ; e-commerce had increased by 157% ; all in a region that  was 
lagging behind in e -commerce preparedness and where only ha d a 2% share of e -commerce trade.  
314.  Mr Nanno  Mulder of the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean ( ECLAC ) 
presented the findings of a regional survey that found that Latin Amer ican ( LatAm) governments 
were quickly developing comprehensive e -commerce strategies, increasing connectivity to 
underserved areas . E-readiness is currently the policy with the highest level of engagement .  
315.  Mr Jamie MacLeod noted that e -commerce had had a mixed impact on Africa. In the African 
context there was a profound lack of foundation needed for adoption  with only 30% of the population 
enjoying  internet access  with the number falling down to 10% in some countries. The mode of WT/COMTD/AFT/W/86  
 
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  delivery for digital trad e had had very different impacts on vendors. Goods trade was struggling due 
to issues with supply chains and logistics . Services ha d fared better,  as it ha d been unconstrained 
by social distancing measures  and, furthermore, there ha d been increased adoption of cashless 
payments. Government responses ha d been varied and digital services taxes ha d been increasing.  
316.  Ms Elisabeth Tuerk highlighted that the far -reaching membership and geographical spread of 
the United Nations Economic Commi ssion for Europe (UN ECE) had made broad strokes analysis  
which h ad been especially difficult in this area. Broadly speaking , however, e -commerce ha d grown ; 
MSMEs ha d become digitally oriented ; and challenges to trade facilitation ha d increased. Response 
strategies were diverse but there ha d been two priority areas : (1) support to MSME s and (2) trade 
facilitation. Efforts were being made to address the digital divide within the region, particularly in  
the areas of  payment s, skills, and infrastructure. Data was very scarce due to different 
understandings of the definition of e -commerce and the lack of universally accepted data sources. 
A lack of coordination between different systems continue d to be a challenge .  
317.  Mr Ayman El -Sherbiny found that Western Asian r egion ha d room for massive growth in digital 
trade despite low penetration. However, supply chains and transport ha d been disrupted. 
Fortunately, suppliers and governments ha d responded quickly, and financial inclusion and FinTech 
had become very user -friendly.  
318.  The panel then turned to an interactive debate covering the following topics: policies and 
strategies to help e -commerce play a positive role in long -term response and recovery; and 
interventions and methods to ensure that developing and least d eveloped countries were not left 
further behind in the digital transformation. Mr Buddhi Upadhya, Counsellor and Deputy Permanent 
Representative (Commerce) of the Permanent Mission of Nepal to the UN and other International 
Organizations in Geneva also gav e the LDC perspective on COVID -19, focusing on government 
interventions in Nepal to adapting to the early stages of the pandemic.  
Reporter: WTO 
 
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  SESSION 32: FINANCIAL RESPONSE TO PANDEMIC CRISES AFFECTING LDCS  
ORGANIZER(S): LDC Group  
MODERATOR: Mr Ahmad Makaila, Ambassador, Permanent Representative of Chad to the UN and 
WTO, WTO LDC Group Coordinator  
PANELLISTS  
• Dr Ratnakar Adhikari, Executive Director, Executive Secretariat, Enhanced Integrated Framework  
• Mr Dickson Poloji, Business Policy Programs Manager, Common Market for Eastern and Southern 
Africa ( COMESA ) Business Council  
• Ms Dorothy Tembo, Deputy Executive Di rector, International Trade Centre  
• Ms Hanh Nam Nguyen, Principal Investment Officer, Blended Finance, International Finance 
Corporation (IFC) 
• Dr Olivier Cattaneo, Head of Unit, Policy Analysis and Strategy, Development Co -operation 
Directorate  
 
Short Summ ary 
319.  The session highlighted the Aid -for-Trade resources  that supported LDCs trade in time 
pandemic. In this regard, the session examined financial and investment mechanisms ; and the roles 
of development partners,  the private sector, and international organ izations . The four panel lists 
shared what their institutions were doing to support LDCs and stressed the need for Aid for Trade to 
focus on providing digital connectivity in order to create an environment where people could continue 
trading and working.  
Long Summary  
320.  Moderating the session, Mr Ahmad Makaila, Ambassador of Chad, noted that the pandemic 's 
negative impact had been felt on income, national budgets and employment . This highlighted the 
importance of h aving a discussion on how countries could bounce back with Aid-for-Trade support.  
321.  Dr Ratnakar Adhikari indicated that the EIF provide d a full suite of support to LDCs by 
identifying priority actions that nee ded to be taken by the countries on the trade and dev elopment 
front, and provid ing institution al support to implement the priority actions that ha d been identified. 
These also targeted  intervention for MSMEs  (which includ ed women and Youth workers ), hence 
promoting inclusive trade , and f ollowing partnership approach es for  maximum impact. The p rinciple 
of value for money was important for EIF, as could  be se en in the efficiency, effectiveness and the 
equity aspect on programmes provided . The EIF ha d also p ut in place business contingency plans 
and provide d continuous monitoring and support to countries . As a result , the EIF deliver ed effective 
impact on the ground .  
322.  For Ms Dorothy Tembo , in the context of COVID -19, the key was to understand the situation  
in order to seize opportunities. ITC assisted companies to overcome information barriers by providing 
tools that ma de global trade more transparent and  facilitate d access to markets. Products that 
provided market intelligence contributed to market access by helping to improve decision -making . 
Partnership with organizations such as WTO and the G lobal Trade Help Desk provide d a platform 
that allowed the transfer of trade information . On the gender aspect, work on tools , together with 
EIF, came up with "She Trad es Outlook", which help ed policy makers facilitate evidence -based policy 
reforms and monitor trade performance to improve the ecosystem for women in trade. So far 
26 countries h ad been empowered including Bangladesh, Lesotho, Rwanda, Uganda, and Zambia . 
Four more LDCs would be joining soon .  
323.  ITC ha d a dedicated team working on quality, compliance standards, international accepted 
standards on the requirements of companies to be able to enter markets. Working with businesses 
to empower and capacita te them to be in a position to present proposals that could be considered 
in order to have access to finance. Ms Tembo also highlighted the need to enhance efforts to ensure 
a focus on  investment , and not only Aid for Trade. This would create a n enabling e nvironment and 
attract  further  investment. The AfCFTA provided such an  opportunity . WT/COMTD/AFT/W/86  
 
