JOB/TC/18  
 
24 January 2024 
(24-0546) Page: 1/9 
  Original: English  
 
 
GENEVA -BASED WTO TRAINING ACTIVITIES , REGIONAL TRADE POLICY  
COURSES (RTPC) , AND E -LEARNING COURSES  IN 20 24 
DATES AND OTHER  INFORMATION  
Note by the Secretariat1 
1  INTRODUCTION  
1.1.   This document  provides information on the Global Training Activities , including e-Learning,  as 
well as  Regional Trade Policy Courses  (RTPCs)  organized by the WTO Secretariat and scheduled to 
be conducted in 2024. It aims at  facilitat ing the planning of government officials' participation in 
WTO trade-related training activities. The list of courses  contained in Annexes I  and II of this 
document  include s both in-person  activities and e-Learning  courses. It is subject to revisions as 
circumstances change during the year , or supplementary information becomes available.  Any 
additional or revised information will be made available on the page of the WTO website 
corresponding to  Building Trade Capacity – Technical Assistance and Training .2 
1.2.  The Institute for Training and Technical Cooperation ( ITTC) encourages government officials 
from beneficiaries of WTO Trade -related Technical Assistance to take  full advantage of the wide 
range of training opportunities available in 2024 . For each training activity, in accordance with 
existing procedures, the Permanent Missions of the targeted beneficiaries will be notified by email. 
In addition to information about the activity's title, delivery language and dates, application 
requirements  and other relevant information, the email will also include  the invitation letter and the 
application form.  
2  WTO'S PROGRESSIVE LEARNING STRATEGY  
2.1.   The WTO training activities are structured around  the WTO's Progressive Learning Strategy 
(PLS). The PLS seeks  to promote increasing levels of learning and the development of participants' 
autonomy , with a view to  building and sustain ing long-lasting  human and  institutional capacities in 
beneficiary Members  and Observers . This, in turn , aims at allowing beneficiar ies to participate more 
effectively in  the rules -based Multilateral Trading System.  In 2024, the PLS will continue to play a 
key role in  ensuring that government officials and other stakeholders progressively build their 
knowledge about the WTO Agreements and related obligations, formulation of trade policies, and 
the conduct of trade negotiations.3 
2.2.   The PLS foresees two learning paths - one for "generalists" and another for  "specialists":  
• "Generalists" are officials who require a broad knowledge of the WTO to conduct their work 
and have general responsibility for WTO issues.  
• "Specialists" are officials that require in -depth knowledge in a specific WTO area 
or Agreement and are working on , or dealing with , related specific issues.  
 
1 This document has been prepared under the Secretariat's own responsibility and is without prejudice 
to the positions of Members or to their rights and obligations under the WTO.  
2 Updated i nformation on  training activities is available on the WTO website at: https://tams.wto.org  
3 Further d etails on the PLS may be found in the Biennial Technical Assistance and Training Plan 2024–
2025, WT/COMTD/W/ 273 and Corr.1.  JOB/TC/18  
 
