At the WTO General Council meeting in May, Messrs. Supachai,
Wolfensohn and Köhler all stressed the importance of increasing
market access and strengthening the rules-based trading system to
achieve financial stability, economic growth and poverty reduction.
No one questions the validity of these authoritative views.
While market access and a rules-based trading system are
absolute prerequisites for increasing trade, they alone generate no
trade at all. Traders do. My questions are simple. Are we
sufficiently aware of this, do we have an open and frank dialogue
with the business community, and are we making appropriate efforts
to engage its dynamism and creativity in the overall development
effort?
Business people in the South, just like their counterparts in
the North, have to play a more central role in achieving economic
growth and reducing poverty. This being said, in some countries the
private sector is nascent and firms are often inexperienced in
foreign trade. Should we not give them more support to become, more
rapidly, the economic development players they ought to be? Should
we not listen more attentively to their requirements in terms of
physical and institutional infrastructures? Should we not give them
more technical assistance according to their own specifically
stated requirements?
At ITC we meet daily with representatives of the private sector
of developing countries and transition economies. They forcefully
ask for help in accessing market information, learning about
quality management and understanding WTO rules, they want advice on
product development and adaptation, and they request trade support
services of all sorts. Are development organizations, multilateral
and bilateral alike, doing enough to help them become the active
players they can be? Are their governments giving them the room
they need to grow and contribute?
A range of views
Three highly qualified people, who believe in trade as a
tool for development, presented their views in Copenhagen. Mr. Sok
Siphana, Secretary of State for Commerce of Cambodia, is part of
the team that has made relentless efforts in using the Integrated
Framework for Trade-related Technical Assistance to Least Developed
Countries to contribute effectively to Cambodia's development.
Indeed, Cambodia is doing so well with it that a number of other
least developed countries (LDCs) have asked him to visit their
capitals to share his views on how to use the Integrated Framework
successfully.
Ms. Rita Mlaki, Deputy Minister for Industry and Trade
of the United Republic of Tanzania, is a champion of the private
sector's contribution to economic development. Tanzania vigorously
promotes public-private sector dialogue, through the Tanzania
Business Council and the Inter-Institutional Technical Committee on
the WTO. Ms. Mlaki actively supports integrated trade development,
including the Joint Integrated Technical Assistance Programme for
Africa (JITAP) and the Integrated Framework, directly aimed at
building capacity on the multilateral trading system, and promoting
trade development. In its capacity as a core agency of both
programmes, ITC is working with Tanzanian exporters of spices,
horticulture, fish, textiles and garments on market and product
development strategies, and in being more forthcoming with business
advocacy. These approaches are expected to go a long way in making
trade work for the poor.
Ms. Emmy Simmons, Assistant Administrator of the United
States Agency for International Development (USAID), is another
believer in trade as a tool for development. USAID has a long
tradition of private sector development and, more recently, has
shown solid interest in trade-related technical assistance. This is
true of a growing number of bilateral development agencies. ITC
works with several of them in concrete and targeted ways. USAID,
for instance, is conscious of the importance of providing the
developing world with better access to market information. In this
connection, it associated with ITC to provide up to 70 developing
countries and transition economies with training and Internet
access to ITC's TradeMaps, our interactive web site providing
export, import and market access data for international business
development, a powerful tool of assistance to exporters and trade
negotiators.
J. Denis Bélisle is Executive Director,
ITC.
Views from the Copenhagen High-level
Meeting on Trade and Development
The views below are based on presentations at a panel
discussion on 'Responding to Trade Opportunities: Working with
Business' as part of the High-level Meeting on Trade and
Development, Making Trade Work For The Poor, held in Copenhagen in
May 2003. The panel discussion was chaired by J. Denis Bélisle,
Executive Director, ITC.
ViewpointCambodia
by Sok Siphana
Cambodia's recipe for integrating business in trade
policy development is exemplary - and may lead to Cambodia becoming
the first LDC to join WTO.