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  324.  For Mr Dickson Poloji , the COMESA Business Council had created  a digital payment platform 
that aim ed to assist enterprises in making their payment . Although it  was still at  the initial stages , 
it would ensure that business owners were able to pay . He also shared that governments had 
provided grants and loans and  invested in infrastructures development to create the demand that 
was needed . Developing banks provided grants for  SMEs , tackling the pandemic challenges  through 
technology and capacity building. COMESA also ha d an online platform for the exchange of 
information and assistance. He emphasized the need to promote connectivity with the purpose of 
increasing Aid for Trade and encouraged  stakeholders to work together in advancing technology to 
ensure  trade continu ity.  
325.  Ms Hanh Nam Nguyen focused  on blended concessional finance which , she indicated , was a 
tool that ha d been developed with commercial financing from the private sector . The tool use d small 
amounts of funds to mitigate investment risks. With this, one c ould leverage sums five times higher 
than what could normally have been achieved . Development Partners could utilize blended finance 
to assist in mobilizing private investments , especially in challenging environments. She further gave 
an example of I nternational Development Association ( IDA) private  sector window, that help ed to 
mobilize sustainable private sector investment in poor countries and fragile markets . This  had 
allowed IFC to blend USD  4.5 million with other financial institutions and , hopefully , bring a major  
impact to LCDs in the coming years .  
326.  Dr Olivier Cattaneo noted that  there were  seven countries in debt distress including 5  LDCs. 
This demonstrated  that countries ha d limited space in adopt ing stimulus packages. Funding and 
financing mechanisms that were suited for LDCs and that were  optimal to achiev ing the  SDGs were  
needed. Even though there was a need to increase A id for Trade to resume trade, it was important 
not increase the burden of debt. He emphasized the need for more equity , either in the form of  
foreign direct or portfolio investment. There is was also a need for innovat ion in the way finance was 
offered through Aid for Trade. The pandemic  had created opportunities  and lot of things could be 
changed.  
327.  In the Q uestion  & Answer  session, attendees enquired as to how LDCs could access blended 
concessional finance tools and at which conditions ? The IFC representative indicated that they ha d 
partner banks in countries which could connect with local  populations . 
Reporter: WTO 
 
 WT/COMTD/AFT/W/86  
 
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  SESSION 33: CONTRIBUTIONS TO ECONOMIC RECOVERY POST COVID -19 THROUGH 
INCLUSIVE JOB CREATION: AFTIAS 2.0  
ORGANIZER(S) : International Islamic Trade Finance Corporation  
MODERATOR : Mr Nazeem Noordali , Chief Operating Officer, International Islamic Trade Finance 
Corporation  
PANELLISTS  
• Mr Hani Salem Sonbol, Chief Executive Officer, International Islamic Trade Finance Corporation  
• Dr Frederick Agah Yonov, Deputy Director -General, WTO   
• Dr Majid bin Abdullah Al -Qasabi, Minister of Commerce, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Chairman of 
the Board of Directors of the Saudi General Authority of Foreign Trade  
• Dr Nevin e Gamea, Minister of Trade and Industry, Arab Republic of Egypt   
• Dr Lassaad Ben Hassine, Manager,  AfTIAS Programme, International Islamic Trade Finance 
Corporation   
• Ms Rola Dashti, Under -Secretary -General of the United Nations and Executive Secretary of 
Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia  
• Ms Pamela  Coke-Hamilton, Executive Director, Inter national Trade Centre  
• Dr Mahmoud Mohieldin, Executive Director (Arab Countries), IMF  
• Ms Maria Molina, Head of the Department of Cooperation Arab World and Asia, Spanish Agency 
for International Development Cooperation  
 
Short Summary  
328.  In the context of th e Stocktaking Event, the International Islamic Trade Finance Corporation 
(ITFC), member of the Islamic Development Bank (IsDB) Group, organized a Round Table titled: 
"Aid for Trade Initiative for Arab States (AfTIAS 2.0 Program): Contributions to economic recovery 
post COVID -19 through inclusive job creation ". The programme buil ds on the success of the 
first phase of AfTIAS and is based on three pillars: improving market access ; removing supply -side 
constraints ; and enhancing inclusivity. The session aimed to explore the implementation strategy of 
AfTIAS 2.0 in the wake of COVID -19 pandemic. Some of the key takeaways of discussions include, 
inter alia : enhancing intra -Arab trade ; developing one -stop shops for Ara b traders ; enabling an 
entrepreneurial ecosystem for the region ; facilitating market access and value chain development ; 
developing market -oriented education system; reaping the fruits of digitalization ; and preventing 
racisms and xenophobia against migran ts. 
Long Summary  
Opening remarks and introduction  
 
329.  Mr. Hani Salem Sonbol , CEO, ITFC, indicated that the purpose of the would be to present and 
discuss the approach and implementation strategy for AfTIAS 2.0, and to raise  awareness  among  
the developmental  partners  on the benefits  that the program  will create  in the Arab countries.  The 
Arab Region , more than ever, needs to develop its trade, as one of the means of recovering  from 
the economic downturn of COVID -19. In this context, the AfTIAS  2.0 Program had been realigned 
to play an important role in mitigat ing the negativ e impacts of the pandemic. ITFC would soon start 
to receive initial requests for  projects funding.  He called  upon donor  countries  and international  
development  organizations  to join this important program in order to  achieve the goals set out to 
meet the challenges facing  peoples in the Arab Region  in their  aspirations  for a better life.  
330.  Mr Yonov Frederick Agah, Deputy Director -General of the WTO,  underscored the important 
role of the AfTIAS Program in helping the  Arab countries to  address the economic challenges caused 
by the COVID -19 pandemic, in order to build their economic  infrastructure and  increase their trade 
capacity. He also stressed that the economic integration  of the Arab Region was already one of the 
lowest in the world, in addition  to the high  dependency  of its economies  on commodities  and raw 
material,  vulnerability  to plummeting  oil prices, the need to create jobs, to eradicate poverty, etc.  
Addressing these challenges are a  fundamental rationale of AfTIAS 2.0 Program.  WT/COMTD/AFT/W/86  
 
