On this, the occasion of the Sultanate of Oman's 20th anniversary of WTO membership, I can think of no better way to begin than to quote late Director-General Mike Moore at the time of Oman's accession to the WTO: 

“Oman's forthcoming accession is a new vote of confidence in the WTO.  No nation, large or small, can secure its future alone, and the Multilateral Trading System provides a stable and predictable framework for economic engagements between nations and for the business community. That in turn promotes growth, employment and prosperity”.

He added:

“…. candidates are lining up to join the WTO. They see the benefits of a system based on the rule of law and not by the exercise of power."

His words remain true today, including in the Arab region. 

We are fortunate to have Oman as a Member of the WTO for a variety of reasons, but one of these is its rich history in international trade.  Here is what the historian and political scientist Robert Kaplan wrote in his book Monsoon⁽¹⁾ about Oman, which country he took as the starting point for a consideration of the importance of the states surrounding the Indian Ocean:

The Arabs are known in the West as a desert people, . . .  But they have also been a great seafaring race, as the frankincense trade and the historical experience of Oman demonstrate, the very harbingers of cosmopolitanism, who have been sailing these waters [of the Indian Ocean] for thousands of years before Vasco da Gama.

Because of the predictability of the winds, thousands of miles of open ocean not only did not separate Oman from the pathways of humankind, but indeed brought it closer to its neighbors, ….  Because seafaring communities have existed for more than two thousand years here, Oman, . . . constitutes an age-old cluster of civilization.

While the WTO marks 25th anniversary of its founding this year, the history of Oman in world trade is 100 times that longevity.  It is a very open country with low trade barriers.  In fact, I do not know of any country that has a higher amount of trade compared with its own GDP than Oman.

During the last 20 years, the Sultanate of Oman has been not only an active member of the WTO, but also a supportive and reliable partner of the WTO community.  It is always ready to support others.  For example, the Government of Oman, together with the Sultan Qaboos University, hosted the WTO's first Regional Trade Policy Course (RTPC) for the Arab and Middle East region from 2014 to 2017, where around 100 government officials were trained; they are now in engaged in the supporting  WTO work in their respective ministries.  

Sultan Qaboos University is also a WTO Chair Holder. Through the Chairs’ programme, SQU has enhanced and facilitated the dissemination and visibility of ground-breaking academic research both with a regional focus and in relation to the multilateral trading system. Through seminars, conferences and roundtables, this programme has made essential contributions to the knowledge and understanding of Oman, the Arab and Middle East region and the WTO. 

Oman has used its accession experience to support acceding governments. Ms. Hilda Al-Hinai, DPR of Oman's mission, served as Seychelles' accession Working Party as Chairperson, successfully leading to its membership in 2015.  Since then, Oman also has provided financial and logistical support to the accession of Comoros, an Arab LDC in the Indian Ocean, which now hopes to conclude its accession by MC12.

I welcome this experience panel composed of those who are truly "Friends of Oman", who know the world trading system very well, to celebrate this special occasion.  I look forward to learning from their wisdom and reflections on the current state and future of the trading system.     

Notes:

1. Kaplan, Robert D., Monsoon (p. 55). Random House Publishing Group. Kindle Edition. back to text