WASHINGTON - Deputy U.S. Trade Representative Peter
Allgeier announced today in Geneva that the United States will contribute $1
million to a voluntary World Trade Organization (WTO) Global Trust Fund to
provide technical assistance for developing country trade capacity-building
efforts. Allgeier is in Geneva for a Senior Officials Meetings at the WTO to
discuss ongoing trade negotiations in preparation for the 5th WTO Ministerial
Meeting in Cancun, Mexico, September 10-14, 2003.
"The United States is committed to seeing
the Doha Development Agenda be successfully achieved," said Ambassador Allgeier.
"The Doha Development Agenda offers great promise to the developing world. But
unfortunately, many developing countries do not have the capacity to fully
participate which not only dampens their voice but slows down the
negotiations."
"Providing
assistance to promote trade-related capacity-building in developing ountries is
an integral part of promoting their future economic development and prosperity,"
added Allgeier. "This contribution, in addition to our large bilateral
assistance programs that total $638 million in 2002, up from over $598 million
in 2001, shows the U.S. commitment helping countries participate more fully in
the WTO and will facilitate a constructive negotiating environment."
Developing
country members participated in shaping the WTO's 2003 technical assistance plan
by submitting over 1045 requests from 120 countries all along the development
spectrum.
Background
A key part of the
U.S. trade agenda is to help developing nations build the capacity to take part
in trade negotiations and then implement the results. The United States has made
a number of specific contributions to assist the WTO. In addition to today's
announcement, the United States gave $1 million for the WTO Global Trust Fund
following the Doha Ministerial, and the United States contributed $250,000 to
the WTO's regional trade policy courses in Kenya and Morocco.
Complementing
these multilateral efforts, USAID is establishing three new Regional
Competitiveness Hubs to promote African integration into the multilateral
trading system and help Africans take advantage of trade opportunities,
including those created the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA). The Hubs
are being set up at USAID's three regional missions in Africa - in Botswana,
Kenya and Ghana.
The Integrated Framework (IF) is the mechanism for
coordinating the work of six multilateral institutions, including the WTO, in
mainstreaming trade into the development strategies of the Least-Developed
Countries (LDCs). USAID has contributed funds for the past two years to provide
additional funding to the Trust Fund in order to fund the Diagnostic Trade
Integration Studies (DTIS).
To help promote
timely responses to priorities identified in the IF process, USAID Administrator
Andrew Natsios set aside $3 million in Fiscal Year 2002 to support follow-u
projects managed by USAID overseas missions. A number of USAID overseas missions
are also programming funds from their own budgets for this purpose.
These
contributions complement other U.S. efforts to provide technical assistance for
developing countries.
|