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  Keynote  speakers  
 
331.  Mr Majid bin Abdullah Al -Qasabi, Minister of Commerce, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Chairman 
of the Board of Directors of the Saudi General Authority of Foreign Trade  (GAFT), stated in his 
interve ntion that Saudi Arabia has actively contributed  to the funding of the 1 st phase  of the AfTIAS  
program  (2014  - 2018),  believing  in the importance  of developing  trade  in the Arab Region.  
332.  As regard to Saudi Arabia's  recent main achievements in the area of trade , related to the 
Vision 2030  of Saudi Arabia , he mentioned that Saudi Customs had worked to facilitate and  automate 
customs procedures . The aim is to make  the Kingdom a pioneer in the Region in  providing distinctive 
customs services and a global logistical centr e. Saudi Arabia  had also  implemented all the provisions 
of the TFA, which helped to enhance  and develop its customs  procedures,  the most important  of 
which  are launching  the "Fasah  Saudi  Arabia ", which was an int egrated e -system platform building 
a bridge between all organizations  involved in the import and export process by bringing it under 
one roof. Fasah Platform had  contributed to reducing the time and the number of import documents 
from 12 documents to  two a nd reducing the requirements for export documents from eight to 
two documents.  It is in this perspective  that Saudi Arabia  was ready  to contribute  to the 
implementation  of AfTIAS  2.0 by making  available  its experience  and expertise  to Arab countries  in 
fields  such as the Single  Window  and electronic  rules of  origin. He then reiterated  Saudi Arabia's  
support  to the AfTIAS ' 2.0 Program . The would be looking  to enhance the competitiveness of MSMEs  
towards  achieving  the strategic  goal of Saudi Arabi's  Vision  2030 to increase  the contribution  of 
SMEs in GDP from 20% to 35% by 2030.  
333.  Mrs Nevine Gamea, Minister of Trade and Industry, of Egypt, indicated  that her country had 
contributed to the establishment of the AfTIAS 1.0 Program  (2014 -2018) , where  28 projects  - for 
the benefit  of 19 countries  - had been approved  and implemented.  Egypt had benefited from the 
AfTIAS 1.0 program in several areas (9 projects) reflecting the  priorities of the Egyptian trade sector. 
She also indicated that Egypt had resolutely contributed  to the design of the AfTIAS 2.0 program by 
hosting , in October 2019, its Theory of Change  Workshop,  and adopted its document in April  2020. 
She then commended the ITFC 's leadership role in program design and announced that  Egypt would 
continue to support the AfTIAS program in its new phase and  expressed  her wish  to see  the Egyptian 
trade  priorities considered  in the  new phase.  
Presentation of the  AfTIAS  2.0 Program  
334.  Mr Lassaad Ben Hassine, Manager AfTIAS Program, ITFC, provi ded a brief overview of the  
AfTIAS 1.0 and the Genesis of the AfTIAS 2.0 Program. AfTIAS 2.0 was designed as a five -year 
program  with a development objective of enhancing the environment for international trade in the 
Arab Region . Its focus is  on further i nclusiveness, thereby creating opportunities for employment of  
women  and youth, and contributing to sustainable  development.  
335.  In terms  of the implementation  approach,  AfTIAS  2.0 would  operate  on the basis of five main 
facilities:  (1) Trade Development and Competitiveness; (2) Inclusivity Support Facility; (3)  Regional 
Investment Proposal Preparation Facility (RIPPF); (4)  Reverse Linkage Facility; and (5)  Research 
and Surveys Facility.  
336.  On the implementation  structure of AfTIAS  2.0, he mention ed that it was based  on the 
following  main elements:  (1) AfTIAS Trust Fund to manage donor contributions and 
AfTIAS  2.0disbursements; (2)  AfTIAS Board, the main governance and oversight layer; 
(3) AfTIAS  Secretariat in charge of AfTIAS  2.0 monitoring and management; and (4)  National Focal 
Points (NFP) in every League of Arab States member.  
Roundtable  contributions  and discussion  
337.  Ms Rola Dashti Under -Secretary -General of the United Nations and Executive  Secretary  of the 
Economic  and Social Commission  for Western  Asia (ESCWA),  started  her intervention on "The impact 
of COVID -19 on Trade in the Arab Region " by stating that in  2019,  the Arab Region 's exports  were 
nearly  USD 1 trillion  and imports  were around  USD 1,828 billion . However, as the pandemic erupted, 
Arab exporters found themselves in a state of turmoil as  trade in the region 's top destinations was 
paralyzed. According to ESCWA 's estimations,  exports  would  decline  by USD 88 billion  and imports  
will decline  by USD 111 billion.  The decline  is also for the FDI inflows to the Arab Region, which is WT/COMTD/AFT/W/86  
 
