Ministerial Conference Special Edition | Ambassador of Chile to the WTO on MC13

John Clarke on the e-Commerce Moratorium

In this edition you will find:

1. Interview with Ambassador of Chile to the WTO Sofia Boza.

2. Interview with Barbados Ambassador to the WTO Matthew Wilson.

3. Interview with UNDP Chief Digital Officer Robert Opp.

4. John Clarke on the Moratorium on E-Commerce Taxes and MC13.

MC13

Just happened

China Round Table

The 12th China Round Table (CRT-12) took place on February 24-25, 2024, in Abu Dhabi, UAE, a parallel event to the 13th WTO Ministerial Conference (MC13). It is the first round table organized in the Arab region, focusing on "Arab Perspectives on WTO Accessions and the Multilateral Trading System."

Among the 22 members of the Arab League, only 13 are WTO Members, with nine serving as observers. Jordan, Oman, Saudi Arabia, and Yemen joined the WTO through the accession process between 2000 and 2014.

Currently, eight Arab countries are in the accession process, with some inactive for extended periods, and Palestine holds ad hoc observer status since 2005. On average, Arab governments pursuing accession have been engaged for about 20 years. Comoros, along with Timor-Leste, is a candidate to join the WTO at MC13.

WTO Director-General Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala in recent panels and forum interventions has emphasized the need to support Arab countries in their accession efforts and proposed a study on accession and post-accession experiences in the region. She also highlights the Trade for Peace agenda, which showcases how WTO accession reforms can contribute to resilience, prosperity, peace, and stability in Arab countries.

In case you missed:

WTO: Interview with Chile's Ambassador Sofía Boza