Excellencies,
Ladies and gentlemen,

Good evening.

I am very pleased to be here in Tunisia, and meet with you on the margins of the Tunisia 2020 conference.

This is my first time in the country as WTO Director-General. In fact, this is my first time in Tunisia full stop! So thank you for your kind invitation.

For those who are not very familiar with the WTO, at the most fundamental level, the organization provides the rules upon which global trade is run.

Our work is all about lowering barriers to trade, improving connectivity, and building capacity. And our aim is to help support growth, jobs and development.

It really is a global organisation. It has 164 members, representing 98% of world trade.

The majority of our members are developing countries.

Tunisia has been a WTO member since 1995, and remains an active member today.

In fact, we could also say that Tunisia saw the development of global trade from a unique perspective, being home to the ancient trading city of Carthage. 

So I think it's fair to say trade has a deep-rooted history here.

Looking ahead, I want to ensure that trade is a just as important part of Tunisia's future. And I think that the World Trade Organization can continue to play an important part here. 

In recent years, Tunisia has faced a number of challenges. The country has undergone a democratic transition and is dealing with the effects of instability in the region.

Having laid the ground for this political transition, Tunisia now faces the task of promoting economic growth and development.

This is a very important effort. It is encouraging to see Tunisia's resolve to strengthen its economy and create more opportunities for its people.

The country is now looking to implement reforms that promote good governance and tackle inefficiencies. 

The 2016-2020 development plan provides a solid framework for conducting these necessary reforms.

It focuses on reforms to boost infrastructure, attract investments, diversify the economy, and improve the business climate.

It also looks at improving education, encouraging youth participation, and at environmentally sustainable practices.

These reforms can go a long way to help the economy of the country.

In fact, WTO members have commended Tunisia for maintaining positive economic growth and macroeconomic stability in the face of real adversity. 

Of course, this is an ongoing effort. And I think that the WTO can be a partner in this journey.

There are a number of ways that the WTO can help.

First, by offering Tunisia a platform to make its voice heard.

At the WTO, all members have a seat at the table. They can help shape the debate in their interests.

Second, by helping Tunisia develop the necessary skills and tools to trade.

We need to ensure that developing countries receive the necessary practical support to build capacity and trading skills. This is a key pillar of our work.

For example, the WTO runs special training programmes suited to the needs of developing country officials, so that they can successfully work with the system.

We also have the Aid for Trade initiative. Through this WTO initiative, developing countries receive targeted assistance to improve their trading infrastructure. 

Tunisia is a beneficiary of this programme. The last available figures show that in 2013, Aid for Trade disbursements in Tunisia surpassed 600 million dollars.

This has had a real impact on the ground.

Research has found that one dollar invested in Aid for Trade results in nearly 8 dollars of exports from developing countries.

In addition, we also have a range of programmes to help enhance knowledge and understanding of the trading system. This includes the WTO Chairs Programme, of which the Tunis Business School is part.

Third, the WTO can make a difference for Tunisia by negotiating new rules to update and improve the system, ensuring that the benefits of trade reach further and wider.

Over the past few years, the WTO has delivered important reforms to the global trading system, with significant economic impact.

In 2015, at our ministerial conference in Nairobi, members eliminated agricultural export subsidies. This was the biggest reform in agricultural trade in 20 years, and it will help level the playing field for farmers in Tunisia.

This delivered a key contribution to meeting the Sustainable Development Goal on ‘Zero Hunger’.

Also in Nairobi, a group of WTO members agreed to expand the WTO's Information Technology Agreement. This agreement eliminates tariffs on 200 high tech products, trade in which is worth 1.3 trillion dollars annually.

These results build on other recent WTO trade deals, including the Trade Facilitation Agreement, which we struck in Bali in 2013.

This deal tackles red tape at the border, helping to cut trade costs. Estimates show that the full implementation of the agreement could reduce trade costs in Tunisia by up to 23 per cent.

And to help with implementation, the WTO has put in place a special facility to provide access to practical support and technical assistance.

It is now important that Tunisia ratifies this agreement in order to reap its benefits.  Nearly 90 per cent of the ratifications needed to bring the agreement into force have now been received.

I urge you to take the necessary steps to ratify this agreement as soon as possible.

Another action that is within reach — and that will benefit Tunisia — is to ratify a measure known as the TRIPS amendment.

This amendment allows essential medicines to be exported at affordable prices into countries that cannot produce the medicines themselves. And this ratification requires no changes to domestic regulations whatsoever.

We are very close to bringing this measure into force, so I urge you to take action here as well.

On all these issues, the WTO is here to help. If more information or support is needed then we stand ready to provide assistance wherever we can.

As a result of the progress made in recent years, members now want to deliver more, and the debate at the WTO is currently very dynamic.

There is a strong desire to maintain development at the centre of our efforts and to ensure that the benefits of trade are more widely shared.

Members are discussing how to deal with longstanding issues, such as agriculture (including domestic support), services and market access for industrial goods.

WTO members are also discussing action in a number of other important areas. These include, for example, eliminating tariffs on environmental goods and taking action on subsidies that lead to over-fishing.

In addition, members are discussing ideas to help trade work more inclusively, such as:

• how to help smaller companies to trade, and
• how to harness the power of e-commerce to support inclusiveness.

Work on these issues can be very important to help more people to join trade flows.

In many countries, SMEs account for the majority of employment. These firms play an important role in economic and social development. Yet their direct participation in trade is low. Helping these companies to trade can help them leverage more opportunities in the global economy.

Electronic commerce, for example, can facilitate and broaden participation in trade flows, including those smaller firms. The internet has the potential to bring many new entrants into the market, and cut trade costs related to physical distance.

However, in Tunisia almost half of the population is still offline. There is huge potential here.

As this debate advances, we should seek to learn from our successes.

The flexible model adopted by the TFA, which includes technical assistance, could play a key role here.

These issues may prove to be very positive for Tunisia.

These debates are still at an early stage — and where all of this leads will be up to you.

For Tunisia, this is a unique opportunity to help shape the agenda in your interests. So I urge you to stay engaged.

I look forward to working with Tunisia to ensure trade remains a positive force for growth and development in the country, now and in the years to come.