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  estimated at USD 18 billion in 2020, a substantial  drop of 45%, which  was the highest estimated 
drop of  FDI in the  region to date.  
338.  The pandemic  had revealed  the weaknesses  in the structure  and performance  of 
Arab economies  and to address  these  challenges, ESCWA  proposed  the following trade -related  
reforms:  (1) Facilitate the emergence of value chains to produce medical supplies and equipment to 
meet both domestic and surging global demand; (2)  Rapidly diversify Arab supply chains and export 
markets, both globally and intra - regionally; (3)  Identify alternative revenue resources or cut 
spending in an environment where fiscal stimulus is imperative to save small firm s and jobs; 
(4) Embarking on economic transformation and diversification path is a golden opportunity; 
(5) Expand regional trade and investment agreements to build a strong regional response in times 
of crises; and (6)  Rethink the multilateral trade negoti ations on agriculture and pharmaceutical 
products.  
339.  At the conclusion of her intervention, she stated that given the fundamental role of  trade in 
economic recovery , coupled  with the success  of AfTIAS  1.0, ESCWA  considered  the 
AfTIAS  2.0 program represented  a great opportunity and a timely initiative to revitalize Arab 
countries  in mitigating the economic and social impact of the pandemic, and in paving the way for  
recovery. From this perspective, ESCWA had proposed three major regional initiative s to be  
considered  under AfTIAS 2.0.  
340.  Mr Mahmoud Mohieldin, Executive Director, IMF, addressed  the Round  Table  on AfTIAS  2.0 
and enhancing  stability  in fragile  Arab countries . He indicated  in his intervention  that, before the  
COVID -19 crisis,  while the numbers  of the poor were decreasing  globally  it was increasing  in the 
fragile  and conflict -affected  countries . The Middle East and North Africa (MENA) Region is suffering 
from fragility compared  to any other region in the world and , unfortunately , that has  been on the 
rise. In this regard, he mentioned that the World Bank reported that the  MENA  region  had the highest  
ratio in the world  (1 in 5) of the population  living  near a conflict area . 
341.  Mr Mahmoud Mohieldin suggested that a well -designed trade policy could lead to improving 
prospects  in the areas  of focus of the AfTIAS  program:  food security ; employment  opportunities ; 
domestic revenues ; and strengthening resilience. In many fragile countries, open - trade regi mes 
have provided essential consumer goods and services to households, especially  basic food, and 
health . He also emphasized  that effective  Trade  policies  would help support the private sector to 
survive fragility and conflict , and create jobs and economic  opportunities, especially for the youth 
and women. Trade could also help increas e government resources  and revenue availab ility for 
service delivery, through tax receipts. Finally, trade could  improve  long-term stability  and 
transparency  where  impact  of trade  goes beyond  the macro -side by empowering individuals . This 
way every household could integrate into the  value  chain within the  economy.  
342.  At the conclusion of his intervention, Mr Mahmoud Mohieldin highlighted five areas of work, 
which were  subject  to the AfTIAS  2.0 Program  strategy.  On the country 's specific  intervention,  it 
needed  to consider the local context, which was different across countries and within countries. In 
that connection, the AfTIAS Program needed to focus on the investment 's interventions to prevent  
fragility and , at the same time , enhance the global value chain through the local network and  
connectivity.  The second  area was focusing  on export -oriented  trade intervention  where , in terms  
of the transport mobility, more than 1  billion parcels were being traded on  a weekly basis  There was 
a shift of the container to a parcel, which mean t better information,  data, use of technology and 
digitalization , and a better understanding of consumer behavio ur together with a lowering  of 
transaction  costs.  The third area was related  to Arab countries  facing  conflict  and, therefore, facing 
market access challenges. In this respect,  the AfTIAS 2.0 program needed to  study  the best means  
to improve  market  access  and investments  in logistics.  The fourth  area related to skills in trade and 
labour mobility. The AfTIAS 2.0 program could work on promoting  training programs of reskilling for 
workers and removing regulatory bottlenecks to ease labo ur mobility into new sectors.  The fifth  area 
was regional cooperation and international support to  facilitate trade within and through the Region 
to the rest of the world. Finally, it was important to  recognize  that efforts  in a sectoral  approach , 
isolated  from the rest of the economy  and society , are going to be short -lived.  Transactional 
approaches did not really help. Policies  and interventions  needed  to be designed  within  the 
framework  of the SDGs  and through  the framework of partnership, rule of law  and investing in 
infrastructure . By enhanc ing economic aspects,  investment in human capital, and factoring in climate 
dimension , would be the way to work toward  enhancing  equality, reducing poverty and fragility.  WT/COMTD/AFT/W/86  
 
