Initiated in July 2011 under the WTO’s Aid for Trade initiative, the China Programme aims to enable least-developed countries (LDCs) to better integrate into the global economy by strengthening their participation in WTO activities and helping those not yet members to join the Organization.

The China Programme provides financing to support:

• WTO accessions internships

• WTO accessions round table meetings

• LDCs’ participation in WTO meetings

• South-South dialogue on LDCs and development

• LDCs’ Trade Policy Review follow-up workshops.

"Through this programme, China facilitates the accession of least-developed countries to the WTO and supports their integration into the global economy. I welcome this new donation," declared WTO Director-General Roberto Azevêdo.

China’s ambassador Jianhua Yu stated: "China has been a consistent supporter of the WTO’s Aid for Trade initiative and has provided trade-related technical assistance to LDCs under the China Programme over the past three years. The Programme has played a positive and effective role in facilitating LDCs’ integration into the multilateral trading system. Today, we renewed our commitment to the Programme with expanded forms of cooperation. This once again demonstrates our strong support for the development of LDCs within the South-South cooperation framework.  We appreciate the cooperation of the WTO Secretariat and look forward to the successful implementation of the renewed Programme.”

Since 2008, China has donated to the various WTO trust funds a total of CHF 2,149,993.