Sarada de Silva, Past President Management Committee Member and Council Member of the NCE, as well as Founder Chairman of the Spice Council of Sri Lanka, Ceylon Cinnamon Association and Ceylon Cinnamon Geographical Association, has been invited for the 3rd time to address the WTO – AID FOR TRADE GLOBAL REVIEW 2019 to be held at the WTO Head Quarters in Geneva from July 3 to 5, 2019, under the Theme ‘Supporting Economic Diversification and Empowerment for Inclusive, Sustainable Development through Aid for Trade.
Underpinning the review is a Monitoring and Evaluation (M&E) exercise. The aim of the M&E exercise is to survey: Aid-for-Trade priorities and how these have changed since the last monitoring exercise; Aid-for Trade support for economic diversification and Aid-for-Trade support for economic development.
The M&E exercise would seek to further develop analysis on how trade could contribute to economic diversification and empowerment, with a focus on eliminating extreme poverty, particularly, through the effective participation of women and youth and how Aid for Trade could contribute to that objective by addressing supply-side capacity and trade-related infrastructure constraints, including for Micro, Small and Medium - sized Enterprises (MSMEs), notably for those MSMEs in rural areas.
To collect such information, self-assessment questionnaires have been circulated widely to donors (bilateral and multilateral agencies), regional economic communities/transport corridors, South-South partners and developing and least-developed countries. Responses to the questionnaires and information provided in case stories would be analyzed and conclusions drawn in a joint publication by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) and the World Trade Organization (WTO): “Aid for Trade at a Glance 2019: Supporting Economic Diversification and Empowerment for Inclusive, Sustainable Development Through Aid for Trade,” would also feature contributions from other international organizations. The publication would be launched and discussed at the 2019 Global Review of Aid for Trade.
Roberto Azevêdo, Director General of the WTO, states that, Quote: ”Over the last 12 years, our Aid for Trade initiative has been a powerful instrument for building trade capacity and trade-related infrastructure in developing and least-developed countries. It aims to make trade more inclusive and ensure that its benefits are spread further and wider. Our focus in 2019, would be how trade could even more to contribute to economic diversification and empowerment. I encourage WTO members and our key Aid for Trade partners to actively participate in this work. I look forward to welcoming them to the WTO for the flagship Global Review event in July.” Unquote
The WTO-led Aid for Trade initiative helps developing countries, and particularly least-developed countries, to trade by seeking to mobilize resources to address their trade-related constraints. Many developing countries face a range of supply-side and trade-related infrastructure obstacles which constrain their ability to engage in international trade.
Global Reviews are attended by ministers of trade and development, international financial institutions, private sector firms and associations, development research organizations, together with participants drawn from the broader trade, and development community.
The event typically attracts over 1,500 registered participants. Past editions of the Global Review, have examined digital connectivity, reducing trade costs and global value chains, according to a Press release.
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