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  343.  Ms Pamela Coke -Hamilton, Executive Director of  the ITC , intervened on the "AfTIAS 2.0 and 
inclusive job creation in a post -COVID -19 context:  business creation and fast -track 
internationalization for young entrepreneurs in Arab States". She stated  that the impact  of COVID -19 
on trade  in the Arab Region  had amplified the  existing  challenges , where  the MSMEs were  fighting  
for their survival,  and most vulnerable  people  in the Arab Region  (including  youth) were losing  jobs 
and income.  
344.  She indicated that the unemployment rate for female youth in the region in 2020 was 
estimated at 42.1%, which was more than double that of the male youth population (19.8%) and 
among the highest in the world.  In these conditions, the future ITC interventions , under AfTIAS 2.0 , 
would mainly focus its assistance towards g reater resilience for MSMEs in the region in three areas:  
(1) addressing skills mismatch. ITC was ready to provide the necessary technical assistance to align 
skills to labour market needs in the Arab Region; (2)  enable entrepreneurial culture (ITC was 
available to provide adequate support to equip public and private business actors to act as an 
ecosystem in order to promote market linkages, creation of new businesses and self -employment 
opportunities for youth); and (3)  facilitating market access and expor t capacities (ITC was ready to 
help businesses to diversify their client base and build up capacities to take advantage of the 
digitalization).  
345.  At the conclusion of her statement, Ms Pamela Coke -Hamilton commended ITFC for organizing 
this important discussion and for its ongoing support to the youth in the Arab States, and reiterated 
the readiness of ITC to be among the AfTIAS partners in the recovery and focus on inclusive job  
creation  for our  youth.  
346.  Ms Maria Molina, Head of the Department  of Cooperation with the Arab World and Asia, 
Spanish Agency for International Development Cooperation (AECID), focused her intervention on 
"Joint interests, joint task: curbing migration through creation of decent jobs in Arab countries ". She 
indicated th at Cooperation with the MENA region was a priority for the AECID. W ithin the framework 
of Agenda 2030 and the European Union  policy, i t is implementing many programs (notably through 
Spain 's MASAR program) in different sectors : health sector ; gender inequa lity; education ; 
governance ; institution building ; rural development ; social protection ; and promotion for economic 
opportunities. She stressed that COVID -19 has resulted in more poverty among the populations in 
the Arab Region, and Spain is currently impl ementing a strategy in terms of response to COVID -19 
in terms of development.  In addition,  Spain  was committed  to support , within  the new Agenda , for 
the Mediterranean  to aim  to strengthen the strategic  association  between the  European Union and 
its partners in the  Southern  Neighbourhood.  
347.  On the measures that should be taken to integrate migrants into the formal labour markets, 
Ms Maria Molina  indicated that AECID is focusing special attention on the quality market -oriented  
education to young people, including women and migrants. In this regard, she mentioned that  
"Workshop  Schools " was one of AECID 's training  tool, used for many  years  for the benefit  of the 
targeted countries to insert vulnerable youth  in the labour market. In addition, AECID was  currently 
implementing a Flagship project in Morocco called "Living Without Discrimination  in Morocco ", to 
strengthen  employment  policies  and strategies  with the local Moroccan  Partners. Mauritania was 
also a partner for AECID, in this area, to promote acc ess to decent  employment  for urban  youth  
through  the social  economy  and the improvement  of employability  and professional inclusion of 
youth through vocational training. In Egypt, AECID is involved  in several interventions to improve 
the working conditions  for women domestic workers,  promotion of job creation for young people 
through training and business creation particularly  in the tourism sector.  
Meeting  conclusion  
348.  Mr Hani Salem Sonbol, CEO  of ITFC stated that AfTIAS indeed  helped Arab countries and 
particularly the least developed : He encouraged  developed -country governments and donors to 
recognize the role of trade, which can play a  role in the development process in the Arab Region. 
AfTIAS would also, as it was expressed  in the different  interventions,  assist  Arab countries  to build 
trade  capacity  and also the infrastructure needed  in order t o benefit  from trade  liberalization.  AfTIAS  
would  allow entrepreneurship and empower MSMEs as recommended in the  different  interventi ons. WT/COMTD/AFT/W/86  
 
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  349.  Regarding  COVID -19, Mr Majid  Al-Qasabi,  Minister  of Commerce,  Saudi Arabia , said that the 
world was not going to be the same  after the pandemic . The problems that the world was facing  
today did not  stop at borders, and  cooperation was the  key to overcoming them.  
350.  Mr Hani Salem Sonbol noted that some pane llists had emphasized the vital role of AfTIAS  for 
the development of trade in the Arab Region. In this vein, the Program could not go further without 
the support of the development partners. He  highly welcomed the readiness of Saudi Arabia to 
continue to support the AfTIAS Program in its  new phase, which would be inclusive and have a 
positive  impact on the most vulnerable people in the Arab countries . AfTIAS could be part of the 
solution to build re silient economies and improve the  income  of people . He then indicated also that 
AfTIAS 2.0 would focus on promoting intra -Arab trade and  support trade development activities by 
improving market access and concentrating on the  export -oriented  sector  and str engthening  the 
value  chain  production activities.  
351.  Looking at the common interests and objectives, he invite d the partners of ITFC in  Europe , 
globally, and the donor community at large, to join AfTIAS 2.0 and contribute to  the mission of 
supporting the most vulnerable and fragile countries in the Arab  Region.  Together,  it was possible 
to meaningfully  enhance  the social  and economic  resilience of Aras States to  face the multiple  shocks 
that they had  faced in recent years.  
Reporter: ITFC 
 WT/COMTD/AFT/W/86  
 
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  SESSION 34: STRENGTHENING ECONOMIC RESILIENCE OF THE INFORMAL ECONOMY 
THROUGH AID -FOR-TRADE POLICIES  
ORGANIZER(S): Mission of the Netherlands to the WTO  
MODERATOR: Ms Vanessa Erogbogbo , Chief Sustainable and Inclusive Value Chains, International  
Trade Centre  
PANELLISTS  
• Mr Philippe Marcadent, Chief Inclusive Labour Markets, Labour Relations and Working Conditions, 
International Labour Organization  (ILO)   
• Dr Cheikh Tidiane Dieye, Executi ve Director, African Centre for Trade, Integration and 
Development  (ACTADE)   
• Ms Marie Bob -Kandeh, President, Sierra Leone Market Women Association  
• Mr Medgar Brown, Director, Balmed Holdings, Sierra Leone  
• Dr Paul Brenton, Lead Economist, Macroeconomics, T rade and Investment Global Practice, World 
Bank 
Short Summary  
352.  Sixty percent of the world 's population is employed in the informal economy, and in Africa, 
almost 90% of rural and urban workers have informal jobs. This session explored how Aid for Trade 
could help to develop an inclusive approach towards informality. Participants and panellists made 
several recommendations including, inter alia , that one of the components of Aid for Trade be 
re-directed towards enhancing GVC participat ion; elaborat ing export strategies and trade policies 
that involve the private sector; better officials training on trade and trade  facilitat ion; information 
improv ement  (including data on the impact of trade on informal economy) ; and allowing 
policymakers to make the best decisions.  
Long Summary  
353.  Organized by the  Netherlands Ministry of Foreign Affairs, t he session  explored what could be 
an inclusive approach towards informality in the field of Aid for Trade , in a context where 2  billion 
people  (or over  60% of the world 's employed population ) operate in  the inform al economy .  
354.  Ms Vanessa Erogbogbo  launched the discussion with a  question : "Should informality be a 
priority in the A id-for-Trade  agenda?" , to which 87% agreed, 4% disagreed not and  9% said they 
did not know .  
355.  Mr Philippe Marcadent  discussed the relationship between trade and informality. He noted that 
informality had not diminished, but rather had  increased over time in many countries . An important 
share of women  was working in the informal sector . This represented 89% of women in S ub-Saharan 
Africa ; 88% in Southern Asia ; and 14% in Northern , Southern and Western Europe. The most 
pervasive decent -work deficits such as lack of social protection were in the informal economy . On 
average, i nformal women wage -workers earned 47% of the mon thly wage of a man in formal 
employment. The economic literature was inconclusive about the effect of trade liberalization 
(i.e. trade reforms) on informality: while some studies found that trade liberalization resulted in an 
increase in the size of inform al economy , others reported that trade liberalization had no effect on 
the informal economy. In general, the effect of trade liberalization on informality could not be 
separate d from the effect of trade on employment.  
356.  Informality represented a major constraint for the full reallocation of resources in the 
economy, and therefore, adversely affected countries ' integration into the world trade market 
through appropriate specializat ion. Although i nformality was strongly linked with inequality , it could , 
at the same time , enhance countries ' competitiveness in the world trade market if the related low 
labour costs were used in  the production and export of goods and services. He made tw o 
recommendations for trade policymakers to strengthen the resilience of actors in the informal 
economy: ensure that informality be genuinely taken into account when designing trade policies; 
and (in the long term) advocate for , and participate in , the tra nsition from the informal to the formal 
economy .  WT/COMTD/AFT/W/86  
 