The private sector needs to work very closely with the
government to ensure that policies are pro-private sector
development. Involvement in the dialogue process should be
approached in a holistic and coherent manner - from policy
formulation to implementation. Private sector needs will be
answered effectively only if they are tackled on all fronts, from
policy dialogue at the apex level with the government's senior
policy-makers, down to the working bureaucrats. Trade support
networks should be used extensively to mobilize the necessary
critical mass to get government attention.
Cambodia is a good example of a country where such a process has
taken root in the day-to-day running of the administration. From
semi-annual, high-level policy dialogue with the Prime Minister to
monthly working group consultations at the ministerial level,
active contribution to the legislation-making process and
monitoring government official performances, the private sector has
made its presence known and respected.
The outcomes are impressive. To cite a few: legal and economic
reforms have moved at a rapid pace leading to a substantial
decrease of policy-induced transaction costs; private sector
involvement in infrastructure - power generation, road transport,
telecom - is beginning to flourish; domestic resources at the
provincial and national level are being mobilized; and support for
Cambodia's accession to the WTO has been very encouraging - thus
enabling Cambodia to have the chance to be the first LDC to join
the WTO.
Sok Siphana is Secretary of State for Commerce of
Cambodia.
ViewpointTanzania
by Rita Mlaki
The world needs a spirit of willingness to work for a positive
change in helping LDCs to attain competitive advantages in trade
for a sustainable global economy.
We cannot overemphasize that LDCs still depend on comparative
advantage and that the shift to competitive advantage has not
happened so far. Strengthening the private sector is the key to
shifting economic activities from comparative to competitive
advantage. To push for change, we need to remove constraints by
increasing the level of capital transfers, and by building capacity
in LDCs that focus on private sector development. This should be
supplemented by providing market access based on trade preferences
as already shown by the Everything but Arms (EBA), the African
Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA), and Japanese and Canadian
initiatives.
Rita Mlaki is Deputy Minister for Industry and Trade of the
United Republic of Tanzania.
ViewpointUSA
by Emmy Simmons
At USAID, support to improve competitive-ness of economies
accounts for almost 90% of the more than US$ 500 million that USAID
commits to trade capacity-building efforts worldwide each year.
This is part of our commitment to the Doha Development Agenda.
The convergence of the trade agenda and the private business
development agenda have given our programmes new energy and focus.
'Red tape' analyses, for example, are often a starting point for
reviews of both trade barriers and the business climate in
general.
We see three trends to consider in boosting export growth:
- Market-based standards or
certifications. We work with private sector partners
as well as governments to ensure that poor producers understand
market standards. For example, we help farmers apply food safety
and quality standards to meet requirements of big buyers from
international supermarkets. In another example, we work with the
Sustainable Forest Products Alliance - made up of furniture
retailers like Ikea and Home Depot as well as non-governmental
organizations such as WWF - to help developing countries export
forestry-based products that are certified as 'sustainably
produced' to satisfy environmentally-aware consumers.
- Diversifying exports. Diversification
requires innovation, venture capital and knowledge about potential
trade opportunities. ITC's TradeMaps are proving to be a useful
tool in helping people explore trade options for market
diversification.
- Specializing in higher-value markets.
Wine producers have successfully used appellation rules to create
unique identities for their output in world markets. Coffee
producers are beginning to recognize the value of specialization.
We are also looking at opportunities among neighbouring developing
countries, and the potential of increased South-South trade as a
stimulus to growth.
Role of governments
Government policy and performance have a great deal to do with
the private sector's ability to succeed. Contract law, good
governance and public investment in infrastructure are critical to
private sector competitiveness. How countries respond to
opportunities in the global marketplace depends, in the final
analysis, on the actions of private entrepreneurs and investors.
Private financing flows are much more important than official
development assistance in supporting economic growth. Yet
development assistance can play a role in linking public and
private sector interests and capabilities in building trade for
development. We at USAID are committed to doing our part.
Emmy Simmons is Assistant Administrator of USAID.