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  2.3.   The generalist learning  path is made of  three PLS levels (see Annex I):  
• PLS Level 1 ( introductory ). This level offers generalists an initiation to the role, structure and 
functioning of the WTO, as well as to its economic and legal underpinnings. e-Learning  
courses are the mainstay for training at level 1, especially the online course"Introduction to 
the WTO". In view of the particular needs and interests of Least Developed Countries (LDCs), 
an in-person  "Introductory Trade Policy Course for LDCs" is also offered in Geneva.  
• PLS Level 2 (intermediate). This level provides a comprehensive overview  of the  main 
provisions of the WTO Agreements , as well as negotiations. The main face -to-face training 
offered to generalists at this level take s the form of Regional Trade Policy Courses (RTPCs). 
RTPCs  are eight -week long courses which take place  in seven region s and  include revision 
segments and mandatory graded examinations. They cover the WTO Agreements and 
regional trade policy issues and focus on strengthening participants' autonomy through their 
ability to use WTO information resources, in particular the WT O Legal Texts. Alternatively, 
generalists may  also take advantage of level 2 e-Learning  courses, in particular the online 
course "The Multilateral Trade Agreements".   
• PLS Level 3 (advanced). This level addresses trade policy issues  and related WTO 
Agreemen ts in a horizontal and holistic manner.  The course available to generalists at this 
level is the eight-week long face-to-face Advanced Trade Policy Course (ATPC). This Course 
is the most comprehensive advanced WTO training product available under the PLS. It 
includes a series of interactive sessions focussing on case studies, simulations and exercises, 
and roundtable s that foster the sharing of experiences and best practices as well as debating 
current trade issues under discussion . Mandatory graded ev aluations are also included as 
part of the course . Participants in ATPCs also have the possibility to attend a number of 
Committee and Council meetings  and meet Geneva -based representatives in formal and 
informal sessions . 
2.4.  The specialist learning path  consists of the following PLS levels (see Annex II):  
• PLS Level 1 ( introductory ). Specialists can also take advantage of the courses offered to 
generalists at level 1, as described above.  
• PLS Level 2 (intermediate). For specialists, this level offers a thematic  approach focusing on 
a particular WTO Agreement (or a limited number of related ones). At this PLS level, 
participants may take part in one of the several specialized courses available through the 
e-Learning  platform  or in-person . 
• PLS Level 3 (advanced). This level focuses  on one sub -sector or one aspect of a single WTO 
Agreement, or  related  implementation issues. Most global thematic courses  for specialists 
currently planned at level 3 are conducted in -person  in Geneva . 
3  KEY CONSIDERATIONS TO BENEFIT FROM WTO TRAINING  
3.1.   Beneficiaries  are kin dly invited to be mindful  of the vital importance of meeting the eligibility 
criteria associated with a specific WTO training activity , where applicable, in order to qualify to take 
part in it . Such criteria may require , among others,  that an  application form be duly completed and 
signed by both the candidate and the nominating domestic authority and submitted via the relevant 
Mission to the WTO. Compliance with any stated application deadlines is of the utmost importance.  
3.2.   In order to ensure the effectiveness of the PLS, meeting essential  pre-requisites is obligatory  
for candidates to be selected and to move through the levels of PLS activity. Pre -requisites reflect 
the pedagogical needs of each training activity and may take the form, for exa mple, of having 
previously attended  certain WTO courses and/or  having specific knowledge or professional 
experience  in a given subject . While m eeting the relevant pre -requisites is essential , it is not 
sufficient for a candidate to be selected for in-perso n training  activities. As the number of applicants 
typically exceeds the places available, it is often not possible to retain all qualified candidates. In 
these cases, a selection process is carried out to piece together a well -balanced group of participan ts, 
taking into consideration both the backgrounds of individual candidates as well as systemic 
considerations.  JOB/TC/18  
 
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  3.3.   All eligible candidates may benefit from the training activities offered through out the year  in 
the e-Learning  platform, with no limit on the number of participants who may enrol in a particular 
course. e-Learning  course material may be freely obtained through the e-Learning  platform upon 
registration . Participants can start their course at their convenience and or ganize their study at their 
own pace. However, government officials from beneficiaries must be nominated by their government 
and submit a nomination form  for them  to have unrestricted access to the e-Learning  platform , 
including access to all training mate rials and activities  and a WTO certificate  upon successful 
completion of a course .4 In conjunction with the asynchronous online courses, the e -Learning 
program enhances the learning journey by hosting frequent live webinars focused on trade -related 
subjec ts. Conducted in the three official languages of the WTO, these webinars are exclusively 
available to eligible participants5, providing an interactive and dynamic dimension to the learning 
experience.  
4  ANNEXES  
4.1.  The annexes list a non-exhaustive  selection of key activities; in particular,  they do not include 
regional seminars /workshops  for specialist s, nor the technical assistance  activities requested by 
individual governments  (National Activities) . These additional points should also be kept in mind:  
• Dates for in-person  courses are tentative and may be subject to  change.  
• In-person  courses are delivered in English, French or Spanish, as indicated.  
• e-Learning  courses are available at any time throughout the year , therefore they are not 
associated with particular dates.  All e-Learning  courses are available in English, French and 
Spanish , except if indicated otherwise . Live webinars are organized throughout the year 
based on the availability of speakers. An indicative list of such live webinars  is included in 
Annex III ; the specific topics and dates will be communicated to eligible participants during 
the year.  
4.2.  The WTO Secretariat may modify, postpone or cancel any of the activit ies in the annexes in 
cases such as event s of force majeure,  if funding cannot be secured in time, if an insufficient number 
of eligible candidates register for participation, or for any other reason s that would render the 
execution of the activity impracticable.  
 
