In 1998, 7 million people marched across five continents to demand for the ILO Convention 182 against the worst forms of child labour. As we celebrate the World Day Against Child Labour and the 20 years of the Global March today at the 107th Session of the International Labour Conference, we (...)
The deadline for submitting proposals for this year’s Public Forum — entitled “Trade 2030” — has been extended to 15 June 2018. Individuals interested in organizing sessions at the Forum, to be held on 2-4 October, are invited to complete an application (...)
Speaking at a meeting of the Committee on Trade-Related Investment Measures (TRIMs) on 1 June, Russia informed WTO members that it will terminate its WTO-inconsistent auto investment programmes as of 1 July 2018, a deadline stipulated by its WTO accession protocols. These investment programmes (...)
The WTO’s Annual Report, published today (31 May), provides a comprehensive account of the organization’s activities in 2017 and early 2018. The Report opens with a message from Director-General Roberto Azevêdo and a brief overview of the year. This is followed by more in-depth accounts of the (...)
Speaking at an OECD Ministerial Council meeting on 31 May, Director-General Roberto Azevêdo said the multilateral trading system provides a stable and predictable business environment that helps to drive economic growth. He underlined the need to defend this stability but also to strengthen and (...)
Speaking at an informal ministerial meeting on 31 May in the margins of the OECD meetings in Paris, Director-General Roberto Azevêdo argued that the WTO is essential in resolving growing trade tensions, as it has done on previous occasions, but that this requires members’ active support for the (...)
Director-General Roberto Azevêdo met with French President Emmanuel Macron in Paris on 30 May, where they discussed the current global trade tensions as well as the central role of the WTO in safeguarding the stability and predictability of the trading (...)
At a meeting of the Council for Trade in Services (CTS) on 30 May, WTO members agreed to hold a thematic seminar on the temporary movement of natural persons across borders for the purpose of supplying services. Also known as “Mode 4”, this trade modality covers individuals who are either service (...)
Speaking at the Small Business Standards Conference in Brussels on 30 May 2018, Deputy Director-General Alan Wolff emphasised the role micro, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) have in driving growth and generating jobs. He highlighted the barriers that can prevent MSMEs from (...)
A joint G20-OECD-WTO event held on 30 May 2018 at the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) in Paris discussed how the international community can join efforts to further ease the flow of goods among WTO members. The WTO’s Trade Facilitation Agreement (TFA) was cited as a (...)