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The agreement, in the form of a memorandum of understanding (MOU),
formalizes a relationship between the WTO and UNIDO (United Nations
Industrial Development Organization) that has grown
closer since Dr. Supachai took the helm at WTO in 2002.
“The success of the Doha Development Agenda is critical for the
achievement of the UN Millennium Development Goals,” said Dr. Supachai.
“When it comes to technical assistance and capacity building,
strengthening capacities to negotiate and implement WTO rules is not
enough. Success will only come through result—oriented coordination with
other agencies, like UNIDO, the UN Specialized Agency with the mandate
to assist with the development of the productive capacities of
industry.”
UNIDO’s Director-General, Carlos Magariños, said : “Until Doha,
‘trade-related’ technical assistance was almost synonymous with
WTO-related technical assistance. Now it is increasingly understood that
to be effective, trade-related technical assistance has to attend to the
whole ‘product to market’ chain. In addition to capacities relating to
the Multilateral Trading System, developing countries need capacities to
produce competitive exportable products that conform to international
standards. That is where UNIDO comes in. This agreement is a milestone
for the developing countries — and for UNIDO”
Developing country participation in international trade and investment
flows is seen as the way out of the poverty trap. It is a big factor in
the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals. Traditional
“trade-related” technical assistance and the removal of trade barriers
have already helped some countries, but many developing countries, in
particular the least-developed among them, have not yet reached the
threshold where they can take full advantage of initiatives.
There is a consensus among developing countries that they need to
improve their supply side capacities, to diversify and increase the
value added of their export base and reduce the reliance on volatile
low-value added commodities.
The WTO—UNIDO Agreement is a formal recognition that assisting
developing countries to build capacities to produce exportable products
is an important part of “trade-related” technical assistance and
capacity building. |
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