WTO: 2006 PRESS RELEASES

Press/452
9 October 2006
TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE

Denmark donates CHF 3 million to WTO technical assistance

The Danish government has donated DKK 14 million (CHF 3 million) to support technical assistance and training activities in favour of developing countries for the years 2006 and 2007.

On 2 October the Government of Denmark pledged this amount in two new contributions to the WTO technical assistance funds. The first, for an amount of CHF1.5 million, is destined for the Doha Development Agenda Global Trust Fund (DDAGTF), which finances technical assistance and capacity building activities targeted especially at the needs of least-developed countries, other developing countries and/or economies in transition.

The remaining contribution of CHF 1.5 million is for the trust fund established for the implementation of the Standards and Trade Development Facility (STDF), which assists developing countries create and implement international sanitary and phyto-sanitary (SPS) standards to improve their human, animal and plant health situation, and thus gain and maintain market access.

The WTO Director-General, Pascal Lamy, acknowledged Denmark’s important contribution to technical assistance and said : “I express my sincere thanks the Danish government for its generosity. Such assistance is vital to enhance developing countries’ participation in the global trading system”.

Since 2000, Denmark has contributed a total of CHF 5.8 million to the DDAGTF making it the sixth biggest voluntary contributor. The new pledge to the STDF will bring its total contribution to CHF 2.5 million to this fund since it came into existence in 2002.