From the 1st to the 9th of July, the ILO hosted the largest ever online summit of workers, employers and government representatives to address the impact of COVID-19 on the world of work, and how to build a better future of work after the pandemic. Find out more: (...)
Ambassador Gloria Abraham Peralta of Costa Rica has taken the helm as the new chair of the WTO farm trade talks. WTO members confirmed her appointment at a Committee on Agriculture in Special Session (CoASS) meeting on 21 July. In addition to the ongoing negotiations on agricultural reform, (...)
At a meeting of the Committee on Government Procurement on 21 July, Brazil’s Secretary for Foreign Trade and Economic Affairs (Ministry of Foreign Affairs), Norberto Moretti, told parties to the Government Procurement Agreement (GPA) that the government of Brazil is preparing the documents (...)
At the 21 July meeting of the Negotiating Group on Rules, heads of WTO delegations said they were ready to start a new phase of discussions on fisheries subsidies after the summer break and to work towards getting an agreement by end-2020. Members will use as a starting point the draft (...)
Liechtenstein has contributed CHF 40,000 in 2020 to assist developing countries and least-developed countries (LDCs) in enhancing their trading capacities. This donation will finance training workshops and seminars supported by the WTO’s DDA Global Trust Fund, with the aim of improving the (...)
The WTO Secretariat has circulated a meeting notice and list of items proposed for the next meeting, on 29 July 2020, of the Dispute Settlement Body, which consists of all WTO members and oversees legal disputes among them. The meeting notice is circulated in the form of a document officially (...)
The COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted the multiple links between public health and the environment. Sustaining environmental and health gains can therefore help prevent future pandemics and climate-related crises.
Addressing heads of WTO member delegations for the last time as Chair of the Trade Negotiations Committee, Director-General Roberto Azevêdo emphasized that “keeping markets broadly open to trade” would help build “a post-COVID economic recovery that is strong, sustainable and inclusive”. He told (...)
The eight candidates nominated for the post of WTO Director-General met with members on 15-17 July at a meeting of the General Council. Each candidate made a brief presentation to members, including their vision for the WTO, followed by a question-and-answer (...)
Peru has requested WTO dispute consultations with Brazil concerning Brazil’s definitive anti-dumping measures on polyethylene terephthalate (PET) film and tax treatment of imported products generally through the imposition of its Tax on Industrialized Products (IPI Tax). The request was (...)