WTO members and stakeholders from every part of the supply chain will share perspectives on the underlying causes and trajectory of continued supply chain disruptions. They will also collectively identify the resources, interventions and innovations needed to ease crippling disruptions, logjams and price hikes. The aim is to harness the WTO’s convening power to build the first 360-degree picture of the challenges and opportunities facing supply chain partners of all regions, sectors and sizes, and to begin the work of shaping sustainable, inclusive solutions.

Guiding questions:

• How long will the bottlenecks, shortages and delays afflicting global supply chains persist? Which challenges are due to transitory imbalances and which are structural? What are the implications for inflation and economic stability?
• What do importers, exporters, trading companies and logistics providers need from governments and international organizations, and from each other? Where do opportunities lie for resource sharing and cross-sector collaboration? Are regulatory frameworks fit for purpose?
• Which countries, sectors and groups are suffering most from congestion, shortages and cost increases, and why does this threaten their longer-term participation in global trade?
• To what extent can trade-facilitation measures reduce friction in supply chains? Where would they be most impactful? Are there emerging technologies that can help make our supply chains more resilient and flexible without sacrificing efficiency?
• What role can the WTO play in helping move participants’ proposals forward?

Programme

Welcome Remarks - (16:15 – 16:20)

Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala

Director-General, WTO

Fireside Chat: Insights from Large and Small Businesses - (16:20 – 16:35 )

Peter Bakker

President and CEO, World Business Council for Sustainable Development

Pamela Coke-Hamilton

Executive Director, International Trade Centre

John Denton

Secretary General, International Chamber of Commerce

Moderator

Heba Kandil

Senior Manager, Media Initiatives, Thomson Reuters Foundation

Panel: Supply Chain Disruptions, Impacts and Responses - (16:35 – 17:25 )

Charles (Bud) Darr

Executive Vice President, Maritime Policy and Government Affairs, MSC Group

Clemence Cheng

Managing Director, Europe, Hutchison Ports

Seedy Keita

Minister of Trade, Industry, Regional Integration and Employment, The Gambia

Rubana Huq

Managing Director, Mohammadi Group

Victoria Claverie

Head of Trade - Europe, Standard Chartered

Kemvichet Long

Ambassador and Chair, Council for Trade in Services

Moderator

Alan Beattie

Senior Trade Writer, Financial Times

Panel: Unlocking Solutions to Build Resilient and Inclusive Supply Chains - (17:25 – 18:15 )

Luz María de la Mora Sánchez

Undersecretary for Foreign Trade, Secretariat of Economy, Mexico

Young
Tae Kim

Secretary General, International Transport Forum

Penny
Naas

UPS President for International Public Affairs and Sustainability

Ryan Petersen

CEO, Flexport


 

Geetha
Tharmaratnam

CEO & Founding Partner at Aequalitas Capital Partners

Usha Chandnee Dwarka-Canabady

Ambassador and Incoming Chair, Committee on Trade and Development

Moderator

Adva Saldinger

Senior Reporter, Devex

Closing Remarks - (18:15-18:30)

Betty C. Maina

EGH - Cabinet Secretary, Kenya Ministry of Industrialization, Trade and Enterprise Development

Sharan Burrow

General Secretary, International Trade Union Confederation

Jean-Marie Paugam

Deputy Director-General, WTO

Anabel González

Deputy Director-General, WTO