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  357.  Dr Cheikh Tidiane Dieye  explained the work of his institution , the African Centre for Trade, 
Integration and Development  (ACTADE),  on facilitating trade in West Africa. He started by presenting 
the trade la ndscape in West Africa ( i.e. multiplicity of actors; the typology of transactions involved 
in trade; the essential role of women on trade) and indicated that the TFA of the ACTADE  was a 
multi-donor program which involved many stakeholders, including the pr ivate sector. The program 
focused on six corridors and  had three components: (1) effective implementation of the WTO 's TFA 
measures; (2) ensuring a more efficient movement of goods across borders; and  (3) reducing the 
obstacles to small -scale cross -border traders, as well as improving women 's trading conditions. This 
program addressed, inter alia , through training, how to strengthen the participation of cross -border 
traders (including women) and how to help them become efficient actors in trade rules framew orks 
such a s the WTO.  
358.  The COVID -19 pandemic had deteriorated conditions for small traders including in getting  
access to finance  and reimbursing credit . He then proposed that one of the components of Aid for 
Trade be re -directed towards enhancing participating in GVCs. He also suggested that the 
elaboration of export strategies and trade policies at the national and regional levels be inclusive 
and involve the private sector. He noted that the African Continental Fr ee Trade Area ( AfCfTA) could 
be instrumental in promoting intra -regional trade. To that effect, the AfCfTA should open  up 
opportunities for cross -border traders, in particular female .  
359.  Ms Marie Bob -Kandeh provided a field-based perspective. She said that i n Sierra Leone, 
traders faced many challenges, which were compounded by the COVID -19 pandemic. These 
included : lack of women 's access to finance; lack of infrastructure; harassment at the border by the 
authorities; and the significant losses of revenues by  vulnerable businesses due to the pandemic .  
360.  Mr Medgar Brown explained that the main challenge faced by the informal producers of cashew 
in Sierra Leone (including during the COVID -19 pandemic) was how to improve the quality of their 
products. The pandemic  had significantly reduced exports of cashews and , currently, efforts were 
being deployed to mitigate this adverse effect by strengthening training to traders of the informal 
sector. As for how trade policies could help address this challenge, he noted tha t education was 
important: policymakers needed to work more closely with farmers and the private sector to better 
understand the problem they faced and better design policies to address it.  
361.  In the World Bank's experience, Dr Paul Brenton said that  Africa was characterized by a high 
level of cross -border trade. Such trade was mainly small -scale which prevented trade data collection 
and information record ing. Still, s uch trade was not illicit . It played an important role in reducing 
poverty, and hence needed  to be supported by national authorities and international institutions. 
Women represented 80% of small -scale trade in Africa, and policymakers needed better education 
to understand the issue at hand, and how to properly address it. He went on to highlight  some of 
challenges facing African economies: bad relationship s between traders and authorities (bribes and 
rent-seeking at the borders); lack of clarity on procedures; and infrastructure problems ( i.e. lack of 
water or electricity which, if available, wou ld allow  borders to open for longer). These required 
investments in the border offices, help governments simplify procedures at the borders, develop 
policies and measures to reduce harassment at the borders.  
362.  The Netherlands invited partners to explore how  to keep the informal economy on the 
Aid-for-Trade agenda. In that respect, bilateral diplomatic channels could help explore how Aid for 
Trade could help reduce informality and improve resilience . One recommendation from participants 
was to consider how Aid for Trade could contribute to ensuring that networks be part of value chains .  
Reporter: WTO 
 
 WT/COMTD/AFT/W/86  
 
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  SESSION 3 5: TRADE FACILITATION: CRITICAL FOR COVID –19 RECOVERY  
ORGANIZER(S) : WTO LDC Group, World Bank Group and Trade Facilitation Agreement Facility  
MODERATORS: Mr Bill Gain, Global Lead for Trade Facilitation, Customs Modernization and Border 
Management, World Bank Group and Ms Sheri Rosenow, Counsellor, WTO  
PANELLISTS  
• Mr Edward H. Sandy, Minister of Trade and Industry, Sierra Leone   
• Ms Mere Falemaka, Permanent Representative, Pacific Islands Forum Secretariat   
• Mr Steven Pope , Group Head of Trade Facilitation, (GoTrade) at Deutsche Post DHL  
• Mr Sacha Silva, Senior Trade for Development Policy Advisor, Permanent Mission of the United 
Kingdom to the United  Nations and WTO  
 
