| Author |
Date and source |
Quotes |
|
|
|
|
Alejandro Jara, Ambassador to the WTO, Chile |
22 May 2003 Reuters |
Concerns expressed over public sectors are all unfounded, even
completely unfounded. There is no reason for the sort of
concern expressed by many NGOs [and offers made so far showed
governments were not giving up regulatory powers in areas like
health and water]. |
|
Stephen Lewis, UN Special Envoy for HIV/Aids in Africa |
5 February 2003 Financial Times |
"The international financial delinquency that has haunted the
response to Aids in Africa is hardly that of the US alone.
It extends without exception to all the wealthy nations." |
| Managing
Director of the European Services Forum, Pascal Kerneis |
22
May 2001
Speech
at an International Conference organised by the Forum of
Environment and Development |
"
GATS is about freedom of the WTO members to make commitments or
not. That is a major message which should be repeated here. When
numerous governments accepted to make a commitment in more than
34 areas during the last Uruguay round, it is because they felt
that their country and their economy would be able to take
advantage of this liberalisation. And this indeed has been the
case. One should again and again repeat that under GATS, it is
only the governments of each WTO member country that decide on
which services they want to make a commitment and can attach to
them whatever conditions they choose. All WTO members which
have, either in their official schedule of commitments during
the last services negotiations or by autonomous internal
decision, decided to liberalise some of their services sectors
will recognise that they have benefited from it." |
| Joint
Statement U.S., European and Japanese Service Industries |
10
May 2001
European
Services Forum
Press Release |
"
If
barriers to trade in goods and services were completely
eliminated, world economic welfare would increase an additional
$1.9 trillion, benefiting developed and developing countries
alike. A broader WTO Round should be able to reduce barriers to
trade in goods and services by one-third, which would still add
approximately $613 billion to the world economy." |
| WTO |
2001
" GATS, facts and fiction", WTO, Geneva
|
"
In 1999, the value of cross-border trade in services amounted to
US$1350 billion, or about 20% of total cross-border trade. This
understates the true size of international trade in services,
much of which takes place through establishment in the export
market, and is not recorded in balance-of-payments statistics.
For the past two decades trade in services has grown faster than
merchandise trade. Developing countries have a keen interest in
many services areas including tourism, health and construction.
According to the World Travel and Tourism Council, tourism is
the world’s largest employer accounting for one in ten workers
worldwide. According to IMF data for 1999, tourism exports,
estimated at US$443 billion, were 33% of global services exports
and 6.5% of total exports." |
| South
Africa President, Nelson
Mandela |
May 1998
Speech at the Summit to mark the 50th Anniversary of the
GATT/WTO multilateral trading system
|
" We are firmly of the belief that the
existence of the GATT, and now the World Trade Organization, as
a rules-based system provides the foundation on which our
deliberations can build in order to improve … As we enter the
new millennium, let us forge a partnership for development
through trade and investment." |
| |
|
|
| |
|
|
| |
|
|
| |
|
|
Home
TRADE RESOURCES
