Danish Ambassador Henrik Rée Iversen and WTO Director-General Supachai Panitchpakdi today signed an amendment to the December 2002 Memorandum of Understanding to include that additional donation.

“Cancún showed us that more than ever technical assistance is needed to promote active participation of developing countries, in particular the least developed of them, in the Doha Development Agenda negotiations and WTO work in general,?Ambassador Iversen stated. “Therefore, I was pleased to sign the amendment ensuring further Danish funding for the Doha Development Agenda Global Trust Fund.?br>
“I very much welcome Denmark's decision to increase its contribution to the Doha Trust Fund,?said Director-General Supachai. “Denmark's generosity will play an important role towards enhancing developing countries' participation in the Doha round of negotiations. Technical assistance is an essential tool to train developing countries' representatives and demand for it is high.?br>
The Doha Development Agenda Global Trust Fund was created following the WTO Ministerial Conference in Doha, in November 2001, which launched a new round of negotiations. In December 2003, the General Council approved a target amount of 24 million Swiss francs for the Doha Trust Fund for 2004.