_______________  
 
 
4 Updated i nformation on  e-Learning courses is  available at: https://www.learning.wto.org  
5 Eligible participants are government officials from TA beneficiaries who have submitted a valid 
nomination form . JOB/TC/18  
 
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  ANNEX I  
2024 Training Calendar for Generalists*  
 
LEVEL 3  
 
In-person  
  
• Advanced Trade Policy Course (E), 29 January  – 22 March ** 
• Advanced Trade Policy Course ( S), 3 June – 26 July ** 
• Advanced Trade Policy Course ( E), 14 October – 6 December  ** 
 
 
 
LEVEL 2  
 
In-person1 
 
• RTPC for CEECAC WTO Members and Observers : Kazakhstan (E) 4 March – 26 April *** 
• RTPC for Asia -Pacific  WTO Members and Observers : China ( E) 13 May – 5 July ***  
• RTPC for French -Speaking Africa n WTO Members and Observers : Togo  (F) 9 September – 1 
November *** 
• RTPC for Arab and Middle Eastern  WTO Members and Observers : Saudi Arabia (E)  13 October – 
5 December *** 
•  
e-Learning  (generalists and cross -cutting matters)  
 
• The Multilateral Trade Agreements  
• Mainstreaming Trade: The Fundamentals  
• Mainstreaming Trade in Action  
• Objectives, Rules and Operation of the GPA 2012 – GPA 2012 course series – Course 1 (E)  
• The Basel, Rotterdam and Stockholm (BRS) Conventions and the WTO (E)  
• The WTO and Trade Economics: Theory and Policy  
• WTO Legal Underpinnings  
• CITES and the WTO: Enhancing Cooperation for Sustainable Development  
• Regional Trade Agreements and the WTO  
• Trade and Circular Economy  
• Trade and Environment and the WTO  
• Trade and Development in the WTO  
• Trade Finance and the WTO  
• Transparency an d the WTO: Notifications Obligations  
• WTO Accession  
 
 
 
 
 
1 Some RTPCs may take place in alternate years. To the extent possible, and depending on the factors 
mentioned in paragraph 4.2 amongst others , regions that are not covered by an RTPC in a particular year will 
be covered the following year .  JOB/TC/18  
 
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  LEVEL 1  
In-person  
 
• Introductory Trade Policy Course for LDCs  (F), 8-26 April  
• Introductory Trade Policy Course for LDCs ( E), 16 September – 4 October  
e-Learning  
• Introduction to the WTO  
 
 
 
 
Other e -learning courses and micro -courses for generalists:  
 
• Documents Online E -Subscriptions  
• Introduction to Documents Online (DOL) (E)  
• Introduction to Evaluations: Managing Project Evaluations – EIF Micro Course series  
• Preparing and Managing Project Evaluations – EIF Micro Course series  
• Quick view on the Circular Economy – Micro Course series  
• The Committee on Trade and Development in the WTO – Micro Course series  
• What are the Notification Obligations: What, Why, Who, When, and What? – Micro Course series  
• WTO in 10'  
• WTO Trade and Monitoring Online Submission and Verification of Trade Measures  
 
* E = English, F  = French, RTPC  = Regional Trade Policy Course, S  = Spanish, TBC  = to be 
confirmed, TBD  = to be determined.  
** Eligible candidates should have successfully completed a Level 2 Regional Trade Policy Course  or 
the e-Learning course on The Multilateral Trade Agreements . 
*** Eligible candidates should have successfully completed the e-Learning course on Introduction 
to the WTO  or a Level 1 Introductory Trade Policy Course for LDCs.  
 JOB/TC/18  
 
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  ANNEX II  
2024 Training Calendar for Specialists*  
 
LEVEL 3  
In-person  
 
• Advanced Course on Trade in Services (F), 11 -15 March  
• WTO Course on Trade and Gender (S), 15 -18 April  
• WTO Workshop on the Implementation of Article 66.2 of the TRIPS Agreement: Incentives for 
Technology Transfer to LDCs , 23-25 April  
• Advanced Global Workshop on Government Procurement Agreement  (E/F/S), 29 April – 3 May  
• Customs Valuation Notification Workshop (E), 21 May (3 days, TBC)  
• Advanced Course on Analysing Trade in Services (E) , 27-31 May  
• WIPO -WTO Advanced Course on IP for Government Officials (E), 3 -14 Jun e 
• Follow -up session of the 2023 Advanced SPS Course SPS (E), 10 June (3 to 5 days, TBC)  
• Advanced Course on the Economic Analysis of Trade Policy (E), 20 -28 June (TBC)  
• Seminar on IP and Knowledge Flows in a Digital Era (E), June (3 days, TBD)  
• WTO Course on Trade and Gender (E), 11-14 June 
• Course on Trade in Value Added and Global Value Chains (E), 1-5 July 
• WHO-WIPO -WTO Trilateral Technical Webinar on Public Health, IP and Trade (E/F/S), 2nd 
Quarter (1 day, TBD)  
• Advanced Workshop on Agriculture  Notifications  2024-2025 – Phase I  (E), 2 -3 July (Virtual)  
• Workshop on Competition Policy, Trade and Development  (E/F/S), 23 -25 July  
• Advanced Course on Trade in Services (E), 16 -20 September  
• Advanced Workshop on Agriculture Notifications  2023-2024 – Phase II  (E), 24-27 September  
• Import Licensing Notification Workshop  (E or S), 26 -28 September  
• Thematic Workshop on Trade and Public Health (E), 30 September -4 October  
• TBT Transparency Champions Course (E), October (TBD)  
• Measuring Digital Trade Workshop (E), October or November (TBD)  
• Advanced Course on trade in services aspects of electronic commerce (E) , 4-8 November  
• WIPO -WTO Colloquium for IP Teachers (E), November (10 days, TBD)  
• Advanced Thematic Course on WTO Dispute Settlement (E), November or December (TBD)  
• Advanced Workshop on Trade and Environment  (E), 9 -20 December  
• 11th Trilateral Symposium on Trade and Health Themes (E/F/S), 2nd Semester (TBD)  
• Workshop on ITA (Digital Transformation) (E), TBD  
• SPS Course (TBD), TBD   
 
