WTO | 2007 Press Releases - WTO Director General Pascal Lamy to visit East Africa Freer and fairer trade can help Africa spur growth and alleviate poverty


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WTO Director General Pascal Lamy to visit East Africa
Freer and fairer trade can help Africa spur growth and alleviate poverty

Geneva 1 February 2007: As part of his ongoing consultations with WTO members on how to move forward the WTO trade talks, WTO Director General Pascal Lamy will tour East Africa on 1-6 February. He will meet the Presidents of Uganda, Tanzania and Kenya , government representatives, parliamentarians, civil society and business leaders in these countries.

M. Lamy declared “East African countries are fully engaged in the on-going WTO trade talks under the Doha Development Agenda. I am here to discuss how we can all work together to bring this Round to a successful conclusion that will secure the developmental benefits to Africa in particular”.

The Doha Development Agenda, launched in 2001 in the Qatari capital, is designed to re balance the global trading system in favour of developing countries all around the world.

In Kenya, on 5 February, he will speak at the joint WTO-UNEP (UN Environment Programme) Round Table on environment and trade. Environment is an integral part of the WTO agenda as well as an important feature of the Doha Round negotiations. Trade can play an important role in protecting the environment through the elimination of environmentally-harmful subsidies, or by improving market access conditions for goods and services that are beneficial for the environment.

The round table will provide an opportunity for participants to share views on how to ensure more and better coherence between trade opening and protection of the environment.

M. Lamy's itinerary in East Africa
In Uganda on 2 and 3 February
In Tanzania on 4 February
In Kenya on 5 February

Some key figures on the countries visited ⁽¹⁾:

Uganda

Population: 27.8 millions
GDP growth: 5.6%
Exports of goods and services: 15% of GDP
Imports of goods and services: 30% of GDP
Foreign direct investment: $202 million (net inflows)
Total external debt: 71% of GDP

Tanzania

Population: 37.6 millions
GDP growth 6.7%
Exports of goods and services: 18% of GDP
Imports of goods and services: 30% of GDP
Foreign direct investment: $478 million (net inflows)
Total external debt: 69% of GDP

Kenya

Population: 33.5 millions
GDP growth: 4.3%
Exports of goods and services: 27% of GDP
Imports of goods and services: 33% of GDP
Foreign direct investment: $108 million (net inflows)
Total external debt: 42% of GDP

1. World Bank figures 2006

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