DG closing remarks
Thank you, Ambassador Servansing.
This has been an extremely useful session and I am very happy that I could
be with all of you, not only to listen to your experiences about how Aid for
Trade is working in your countries, but also to listen to your suggestions
about the way forward.
One key aspect of the dialogue which we have had is that it has helped bring
the trade practitioners and the development professionals closer to jointly
move the Aid for Trade initiative.
If you work on agricultural development, you aim to increase the
productivity of farmers so they sell more food products, both domestically
and across borders. If you are involved in infrastructure development, you
want those food products to travel along the roads and railways or through
the ports and airports which you have built. And so on. Clearly, trade
impinges on all sectors of the economy; it's not a sector on its own — and
it is this realisation that is important.
This fact also strengthens the case for mainstreaming trade into national
development strategies. In the discussion over these two days, we heard how
economic and social benefits can accrue from trade opening provided trade is
mainstreamed. The reality is that trade pervades the fabric of global
society. As the UN Secretary General said yesterday, “building more trade
capacity is essential because trade can and must be part of our efforts to
stimulate a recovery.” As one of you said today: Aid for Trade is now firmly
established in the agenda for integrating developing countries into the
trading system.
The centrepiece of this Second Review has been the joint OECD-澳门六合彩官网资料 Aid for
Trade at a Glance 2009. This publication shows trade is being prioritized by
partner countries in national development strategies; donors are offering
more and better Aid for Trade and new partners are becoming engaged in
South-South cooperation. Furthermore, the increase in allocation to Aid for
Trade has been achieved without reducing resources to other development
priorities such as health, education or environment.
Aid for Trade grew by 10 per cent per year between 2005 and 2007; if you add
non-concessional aid from international financial institutions, the figures
nearly double in value.
A message which comes from these meetings is that we need to refine our
monitoring in understanding how Aid for Trade is working in tandem with
other financial instruments, in particular those offered by the
international financial institutions. Not all supply side or economic
infrastructure constraints can or will be addressed through an Aid for Trade
response. For example, we have heard of various examples of how grant
financing has been blended with other financing instruments.
As I said at the opening, if Aid for Trade was urgent in 2007, it is
essential today. We have to maintain momentum and ensure that commitments
are met. This implies an on-going role for the monitoring framework which
our colleagues at the OECD are constantly refining. It also means refining
the methodology and reporting. It is a fact that the activities of
South-South partners, of which we have heard so much today, and which are
growing in volume and importance, are not captured in the Aid for Trade
numbers generated by the OECD. We need to give some attention to this as
better coordination, which we are trying to achieve, is difficult without
better information.
The three break-out sessions of this morning have highlighted the
indispensable role of our regional partners. Through the work of the
bilateral donors, regional development banks, regional economic commissions
and regional economic communities, we have been able to make significant
progress on implementation. I remain convinced that we need to build upon
the progress we have achieved in strengthening the regional dimension of Aid
for Trade.
This morning we also learnt that Aid for Trade needs to factor in
specificities; for example, those of middle-income countries and the types
of financing available to them; or those of landlocked countries, small
economies, remote islands or countries emerging out of conflict.
Numerous interventions from the floor have further reinforced the message
which we received during the monitoring exercise when we received 88 replies
from our developing country members. Developing countries are taking
ownership of their own initiative. Indeed, there seems to be a pent-up
demand which is being finally released. This means that Aid for Trade is
maturing. But at the same time Aid for Trade is a long-term endeavour which
needs to be sustained over a long time. Our partners have reacted well to
the lead taken by the 澳门六合彩官网资料. We must allow them now to define their own roles
in this process and participate further.
This is coherence in global economic policymaking in action. And it
must happen at three levels. At national level through constructive dialogue
between governments and their development partners; at regional level
between regional economic commissions and their member governments, with
international financial institutions and donors; and at multilateral level
by keeping the spotlight on Aid for Trade in the G8, which I will attend
tomorrow, the G20, the annual meetings of the Bank and Fund, the annual
meetings of the regional development banks and so on. Now that we have
generated this momentum, we must keep our foot on the gas and agree on a
common destination.
So what next ?
