In an address at the opening session, WTO Director-General Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala drew attention to the particular context in which this conference is held, marked by “uncertainty and crises on many fronts,” noting that “this is the time to demonstrate that multilateralism works.”
She defended, on this occasion, “the multilateral trading system as a global public good that we have collectively and carefully built over 75 years.”
“While it is certainly not perfect by historical standards, it has brought more prosperity to more people than any of the international economic orders that preceded it,” she said.
“Today, with this multilateral system seemingly fragile, it is a time to invest in it, not withdraw from it. This is the time to mobilize the much-needed political will to show that the WTO can be part of the solution to the multiple crises of the global commons we face,” Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala argued.
The WTO Director General said that WTO members must respond to global crises with a sense of urgency, calling for the strengthening of the WTO to enable it “to have a global response to this and future pandemics. […] The WTO must also respond to an impending food crisis.”
She also dwelt on the ongoing negotiations at the WTO, and the issues involved in reforming the organization, noting that “it is clear that the core functions of monitoring, negotiating and dispute settlement at the WTO have not evolved in a way that adequately takes into account the rapid economic and technological developments of our time.”
“A crucial element of reform is to ensure that the WTO delivers results for developing and least developed country members. That is why it is so important to reaffirm the importance of special and differential treatment in the WTO,” she added.
At this conference, which will continue until June 15, “ministers from around the world will have the opportunity to review the functioning of the multilateral trading system, make general statements and take action for the future work of the WTO,” the organization said in a statement.
Source: Agency Morocaine De Presse