The WTO Secretariat organized the 2011 Advanced Course on the WTO Agreement on Technical Barriers to Trade (the "TBT Agreement"), which took place at WTO headquarters, in Geneva, from 6 to 17 June 2011.  The 25 selected participants in this advanced TBT activity were government officials from developing and least-developed WTO members and observers.  The course was opened by Vesile Kulaçoğlu, Director of the Trade and Environment Division and closed by WTO Deputy Director-General Harsha V. Singh.

The Advanced TBT Course was a “level 3” training activity implemented within the WTO's progressive learning framework, jointly organized and delivered by the Secretariat's Trade and Environment Division and the Institute for Training and Technical Cooperation (ITTC).  The course benefited from the vast knowledge, expertise and experience available in Geneva and was truly multidisciplinary and crosscutting in its approach. Besides the involvement of staff from the Trade and Environment Division and the ITTC, participants benefited from the participation of WTO staff from the General Council, Market Access, Agriculture and Commodities, Trade Policies Review and Legal Affairs Divisions; from expert speakers and delegates from the European Union, India, Mexico, Uganda and the United States;  and from speakers from other Geneva-based international organizations such as the Advisory Centre on WTO Law (ACWL), the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) and the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC).

Due to its advanced nature, the Course was targeted at government officials who already possessed a sound knowledge of the TBT Agreement and the WTO system in general.  Eligible participants were therefore expected to have completed a WTO eTraining Course on the TBT Agreement, or possess demonstrably commensurate knowledge or professional experience.  The Course aimed to consolidate participants' knowledge and understanding of the TBT Agreement and provide a deeper understanding of the current issues and challenges surrounding technical barriers and the implementation of the Agreement.  Participants debated various TBT-relevant issues currently being discussed in the TBT Committee and in the Doha Development Agenda negotiations; one of these debates on international standard-setting bodies was chaired by Deputy Head of Cabinet, Victor Luiz Do Prado.  The Course also provided participants with a unique opportunity to share with each other experiences in the area and to make contact with a wide range of experts in the area of standards and trade.  Another key advantage of the Course was the opportunity to attend the Regular Session of the TBT Committee.

 

List of the participants  back to top

Miss Ani GABRIELYAN, Armenia
Mr. Fariz VAKILOV, Azerbaijan
Mr. Andrei PROKOPCHUK, Belarus
Mr. Diego Eugenio PIZETTA, Brazil
Mr. Ming Gang ZHAO, China
Mr. Xinhua SUN, China (Auditor)
Mr. Rabindra jung THAPA, Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal
Mr. Magin BETETA BARILLAS, Guatemala
Mrs Karen WATSON-BROWN, Jamaica
Mr. David Nganyi NYANJE, Kenya
Mrs Bridget CHALIRA-KAUMA, Malawi
Mr. Nik Mohd Salihin NIK MUSTAFA, Malaysia
Mrs Alejandra VARGAS ARRACHE, Mexico
Mr. Ueritjiua KAUARIA, Namibia
Mr. Ndah Abu ALI, Nigeria
Miss Tahani AL-AWAIRA, Oman
Mr. Gustavo Edwin BRAVO, Peru
Mrs Yuliya CHIRKOVA, Russian Federation
Mrs Liliane KAMANZI, Rwanda
Ms Gladys FUIMAONO, Samoa
Miss Jirawan LIMPAIBOOL, Thailand
Mrs Jo-Anne BEHARRY, Trinidad and Tobago
Ms Sanem YILDIZ, Turkey
Mrs Bich Ngoc LE, Viet Nam
Mr. Garirai MUPANAN'OMBE, Zimbabwe