ICTSD » ICTSD Dialogues

Bridges China Dialogue 2013

chinaprogramme — Wed, 19 Jun 2013 13:14:08 +0000

The Sixth Annual Meeting of Bridges China Dialogue will be held in Geneva on 27th September 2013. The Dialogue is organized by the International Center for Trade and Sustainable Development (ICTSD) in collaboration with the Swiss Chinese Chamber of Commerce, Swiss Bankers Association etc.

The objective of the Dialogue is to leverage China’s constructive role in crafting a global common future of sustainable development. This year’s annual meeting is focused on “Innovation for Sustainable Growth“, and takes place against a backdrop of China’s rise as a technology power and its national innovations strategy to upgrade its technology and industry. As China has signed an FTA with Switzerland, participants will also examine the new opportunities and challenges in the areas of financial, trade, investment and R&D cooperation between China and Europe.

Dialogue on Global IP Negotiations: Closing the Gap between Theory and Practice

domumbwa — Wed, 19 Jun 2013 08:39:09 +0000

From food security to climate change and access to medicines, intellectual property (IP) has become a cross cutting issue with important public policy implications. As a result global IP negotiations have significantly gained in complexity. Countries, particularly developing ones, are faced with numerous challenges such as coalition building, articulating coherent national positions to address complex issues and coordinating these positions across different forums. How do countries achieve this? What are the practical difficulties facing country negotiators in global IP negotiations?

On the other hand, academics and experts play and can play an important role in providing empirical research and inputs to better inform global IP negotiations. In this context, how can IP teachers, particularly from developing countries, contribute towards addressing the most salient issues and challenges facing global IP negotiations and the achievement of a more balanced and development friendly global IP system?

These are some of the questions that are to be raised in this dialogue which brings together a group of IP teachers with a group of Geneva based IP negotiators.

Geneva Dialogue on Trade in Sustainable Energy Services

domumbwa — Wed, 19 Jun 2013 07:46:27 +0000

This dialogue is organised by ICTSD during the WTO’s Services Week, focusing on Trade in Sustainable Energy Services.

Although services play a crucial role in a low-carbon economy, there is currently neither a common definition of environmental services nor a holistic framework supporting the delivery of these services across national border. At the same time the negotiations on a plurilateral services agreement and services in preferential trade agreements move at full speed. This is why we wish to provide trade delegates with a timely opportunity to engage in an interactive discussion about these salient issues, and to explore options for a way forward.

Discussions will be informed by ICTSD’s latest research on trade in sustainable energy-related services. The Dialogue will also benefit from the commentary by key experts and negotiators.

This meeting aims to raise key questions, such as: are current WTO rules supportive of trade in sustainable energy-related services? Which services are linked with and complementary to the diffusion of sustainable energy goods? What are the specific commitments by major trading countries of these services? And how can current and future trade regulation encourage trade in sustainable energy services?

PPPs in Global IP Governance

domumbwa — Tue, 14 May 2013 08:54:51 +0000

Public‐private partnerships (PPPs) are increasingly becoming a prominent feature in global IP governance. In the area of health, private firms producing pharmaceutical innovations increasingly collaborate with other private actors such as non‐ governmental organizations (NGOs) as well as state actors via PPPs to address global disease burdens in neglected (typically developing country) markets. PPPs are also present in areas such as agriculture, education and enforcement of intellectual property rights (IPRs).
This dialogue, organized by ICTSD and the Seattle University School of Law, is intended to explore the theoretical, practical and policy implications of PPPs through identifying key trends, knowledge gaps and emerging issues in this context. The dialogue will examine PPPs engaged in a broad range of areas including but not limited to public health. It ultimately seeks to contribute to a deeper understanding of PPPs and their role in global IP governance, as well as to identify elements of a future research agenda in this field.

Dialogue on The TRIPS LDC Extension: The Way Forward

domumbwa — Fri, 10 May 2013 13:14:29 +0000

In 2005, the TRIPS Council extended the transition period for LDCs to apply the bulk of TRIPS provisions until July 2013. The council called on LDCs to identify their priority needs for technical and financial cooperation and asked developed countries to help to address these needs. Previously, in 2001, the Doha Declaration on TRIPS and Public Health had already extended the period for LDCs to comply with provisions on pharmaceuticals to 2016. At the Eighth WTO Ministerial Conference of December 2011, the ministers invited the TRIPS Council to give full consideration to a duly motivated request from LDCs for a further extension. In this context, Haiti submitted a proposal to the TRIPS Council, in November 2012, that would extend the period for such members to implement the TRIPS Agreement until a given country “cease[s] to be a least developed country member.”
While most countries agree in principle with an extension, there still are disagreements about the modalities of such a measure including on issues related to time frame and scope. The topic will be examined at the upcoming TRIPS Council meeting in June of this year, ahead of the July 2013 deadline. This informal dialogue aims to bring together negotiators and experts to brainstorm options for the way forward and their potential implications.

Expert Group Meeting of LDC IV Monitor

apfister — Fri, 26 Apr 2013 12:38:08 +0000

This Expert Group Meeting aims to discuss and finalize the draft of the Biennial Monitor Report, the first publication of the LDC IV Monitor (to be published in Fall 2013).

For more information on the LDC IV Monitor and ICTSD’s engagement in the partnership which aims to monitor and assess the outcome of the Fourth UN Conference on the Least Developed Countries (UN LDC IV) please visit www.ldc4monitor.org

Dialogue on Agricultural Trade Policy and Sustainable Development: Experiences from India and Other Countries

domumbwa — Tue, 16 Apr 2013 07:43:38 +0000

Agricultural trade policy plays an important role in addressing sustainable development challenges. Carefully designed agricultural trade policies can contribute towards overcoming food insecurity and poverty, especially in the rural areas, while at the same time ensuring that economic growth occurs in a sustainable and equitable manner. The dialogue will therefore provide an opportunity for participants to deepen their understanding of the relationship between agricultural trade policy and broader public policy objectives, including food security, poverty reduction and the protection of the environment.

