DEVELOPMENT: CTD100
Current and future perspectives on trade and development
Commemorative event to mark the 100th session of the WTO's
Committee on Trade and Development
Thursday, 24 November 2016, 10.00-13.00
Centre William Rappard (Room W)
Background
A commemorative event to mark the 100th session of the Committee on Trade and Development (CTD) will be held on 24 November. This is a significant milestone for the multilateral trading system — and for the CTD, which serves as a focal point for the consideration and coordination of development work in the WTO.
The event will provide an opportunity for participants to discuss current and future perspectives on trade and development. Two substantive sessions will be held. The first will look at the evolution of trade and development over the past 20 years, since the first meeting of the CTD in 1995, and will cover current perspectives on this topic. The second session will be forward looking. It will explore future challenges and what needs to be done to ensure trade works even better as a tool for development.
The event will be inaugurated by WTO Director-General Roberto Azevêdo and will be chaired by Ambassador Christopher Onyanga Aparr (Uganda), Chair of the CTD.
Programme
10:00–10:30 — Opening session
Keynote address by Mr Roberto Azevêdo, Director-General, WTO
Statement by Mr Joakim Reiter, Deputy Secretary-General, UNCTAD
10:30-11:40 — Session 1: current perspectives over 20 years of trade and development
Speakers include:
- Mr Eloi Laourou
Ambassador and Permanent Representative of Benin to the WTO
Presentation
- Mr Marc Vanheukelen
Ambassador and Permanent Representative of the European Union to the WTO
Presentation
- Mr Marcus Bartley Johns
Senior Trade Specialist, World Bank Group
Presentation
- Mr Jaime De Melo
Scientific Advisor, Foundation for International Development Study and Research (Ferdi) and Emeritus Professor, University of Geneva
Presentation
Presentations by the speakers will be followed by a discussion.
11:40-12:50 ?Session 2: looking ahead — what remains to be done
Speakers include:
- Mr Syed Tauqir Shah
Ambassador and Permanent Representative of Pakistan to the WTO
- Mr Eduardo Ernesto Sperisen-Yurt
Ambassador and Permanent Representative of Guatemala to the WTO
- Ms Mari Kiviniemi
Deputy Secretary-General, OECD
- Ms Hanne Melin
Director of Global Public Policy, eBay
Presentation
Presentations by the speakers will be followed by a discussion.
12:50-13:00 — Closing remarks