Short Summary  
363.  Organized by the LDC Group in cooperation with the WBG and the WTO, the session 
highlighted the critical importance of trade facilitation measures for COVID -19 response and 
recovery. During the early stages of the pandemic, many countries experienced challenges such as 
border delays and staff shortages as the ir priority had shifted to the  contain ment of the disease. 
While the latter remain ed a priority, governments ha d found innovative ways to ensure that the 
inflow and outflow of cargo continue d, especially in the case of  essential public goods  such as health  
products . Pane llists presented the strategies that their respective institutions had adopted in 
respon se to the  pandemic , and lessons learned towards sustain able recovery and resilience. The 
Minister of Trade and Industry of the Republic of Sierra Leone provided his country's national 
strategy to facilitate the cross -border movement of essential goods while protect ing the workers .  
364.  The representative of the PIF provided a regional perspective, describing the successes of the 
Pacific Humanitarian Pathway in helping its Members to coordinate regionally and deliver essential 
medical supplies and equipment. Turning to v accine rollout, the representative of DHL provided a 
private sector  perspective , highlighting the challenges of vaccine delivery and storage , and 
suggesting solutions to manage the m. Offering a donor  view, the representative of the  United 
Kingdom  underscor ed the importance of trade facilitation in comba tting the pandemic .  
365.  The discussion  also identified k ey trade facilitation measures that could  support COVID -19 
response and recovery . These  include d border collaboration and cooperation (both at the national  
and regional  level), public -private consultations and partnership s, transparency and predictability, 
access to information, digitization, and automation. As countries emerged from the pandemic, t rade 
facilitation was identified  as a critical recovery enabler. Trade facilitation reforms would also permit 
countries to benefit from lower trade costs.  
Long Summary  
366.  In their opening remarks, Mr Bill Gain, Global Lead for Trade Facilitation, Customs 
Moder nization and Border Management in the World Bank Group 's Macroeconomics, Trade and 
Investment Global Practice, and Ms Sheri Rosenow, Counsellor in the Market Access Division of the 
WTO Secretariat, thanked the LDC Group  for partnering and organizing th e session. They reminded 
the audience how only a year ago, when the virus  had emerged, the global situation had been chaotic 
as agencies rapidly changed their  regulations and procedure s. These were  often disjointed  and 
unharmonized ; they sometimes even conflict ed. Border procedures had become more cumbersome 
and time -consuming as agencies increased requirements and controls aimed at detect ing goods that 
could potentially carry the virus . Many goods had also been delayed to o as the priorit y was given to 
essential goods. At the same time, government agencies experienced staff shortages and had to find 
ways to protect the safety of their workers. This had translated in long delays at land borders, 
quarantining of containers at seaports, and i ncreased delays, particularly in those areas where 
processes remained manual .  
367.  Many Members had expedited the implementation of TFA provisions , e.g. by establishing new 
websites or enquiry points ; conducting consultations with stakeholders ; setting up chan nels for 
information exchange for traders and customs officials working remotely ; introducing innovative and 
flexible measures to keep goods flowing through borders by simplifying forms and procedures ; WT/COMTD/AFT/W/86  
 
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  waiving or delaying payment of duties and fees ; accept ing scanned copies of certificates ; and 
accelerating the automation of border procedures. Trade facilitation was critical as countries 
emerge d from the pandemic, and it was particularly important to take a whole -of-government 
approach in  its implementation. Border collaboration and cooperation, transparency, access to 
information, Authorized Operators, and digitization was also important. Digitization  measures , such 
as implementing the S ingle Window, was fundamental and key to increas ing efficiency and attract ing 
investment.  
368.  The pandemic had highlighted the fact that border agency cooperation and a well -functioning 
National Trade Facilitation Committee (NTFC) were vital to oversee and coordinate TFA 
implementation. Unfortunately, the implemen tation of provisions ha d faltered in some cases as 
efforts had not been taken across all border agencies, or where the ministry of health was not fully 
involved. In countries where there was no coordinating mechanism, the private sector sometimes  
had to se ek multiple approvals and submit duplicate documents. Reducing trade costs at the border 
require d partnership between the private sector and government institutions . 
369.  Dr Edward H. Sandy, Minister of Trade and Industry spoke about Sierra Leone 's strategy and  
measures for building a solid base for recovery. To facilitate the cross -border movement of essential 
goods, customs worked with national and international agencies to enforce public health guidance. 
At the peak of the pandemic, b orders were closed to the  movement of people . However,  offices had 
been instructed to process and allow the inflow and outflow of cargo to sustain supply chains. Special 
warehouse facilities had been introduced to encourage the import of more goods in order to maintain 
a substanti al level of stock. Customs also worked with stakeholders to relax the paperwork involved 
in the processing and clearance of cargo. The joint WCO-WHO HS classification list on medical 
supplies  was used by customs staff to facilitate quick clearance s. The Na tional Revenue Authority 
made protective equipment , such as hand sanitizer and masks , available to the customs authorities. 
To limit person -to-person contact, work schedules had been modified, and customs encouraged 
traders to reach customs through electronic  means . Finally, f inance was being provided to ensure 
businesses continu ity.  
370.  Ms Mere Falemaka, Permanent Representative of the Pacific Islands Forum Secretariat to the 
WTO, noted that her region had been  fortunate : COVID -19 infections re mained low due to the quick 
decisions made by PIF leaders to close national borders , and follow advice on sanitation, social 
distancing and contact tracing. This was complemented by the region 's One Blue Pacific response to 
COVID -19 through the Pacific Hum anitarian Pathway (PHP), which was coordinated by PIF and led 
by the Forum Ministerial Action Group for COVID -19. At the onset of COVID -19 last year, PIF  foreign 
ministers met and endorsed the PHP 's establishment as the region 's response to combatting 
COVID-19. It served as the regional coordination and facilitation mechanism to deliver essential 
medical supplies and equipment, as well as to facilitate the deployment of health personnel , through 
the region. It was made possible by close cooperation with PIF  members, relevant regional 
organizations, and international partners. All 18 PIF Members were involved, along with their border 
agencies. The ministries developed and adopted five common regional protocols to ease access to 
and movement of medical supplie s and health workers. They include d the  deployment of technical 
personnel between Members, customs and biosecurity protocols for clearance of equipment and 
essential supplies, immigration protocols for movement of people, repatriation protocols for the 
return of citizens from abroad, and clearance protocols for aircraft and ships.  
371.  Trade facilitation was a critical element for vaccine rollout: to  prepare for vaccine rollout in 
the Kingdom of Tonga , an interagency team (led by Ministry of Trade) ha d been esta blished to 
facilitate the efficient and expedited distribution of vaccines. Membership include d several Tonga 
ministries and agencies: the  Ministry  of Revenue and Customs ( MORC ); Ministry of Agriculture, Food 
and Forests  (MAFF ); Ministry of Health ; Ministry of Infrastructure ; Tonga Chamber of Commerce and 
Industries.  They also included other entities such as the Tonga Airport Ltd. , ports authority , brokers, 
couriers , airline carriers/cargo,  and private importers. Two instruments had been developed with the 
assistance of the WBG: (1) the establishment of guidelines as reference points relating to the 
importation of vaccines, medicines, and medical products ; and (2) factsheets to guide traders, 
brokers, shippers, logistics providers , and private importers on their regulatory obligations to import 
vaccines, medicines, and medical products. The PHP ha d demonstrated the value of working together 
on regional coordination and facilitation to bridge national and international actions. Regi onal trade 
facilitation c ould be considered complementary to national trade facilitation .  WT/COMTD/AFT/W/86  
 