Please click here to view and download the publication on the same topic that will be presented at the dialogue.

For any questions, please do not hesitate to contact Denis Omumbwa (domumbwa@ictsd.ch)

Related publications:

The 2012 US Farm Bill and Cotton Subsidies: An assessment of the Stacked Income Protection Plan
by Harry de Gorter, December 2012

Potential Impact of Proposed 2012 Farm Bill Commodity Programs on Developing Countries
by Bruce Babcock and Nick Paulson, Oct 2012

US Farm Policy and Risk Assistance: The Competing Senate and House Agriculture Committee Bills of July 2012
by Carl Zulauf and David Orden, Sept 2012

Possible Effects of Russia’s WTO Accession on Agricultural Trade and Production
Sergey Kiselev and Roman Romashkin

Implications for India of the May 2008 Draft Agricultural Modalities
Munisamy Gopinath and David Laborde

Post-2013 EU Common Agricultural Policy, Trade and Development: A Review of Legislative Proposals
by Alan Matthews, Issue Paper no. 39, October 2011

Global Food Stamps: An Idea Worth Considering?
Tim Josling, Issue paper no. 36, August 2011

Food Reserves in Developing Countries: Trade Policy Options for Improving Food Security
Christopher L. Gilbert, Issue Paper no. 37, September 2011

Improving the International Governance of Food Security and Trade
Manzoor Ahmad, Issue Paper no. 38, September 2011

The Impact of US Biofuel Policies on Agricultural Price Levels and Volatility
Bruce Babcock, Issue paper no. 35, June 2011

Policy Solutions to Agricultural Market Volatility: A Synthesis
By Stefan Tangermann, Issue paper no. 33, June 2011

Food Security, Price Volatility and Trade: Some Reflections for Developing Countries
By Eugenio Diaz-Bonilla and Juan-Francisco Ron, Issue paper no. 28, November 2010

Bali Trade and Development Symposium

rjose — Fri, 12 Apr 2013 15:36:09 +0000

The Bali Trade and Development Symposium (TDS) will be held in conjunction with the Ninth Ministerial Conference of the World Trade Organisation in Bali, Indonesia from 3-5 December 2013.

The goal of the TDS is to encourage innovative thinking and analysis on issues related to trade and sustainable development for stakeholders to translate them into inputs for future negotiations. The TDS will bring together acclaimed academics, policy researchers and analysts, representatives from inter-governmental and non-governmental organizations, businesses or the private sector, and parliamentarians as speakers on panels to stimulate the discussions.

The meeting and programme overview of the upcoming Bali TDS will be published on our website as soon as details become available.

Policy dialogue at the occasion of the Clean Energy Ministerial

domumbwa — Thu, 04 Apr 2013 13:42:27 +0000

There is an urgent need for cooperative, coherent action between countries in order to promote a shift to sustainable energy, and particularly to ensure that the relevant technologies, goods and services are being made available to all. Massive and rapid scale-up of renewable energy and energy efficiency is crucial, so as to mitigate climate change and to enhance access to energy, in particular for those living off-grid. Access to energy is a crucial step in any development strategy, as it will contribute to economic growth and improve living standards, including health.

Currently, there is a range of obstacles to the innovation, production, scale up and deployment of clean energy, including to the movement of relevant technologies, goods and services across national borders. Such obstacles go beyond pure border measures and include policies such as standards, subsidies, requirements that a certain degree of the content in the production of renewable energy goods and services is supplied domestically, government procurement practices or investment rules. Altogether, this prevents economies of scale and affects efficiencies in supply chains, hampering a broader participation of producers in multiple countries and keeping costs high. In some cases, such barriers effectively hinder the physical deployment of the relevant technologies. In combination with the fact that the external costs of more polluting forms of energy supply are not adequately internalized, this prevents renewable energy from becoming a viable option.

The purpose of the session is to raise awareness among CEM members of how domestically designed policies relate to the world market of renewable energy goods and services, and of how an improved cooperation between countries could effectively remove stumbling blocks to the scale-up of the relevant technologies and instead become a stepping stone to a more sustainable global energy mix. Moreover, the session aims specifically at engaging high-level decision makers in the quest for a conducive regulation of trade related to clean energy.
This session will seek to include representatives of all the CEM participating countries at a senior level. It will also include key experts from think tanks, academia and research institutes, as well as high-level private sector representatives.

This dialogue is on invitation only.

Developments in Cotton: How do domestic policies relate to international trade?

domumbwa — Wed, 20 Mar 2013 14:48:38 +0000

The structure of the global cotton trade has evolved dramatically over the past decade. Developing countries are increasingly gaining prominence as both producers and importers. Moreover, a significant overhaul of payments to cotton farmers is likely to take place in the US under a new supplemental insurance programme. Given these shifting currents, we would like to take this opportunity to focus attention on how trade and production policies are evolving on a fibre that has been a crucial element of trade negotiating strategies for a large number of members for so many years. We have been collaborating with the International Cotton Advisory Committee (ICAC) and working with Professor Harry de Gorter of Cornell University to this end. Armelle Gruere of ICAC and Prof. de Gorter will be joining us to give a glimpse of their latest research findings on cotton and to share with delegates options on the direction that policies may take.