WTO NEWS: SPEECHES — DG PASCAL LAMY
Global Problems, Global Solutions: Towards Better Global Governance
Ladies and Gentlemen,
Welcome to the WTO's Public Forum of 2009!
It is always a pleasure to see the very large crowds that the WTO Public
Forum draws. Your presence in such impressive numbers speaks to the
relevance of the role and mandate of the WTO. It stands as testimony to
the high expectations that you have of the organization, and which the
WTO should certainly strive to fulfil.
It is also shows that the WTO does not simply preach transparency and
openness on Sundays, but also practises them on Mondays! In fact, even
on Sundays, as we did several weeks ago in welcoming the public to our
premises for the first time. And, there is no doubt that the results of
yesterday's referendum on the extension of the WTO's headquarters here
in Geneva will encourage us to extend our outreach to you even further.
As I have said many times before, it is to your needs and aspirations
that this organization must cater, and I certainly hope that this Forum
will enable the entire WTO family, members and Secretariat staff alike,
to better keep their “fingers on the pulse” so to speak. In other words,
to better gage your concerns and expectations of how we, in the WTO, can
do things better in future.
This year's forum is dedicated to “Better Global Governance.” A theme
chosen mainly in light of the current financial, economic, and social
crisis that we have been witness to as of last year. There is no doubt
that the world has traversed a very “rough patch” in 2008 and earlier
this year with the financial meltdown, and its very severe consequences
on people across the globe; many of whom have lost their jobs, homes,
savings, and therefore, their entire livelihood. And we are certainly
not yet out of the woods in terms of this particular crisis.
World economic growth, as measured by the world's production of goods
and services, has slowed abruptly in 2008 and the early part of this
year. The contraction in demand led to a slowdown in production, and in
international trade. World merchandise trade is projected to fall by a
full 10 per cent this year, and foreign direct investment, which fell by
15 per cent in 2008, is projected to drop further.
The WTO has quickly responded to the crisis by cautioning governments
against beggar-thy-neighbour policies, which have been tried in the
past, in similar situations, and which have shown their gross
inadequacy. It has cautioned against protectionism through a monitoring
mechanism of trade restrictions that it enacted in the immediate wake of
the financial crisis. A WTO “Radar Screen,” if you will.
What our radar shows so far is “low-intensity” protectionism; in other
words, a large number of measures whose intensity has so far remained
constrained. But there should be no complacency. Rising unemployment
will continue to usher-in the inevitable protectionist pressures.
Ladies and gentlemen, the impulse to go “local” in answer to the
financial crisis must be resisted. In fact, I would argue that we should
continue “going global,” if I may say so, for the simple reason that
many consumers have seen their purchasing power decline, and are in need
of cheaper, more competitive, goods and services, and not more expensive
ones produced behind a national tariff wall.
International trade helps lower the cost of goods and services to the
final consumer. And it is for this reason also that it is imperative
that we conclude the Doha Round of trade negotiations. In fact, if the
entire WTO community of nations were to decide to raise its applied
tariff levels all the way up to WTO legal ceilings, this would raise the
world's average tariff hurdle to about twice its current level.
In other words, exporters would become 100 per cent worse-off than they
are today if the full policy-space that the WTO provides were to be
exploited. The Doha Round of trade negotiations would not only open new
markets for exporters, but also curtail some of the existing margin of
manoeuvre that could take the world backwards.
This explains why this issue has featured so highly on the G20's agenda
since last year, including in Pittsburgh last week. I have used last
week's opportunity to report to G20 leaders on the state-of-play of
international trade. I explained that political signals of commitment to
resisting protectionism and to concluding the Doha Round in 2010 were
needed and, indeed, welcome. But that, as long as they do not translate
into concrete engagement, declarations would not in-and-of themselves
deliver an outcome. Leaders have agreed that their negotiators now
embark on the work programmes that we have established for the next
three months, and that they then assess our collective ability to
achieve our 2010 target. It is now incumbent upon them to “walk the
talk.”
Let me now turn to trade finance. As you all know, part of the
contraction in world trade that we have seen in 2008 and 2009 occurred
due to the drying-up of trade finance. Trade finance institutions rolled
back their export credits in response to the financial crisis, having
seen the number of defaults on trade contracts that had taken place.
The WTO has not sat by in silence in response to the problem. It has
mobilized the trade finance community and world leaders, alerting them
to the downward spiral in world trade that this was leading to. Trade
finance is now beginning to shore-up. It is my hope that we will soon
see previous levels of trade finance restored, especially where it is
most needed. In other words, for small businesses and least-developed
countries.
Ladies and gentlemen, while the financial crisis is a serious
pre-occupation for us all, we must not forget that it is not the only
global problem that awaits action on our part. There are many issues
that we need to deal with at the international level, and which merit
our utmost attention. I speak here of the climate crisis, of the food
crisis, and of global health pandemics.
It is critical that the international community “seal a climate deal” at
the Copenhagen Summit at the end of this year. As I have stated many
times before, it is only an equitable “global” climate deal that can
tackle the climate crisis effectively; a deal that clearly spells out
the commitments of each and every player. It is not through the
unilateral action of a few that the climate crisis will somehow be
halted. We must keep our eye on the ball, and not lose sight of the
magnitude of the problem that we are confronted with. That problem
represents no less than our very ability to survive in future.
I was heartened by the results of the recent World Climate Conference
that was held here in Geneva, and which has prioritized the development
of “climate services” — such as climate research and forecasting
services. I hope that WTO members will rise to the challenge set by this
Conference, and respond by accelerating market-opening for environmental
and climate-related goods and services through the Doha Round. This is a
very concrete way in which the trade community can chip into the
construction of a global climate deal; one that we certainly hope to see
emerge from the Copenhagen Summit at the end of this year.
Ladies and gentlemen, the food crisis is no less serious than any other
crisis. The Food and Agricultural Organization tells us that there are
more hungry people today than there has ever been before. This situation
cannot be allowed to linger. Trade, and the Doha Round specifically, can
be part of the answer; albeit not the entire answer, since much will
also depend on accompanying credit, nutrition, and agricultural
development policies.
Trade is the transmission belt that allows food to move from the land of
the plenty to the land of the few. We must oil that transmission belt,
and improve the foundation on which it has been built through the Doha
Round. The Round will reduce rich world subsidies, and would lower
tariff walls in developed and developing countries alike, bringing food
closer to the poor.
Finally, allow me to say a word or two on global health pandemics, such
as the H1N1 virus that we saw this year, or other strains of flu that we
saw in previous years. Because of globalization, and our greater
interconnectedness today, global pandemics may be more likely than
before. It is critical, therefore, that we beef-up international
standards, such as the norms that are set by the World Health
Organization or the World Organization for Animal Health, and that we
let ourselves be guided by science as much as we can. The WTO
encourages, and will continue to encourage, its members to abide by
international norms. They not only facilitate trade, but also facilitate
the sharing of scientific information and of proper regulatory control.
Many of the topics that I have raised with you just now are on the
programme of this year's Public Forum. My goal — of course — was simply
to whet your appetite for some of what is to come!
More seriously, it is my hope that you will share your thoughts with us
over the course of the next three days on each and every topic that I
have raised, and more. Let this be a learning experience, and a
“rapprochement” for us all.
Thank you for your attention.
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