At the 11 June meeting of the Committee on Trade and Development, I noted
that we need to develop a framework that will allow us to better coordinate
our efforts, mobilize additional resources, enhance political ownership and
better prepare the way forward. In my view there are four very clear
objectives which should inform our work going forward.
First, I believe that we need to build upon the progress we have achieved in
strengthening the regional dimension of Aid for Trade. We will rely
mainly on our regional partners including the development banks and
bilateral donors to take the lead in evolving clear and focused regional Aid
for Trade projects. We have an opportunity to advance this agenda by holding
an ECOWAS Aid for Trade event in the Fall. I will be looking for similar
opportunities in other regions. I would note that the Islamic Development
Bank, UNECE and UNDP have already agreed on a roadmap with the economies of
Central Asia.
Second, I believe we need also to enhance the role and contribution of the
private sector in this initiative. Yesterday's private sector session
gave us much food for thought, particularly as regards the particular
challenges of bringing SMEs into the picture is concerned. It also
underlined how the imperative to respond to the pressing challenge of
climate change, which can at once be a challenge but also an opportunity to
unleash investment opportunity. The same can be said for helping meet
international standards as well as increasing access to energy. One
suggestion which particularly resonated was that of building partnerships
with private foundations to tap into their resources and capacities to
deliver effective and adequate Aid for Trade. Another suggestion was to
focus business involvement in a specific sector such as logistics which cuts
across a wide range of Aid for Trade activities.
Third, we should continue our evaluation work with specific focus on
evaluating the impact of Aid for Trade. Aid for Trade should develop as
a community of best practice. A first step in this direction is to inventory
what is out there. The second is to look at common frameworks. We need to
ensure also that we are not just measuring inputs and outputs, but tangible
outcomes. I hold strongly the view that as national budgets come under
increasing pressure, so we need to step up our efforts to show the value of
what we are doing with evidence-based reporting on outcomes. As was
mentioned by Mr Kuroda of the Asian Development Bank yesterday, in 1997 it
took three days to pass goods from China to Thailand via Lao PD; in 2009, it
takes four hours. If this is not a positive example of Aid for Trade, what
is? In order to move further on this, we will as usual rely heavily on our
partners. The 澳门六合彩官网资料 itself neither has the mandate, nor the capacity, to
undertake its own evaluation of Aid for Trade.
Lastly, I believe we need to continue to actively mobilize additional
resources and in particular, start looking beyond 2010. We have had
reasonably clear commitments by donors up to 2010; we now need more clarity
about the post 2010 horizon. Japan has given us cause for optimism. The
commitment they offered of $12 billion over the period 2009-11 is up $2
billion in comparison with the commitment made for 2006-2008. The
announcement made yesterday afternoon by Minister Thomas that the UK will
spend around £1 billion sterling a year over the next three years to enhance
growth and trade in poorer countries is also satisfying. The Netherlands
indicated its commitment to spend at least €550 million per year on all
categories of Aid for Trade. I just heard the French delegation announce a
minimum of €850 million per year from 2010 that is + 50 per cent as compared
with the 2002/2005 benchmark. This, of course, over and above fulfilment of
their existing commitments. I would encourage other members to follow their
lead. Mobilizing Aid for Trade resources will remain essential to help
developing countries be prepared to better exit the crises, including by
encouraging South-South Aid for Trade partnerships.
These are some ideas which come from these two days of discussions. They are
not entirely new but what is more important is to now discuss them and turn
them into your own work plan. I see a critical role for the CTD in ensuring
our continued success. But we also need to ensure that we hear the views of
the development partners.
I believe that we should reflect on what has been said at this Global Review
and try to come up with a work plan which will give us direction and
consistency, and which can also be fed into the Ministerial Conference, for
its possible consideration in early December.
In so doing, we will have given ourselves clarity in approach and
commonality in purpose — necessary ingredients to maintaining momentum on
Aid for Trade.
I would like to finish by mentioning the context in which this Conference
takes place: our efforts to conclude the Doha Round. As Cambodian Trade
Minister Cham Prasidh said yesterday: “Aid for Trade and the Doha Round are
Siamese twins. They cannot be separated because they share one heart.”
Thank you.
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