WTO NEWS: SPEECHES — DG PASCAL LAMY

Geneva, 18 May 2006

Mastering globalization: contribution of the cities

Day devoted to “the city and the quality of life”

Distinguished Mayor of Geneva, my dear friend Manuel Tornare,
Honourable mayors of the towns participating in this event,
Esteemed federal, cantonal, and city authorities,
Ladies and gentlemen

Strange as it may seem that the Director-General of the World Trade Organization should be invited to a seminar entitled “The city and the quality of life”, the fact is that the WTO, with its headquarters in Geneva, and I myself, are particularly appreciative of the quality of life in Geneva! Indeed, since I arrived in Geneva in September of last year, I have participated in local meetings whenever possible, and always with pleasure, since this enables us — that is myself and the organization that I run — keep in touch with the activities of our host city and to feel that we are part of the identity of this international city.,

Nevertheless, the WTO is perceived in Geneva and elsewhere as a planetary organization that symbolizes deterritorialized global markets — a far cry, it would seem, from the subject of this forum, the city rooted in its territory. So there would appear to be a contradiction, or at least an incompatibility, between a globally oriented organization and a city which for many of us is the very expression of the notion of “local”. And yet I accepted Mayor Manuel Tornare's kind invitation, because this contrast is no more than superficial. In fact, I am convinced that the city and the WTO have a lot in common: they are two essential instruments in mastering globalization.

I do not intend to dwell on the implications of this globalization and its profound impact on the pace of the world economy and on the everyday lives of human beings. Because, globalization is economic, social, and cultural, because new challenges are emerging at the global level, and we are called upon to build new instruments of governance capable of responding to this great transformation. This is what I call mastering globalization. We are not talking about a magic formula. Mastering globalization means acting wherever possible, at every level, global and local alike. An international organization like the WTO acts at the global level, establishing a framework for regulated trade. The WTO is an instrument in mastering globalization.

But where does the city enter into this picture? To answer that question, I suggest that we revert to the very origins of the concept of the city. At the time of the Pharaohs, the hieroglyphic for the city consisted of a cross inside a circle, representing crossroads within an enclosure. In other words, a place of exchange within a protected space. In many ways, this vision of the city continues to be relevant today. All over the world, cities are less poor than the countryside. Owing to their density and diversity, they are centres of creativity, production and invention. By definition, they agglomerate, integrate, and redistribute. They are the starting points and end points of trade networks that reach out into the neighbouring countryside and towards the world at large.

In many ways, globalization is driven by the cities. After all, the “world-economies” of the fifteenth century rested on networks of merchant and maritime cities, those of the Hanseatic League in the north, Venice and the Mediterranean in the south. The industrialized city then took over at the end of the nineteenth century, and today, the “merchant city network” has become the global city network. What is remarkable is that it now covers all of the continents: thirteen of the world's largest urban agglomerations are located in Asia, Africa or Latin America.

Contrary to what we often hear, globalization does not mean the end of the territories. On the contrary, it reinforces the concept of locality, for a very simple reason: what is traded in a global context must be produced somewhere; global networks must begin and end somewhere. So the emergence of the global dimension in the lives of our societies does not mean the disappearance of locality, but rather, the strengthening of a concept which is at the very source of globalization. Cities are anchorage points for globalization par excellence because few human territories can offer such complex facilities, built up over time, offering so many facets, both material and conceptual, inherited and innovative. In short, our territories, our societies, are more and more interdependent, and it is in the cities that this interdependence is developing, forging links, intensifying.

So, this forum provides a particularly welcome opportunity to stimulate reflection on the new responsibilities of the urban territories in a globalizing world — and what could be a better place for this reflection than Geneva, which has found a remarkable balance between integration in the globalization process and development of its territorial roots? Moreover, our discussions today will be enhanced by the fact that they are not confined to the big European cities but include the cities of the developing world, which are also undergoing considerable internal transformation in connection with globalization.

The topic of this first half day, “quality of life as an economic and social project”, is a reminder that more than half of humanity now lives in an urban environment. This means we have to pursue policies that will ensure the sustainable development of our urban societies. Governance has a role to play at every level, and in this scheme, the city is of course essential. More than any other environment, it is conducive to the establishment of a relationship of confidence and a feeling of legitimacy between citizens and their elected representatives. But the parameters of an urban policy cannot be determined at the local level only. The State, the regional organizations, the international organizations involved in globalization, all play a more distant and perhaps less tangible role, but an essential role nevertheless.

So defining the terms of urban development is a collective matter, as I am certain our discussions today and over the next few days will show.

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In conclusion I would just like to add a word or two about the current round of WTO trade negotiations. We have reached a critical stage in our negotiations where Members have to face up to their responsibilities and submit proposals on trade and subsidies in the agricultural area and on trade in industrial products. The European Union, the United States, and the major emerging countries have a particular responsibility in ensuring a positive outcome. We all hope that these negotiations — and the negotiators, who are experiencing a particularly difficult and often rather bleak period, will be inspired by the words written on the coat of arms of this city: “Post Tenebras, Lux” — after darkness, light!