Good morning everyone.

I am truly delighted to be joined today by all of you and by our friend and colleague Ambassador Amina Mohamed, Kenya’s Cabinet Secretary for Foreign Affairs and International Trade.

Of course, Ambassador Mohamed is also the chair of the WTO’s 10th Ministerial Conference, which will be held in Nairobi from the 15th to the 18th of December this year.  

And that conference is precisely what we are going to talk about this morning.

It is the focus of much of our work this year at the WTO. So, like our friend in the video, we are all on the road to Nairobi!

We only have a short session this morning, so I want to say just a few words about why I think that Nairobi is so important to us, and to the organization. 

This ministerial conference will be our first opportunity since our successful meeting in Bali in 2013 to show that the multilateral trading system can deliver negotiated outcomes — particularly for the poorest and the most marginalised.

It will also be the first time that a WTO ministerial has been held in Africa. And I think that the acid test of our success will be whether we can deliver for Africa.

Perspectives on trade have changed over recent years.

It was notable that a recent survey of global public opinion found that it was not the people of Asia or North America who have the most positive view of trade — it was the people of Africa.

Trade is increasingly seen by many — quite rightly — as a powerful tool for development and for improving their lives.

We all know that 2015 is a big year in the sustainable development calendar, with the new sustainable development goals, their financing, and the future of the climate all being discussed at the multilateral level.

Trade has a big role to play in this debate.

Since the creation of the WTO in 1995, around two-thirds of poverty reduction has come from economic growth in developing countries. And trade is a major engine helping to drive that growth in those countries.

The WTO has provided more and more developing countries with a seat at the table — where their voice is heard just as loudly as anybody else's.

Today developing countries make up four out of every five WTO members.

They play a role in managing the system, shaping its agenda, and negotiating its agreements.

And they are increasing their participation in world trade.

Developing countries’ share in global merchandise trade has increased from 27 per cent in 1995 to over 43 per cent today. In commercial services trade, the share has risen from around 25 to roughly 35 per cent over the same period.

So huge strides have been taken. But, clearly, we need to do more. And one area where the WTO has struggled to deliver is through our negotiations.

That’s one reason why the successful Bali Package that we delivered in 2013 is so important.

It showed that members can deliver important negotiated outcomes — and that it could do so with development at its heart, and with developing countries playing a leading role in the negotiations.

The package included:

• the Trade Facilitation Agreement,
• a series of measures for LDCs,
• and steps on various agricultural issues, including cotton, food security, tariff rate quota administration, and so on.

Bali was a first in many ways. It was the WTO's first multilateral agreement of course. But it also broke new ground in the technical assistance which it foresaw to support members with implementation of the provisions of that agreement.

Thus, providing practical support to build capacity is another crucial element of our work here at the WTO.

That’s what Aid for Trade is all about. To date, more than 245 billion dollars have been disbursed for official development assistance programmes and projects.

So how can we make sure that trade, and the WTO, keep on playing their role in supporting development — and leverage trade’s contribution even more?

I think that at the multilateral level we have two key tasks to support growth and development…

• First — we must move forward and implement the decisions taken in Bali, to ensure that the significant benefits promised are delivered.

• And second, we must make further progress on the Doha Development Agenda.

The big Doha issues of agriculture, industrial goods, and services, have been languishing on the negotiating table for far too long.

Results here could transform lives across the world.

I think members are focused on agreeing meaningful outcomes to support growth and development in Nairobi in December.

And I will do everything I can, together with the Secretariat, to support members in this effort.

We have had a huge range of conversations and consultations so far this year. And it has been productive in that sense. We have made progress in terms of real engagement on the big issues.

But it has not been easy. And it is very far from enough.

The path forward still remains far from clear. And this is why it is now time to get serious and start taking the important political calls.

We must map out a clear path to Nairobi, which will enable us to deliver in December. 

A successful conference in Nairobi would be the ideal finale to this historic year for development.

And it would provide a tremendous impetus for all of our work, across all of the areas that I have outlined.  

As Ambassador Mohamed has graciously said, “hosting the Ministerial Conference in Kenya is not only Kenya’s pride, but the pride of the entire continent of Africa.”

And I think there is a real sense of expectation out there. I mentioned earlier the positive attitude which many across the continent have already expressed towards trade as a driver of development.

Let’s reward that faith.

I think we share the responsibility to ensure that trade continues to play its full role in development, and in continuing to improve the lives of people in Africa and around the world, in a very concrete and practical manner.

Nairobi is an opportunity to get something done right now. We should not let it slip.

Thank you.