  JOB/TC/18  
 
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LEVEL 2  
 
In-person  
 
• SPS Committee Thematic Workshop on Transparency (E /F/S), 18 -19 March  
• Training Course on Market Access Negotiations on Goods for WTO Accession (E),  June (TBD)  
• WTO Workshop on Subsidies Notifications  (E/F/S), 3-5 June (TBD)  
e-Learning  
 
• A Short trip to TRIPS  
• Agreement on Import Licensing Procedures  
• Agriculture in the WTO   
• Copyrights in the WTO  
• Cotton, International Trade and the WTO – Cotton Course Series – Course 1  
• Cotton trade and negotiation – Cotton course series – Course 2  (E) 
• Fast track to anti -dumping: Short Course on anti -dumping in the WTO (E)  
• Fast track to GATS: Short Course on Trade in Services (E)  
• Fast track to Safeguard Measures - Short Course series (E)  
• Fast track to Subsidies and Countervailing Measures in the WTO  - Short Course series (E)  
• Made in ...: Understanding Rules of Origin  – Part 1  
• Market Access for Goods and Non -Agricultural Market Access Negotiations  
• Patents in the WTO ** 
• SPS Course series 1 – Overview of the SPS Agreement and Committee  
• SPS Course series 2 – The SPS Agreement and Science  
• SPS Course series 3 – Trade Facilitating Operational Provisions of the SPS Agreement  
• SPS Course series 4 – Implementation, Administrati on, and Enforcement  
• Technical Barriers to Trade in the WTO  
• The WTO Dispute Settlement System   
• Trade Facilitation Agreement  
• Trade in Services in the WTO  
• Trade Remedies and the WTO  
• Trade -Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights  
• WTO Market Access Intelligence Online  
 
 
  JOB/TC/18  
 
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LEVEL 1  
 
In-person  
 
• Introductory Trade Policy Course for LDCs  (F), 8-26 April  
• Introductory Trade Policy Course for LDCs  (E), 16 September – 4 October  
e-Learning  
 
• Introduction to the WTO  
 
 
Other e -learning courses and micro -courses for specialists  
 
• Agriculture Information Management System  
• The Agriculture Xpress  
• Customs Valuation – What is it all about? – Micro Course series  
• GATS Modes of Supply Made Easy: Mode 4 – Micro Course series  
• Import Licencing Notification Port al 
• Underutilization of Trade Preferences: Blame it on the Rules of Origin? – Micro Course series  
• What are the Objectives of the Trade Facilitation Agreement (TFA)? – Micro Course series  
• Why are Copyright and Related Rights Protected? – Micro Course series  
• Why are Intellectual Property Rights Protected? – Micro Course series  
 
* E = English, F  = French, S  = Spanish, TBC  = activity to be confirmed/decided, TBD  = dates to be 
determined  
  JOB/TC/18  
 
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  ANNEX II I 
INDICATIVE LIST OF E -LEARNING WEBINARS  IN 20242 
 Topic 
1 13th Ministerial Conference  
2 Fisheries subsidies  
3 WTO databases  
4 Basic principles  
5 Customs matters  
6 Trade facilitation  
7 Market access  
8 Trade remedies  
9 Trade and environment  
10 Agriculture & cotton  
11 Standards: SPS & TBT  
12 Services  
13 TRIPS & Government procurement  
14 Regionalism  
15 Dispute settlement  
16 Development  
17 Digital trade  
18 Trade and gender  
  
 
 
 
__________  
 
2 Other  topics may be added , including with external speakers.