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  372.  Mr Steven Pope, Group Head of Trade Facilitation  at Deutsche Post DHL, provided a private 
sector perspective, particularly as it pertain ed to vaccine rollout. Notabl y, there were challenges with 
volatile freight capacities to deliver vaccines in developing countries and LDCs. In addition, one of 
the key areas of the vaccine was cold storage requirement. On this, DHL ha d been involved in 
reviewing vaccine import prepar edness . For example, DHL was working with GIZ, the German 
development agency , in Africa to benchmark whether countries had put the necessary measures in 
place. Collaboration between international organizations such as the WBG, WTO and WCO to quickly 
publish guidelines ha d been very useful. Countries had made great progress in quickly digitiz ing 
which  presented a dvantages for health and safet y.  
373.  Electronic transmission s had also allowed shipments to move from aircraft to inlan d. Going 
forward, along with  vaccines , the associated medical equipment , such as  syringes , needed to be  
expedited . This mean t that border agencies needed talk to each other to move such goods quickly. 
Implementing the TFA and building -in the mindset for risk -based fast clea rance to move essential 
goods contribute d to building  back better. For the private sector, it was important to engage with 
national trade facilitation committee s as the pandemic demanded a public -private solution, an 
accelerated im plementation of the TFA, and the designing  of processes that allow  quick and 
sustainable vaccine import s. 
374.  On sustainability, Ms Sheri Rosenow and Mr Bill Gain noted that trade facilitation provisions 
had often been put in place  rapidly , sometimes on a temporary basis. While there ha d been 
significant implementation progress over the last year in response to COVID -19, reform  
sustainability remained critical for the recovery phase. Support to LDCs and small island states was 
essential to cement the innovations discussed in this session. For example, digitization (often 
involving the implementation of a national Single Window and Trade Portals) require d careful 
planning and the provision of budget lines to ensure sustainability and the creation of cost recovery 
mechanisms. A data -driven paperless environment was needed, and donor support w ould be needed 
to ensure ownership was transferred in a sustained manner .  
375.  The current implementation rate of the TFA was just over 70% in developing countries and 
35% in LDCs , showing the need f or continued implementation assistance. On this  subject , the WBG 
support ed over 70 countries under two  flagship programs th rough investment and TFA technical 
assistance projects. The Trade Facilitation Support Program (TFSP) is supported by nine  donor 
partners (Australia, Canada, European Union, Netherlands, Norway, Sweden, Switzerland, the 
United  Kingdom, and the United States ). The second program was focused on TFA implementation 
in middle -income countries and was supported by the United Kingdom. Critical  activities in the 
WBG's technical assistance include d enhancing border agency coordination and collaborating 
through a whole -of-government approach to border clearance. This particular focus, along with 
enhancing digitization, ha d been crucial in the face of COVID -19 to ensure business continuity. Early 
adoption and a reform focus for other government agencies was critical – it was more than just 
customs at the border. COVID -19 had highlighted a need for capacity building, light 
infrastructure  - including Wi -Fi and routers for remote activity. Demand for supp ort continue d to 
increase as countries entered their recovery phase . It was critical for donor partners and 
international organizations to accelerate implementation of the TFA, particularly in LDCs . 
Additionally, there was pressure on trade finance, and th e IFC ha d increased financing to support 
this gap for traders.  
376.  Mr Sacha Silva, Head of Trade for Development Team, Permanent Mission of the United 
Kingdom to the UN and WTO , provided a donor perspective. There were three things that donors 
could do to sup port LDCs and small developing countries to combat the pandemic: practice at home 
what was preached in Geneva . The United Kingdom  had looked at the full range of border measures 
to ensure they were as COVID -19 responsive as possible . Donors h ad to pivot Aid-for-Trade offers 
in response to the crisis and move away from  a "business as usual " approach . They needed to 
manage trade costs as COVID -19 frictions would inevitably occur . One important contribution that 
Members  could make was adhering to notification  deadlines. In addition, it was critical to keep the 
"foot on the accelerator " on the parts of the TFA that kept borders open. TFA transparency and 
institutional provisions matter ed, and help was available.  
Reporter: WTO 
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