Episodes
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Last year, on International Women's Day, the WTO community was treated to a special event. Two prominent women in the global economy came together for a candid conversation about women's economic empowerment, gender balance in the workplace, and more. The discussion with Christine Lagarde, who serves as the President of the European Central Bank, and Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, Director-General of the World Trade Organization, was moderated by CNN International's Eleni Giokos.
The event was held on 8 March 2023.
You can watch the full event, including the segment with questions from the audience, here:
https://www.youtube.com/live/l61qfHp32Bg?si=NOOakQF_wTQpiIPz
Learn more about the Women Exporters in the Digital Economy (WEIDE) Fund, launched at the sidelines of the WTO's Thirteenth Ministerial Conference in February 2024, here:
https://www.wto.org/english/news_e/news24_e/women_25feb24_e.htm
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Food safety is a collective responsibility. Producers, businesses, , governments, and international agencies all contribute to ensuring that the food consumers receive is safe to eat. In this podcast episode, our guest, Francis Chama of York Farms, a Zambian agricultural producer, sheds light on how his company tackles the issue of pest management. Adherence to sanitary and phytosanitary measures is key to accessing export markets explains Simon Padilla of the Standards and Trade Development Facility at the WTO. Simon offers context about the trade policies and collaborative efforts at the international level that enable businesses like York Farms to supply agricultural produce to consumers worldwide and locally.
In the podcast
Francis Chama, Packhouse Manager, York Farm, Lusaka, Zambia Simon Padilla, Economic Affairs Officer, Standards and Trade Development Facility Section, Agriculture and Commodities Division, WTO Kimonique Powell, Podcast Host, WTO Young ProfessionalLinks
Explainer video about the SPS Agreement
Let's Talk Food Safety
WTO SPS Agreement
WTO | Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures - text of the agreement
Standards and Trade Development Facility
STDF (standardsfacility.org)
False Codling Moth
False codling moth, photos and article - Wikipedia
Pest fact sheet from Stellenbosch University, South Africa
False Codling Moth
U.S. Department on Agriculture
False Codling Moth | National Invasive Species Information Center
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Missing episodes?
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The people of Tonga, a Small Island Developing State in the Pacific, know a thing or two about living with natural disasters. In 2022, their archipelago was first hit by a giant volcanic eruption and then went through a prolonged period of drought. Farmer and entrepreneur Minoru Nishi Jr is not prepared to give up on expanding his export activities in the face of natural hazards. Minoru is joined in this episode by Esterlina Alipate, a Tongan trade official who currently is with the Institute for Training and Technical Cooperation at the WTO. Esterlina explains how natural disasters and climate change constitute a setback for the development efforts of her country.
In the podcast:
- Minoru Nishi Jr, farmer and entrepreneur, Managing Director of Nishi Trading Co. Ltd, Tonga
- Esterlina Alipate, principal trade officer of the Ministry of Trade and Economic Development of the Kingdom of Tonga. Esterlina is currently stationed at the WTO under the Netherlands Trainee Programme where she works with the Aid for Trade Unit and the Trade Facilitation Unit.
- Kimonique Powell, Podcast Host, WTO Young Professional
If you want to go deeper on the topic, here are a few reading suggestions:
Minoru Nishi Jr's family-owned agricultural business:
Nishi Trading Co. Ltd
Satellite animation of the initial ash plume and shockwave on 15 January 2022:
The Hunga Tonga-Hunga Ha'apai eruption
Developing, stimulating, and promoting economic development in Tonga:
Ministry of Trade and Economic Development
The Tonga Trade Portal is a trade facilitation platform implemented by the government of Tonga:
Tonga Trade Portal
A dedicated WTO website on trade and natural disasters provides access to research papers and WTO-organized symposia dealing with this topic:
Research on natural disasters and trade
What is the scope that exists under WTO Agreements for Members to adopt trade measures in support of disaster response, disaster recovery and disaster resilience?
Natural disasters and trade: a legal mapping
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Digitally transmitted services are the fastest-growing segment of international trade. They offer huge opportunities for SMEs in emerging markets and developing economies. But how do you convince potential clients that you offer cutting-edge IT services when your country is mainly known as an exporter of pineapples and coffee? In this episode we talk to Albán Sánchez, an IT entrepreneur from Costa Rica who decided that the way to deal with outdated perceptions of his country was to establish a business presence in his target market. Albán is joined by Antonia Carzaniga of the WTO's Trade in Services Division who puts his experience into the bigger services trade context.
In the podcast:
- Albán Sánchez, Co-Founder and CEO of Lantern Technologies and LinkAmerica Labs, Costa Rica and Dallas/Texas.
- Antonia Carzaniga, Counsellor, Trade in Services and Investment Division, WTO
- Kimonique Powell, Podcast Host, WTO Young Professional
The IT business of Albán Sánchez
LinkAmerica Labs
Costa Rica's Trade Promotion Agency
Procomer
Find out more about services trade and the WTO
Services Trade
The future of services trade
World Trade Report 2019
The contribution of services to economic growth and development
Trade in services for development
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Cocoa is an important export crop for West African countries. Yet, many of the smallholder cocoa farmers struggle to earn a decent livelihood. Assata Doumbia, president of the ECAM cooperative in Côte d'Ivoire, applies a mix of strategies to obtain higher and more predictable incomes for her fellow farmers. The cooperative works with trusted international partners, invests in improving productivity and enables women to join the workforce. Assata even tackles the challenge of moving up the cocoa value chain through a cacao-processing business. In this podcast episode, she is joined by Kobby Bandoh, Economic Affairs Officer in the Agriculture and Commodities Division of the WTO.
In the podcast:
- Assata Doumbia, President of the ECAM cooperative (Entreprise Coopérative des Agriculteurs de Méagui) and founder of "La Paysanne"
- Kobby Bandoh, Economic Affairs Officer in the Agriculture and Commodities Division of the WTO
- Kimonique Powell, Podcast Host, WTO Young Professional
Links :
Website of the ECAM Cooperative (in French)
https://www.ecam-meagui.com/
Tony's Chocolonely, a Netherlands-based chocolate producer, and a major business partner of ECAM
https://tonyschocolonely.com/nl/en/strong-farmers-professional-cooperatives
The chapter on "Cacao" is co-authored by podcast host Kimonique Powell
Sustainable Production and Trade: Perspectives from the Commonwealth
A report about how voluntary sustainability standards (VSSs) can enhance farmers' livelihoods, promote trade, and provide price transparency across value chains.
Global Market Report: Cocoa prices and sustainability | International Institute for Sustainable Development (iisd.org)
Reorganizing the cocoa farming business to enable farmers to obtain higher prices:
Cocoa Industry: Integrating Small Farmers into the Global Value Chain | UNCTAD
One example of a certification scheme that monitors social, economic, and environmental standards in the cocoa sector
Cocoa - (fairtrade.net)
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Lack of information about export procedures is a known obstacle to trade for micro, small and medium-sized enterprises. But there are learning tools available to get newcomers started.
Confronted with the need to cut costs during the pandemic, Natali Tjahjadi, Operational Manager of CV Triguna Widya, a garment manufacturer in Bali, Indonesia, took things into her own hands. In this episode, Natali talks about her learning experience and the thrill she gets from successfully handling trade-related paperwork herself. Kathryn Lundquist, economic affairs officer at the WTO, joins in to fit Natali's experience into the bigger picture of small businesses in international trade.
In the podcast:
- Natali Tjahjadi, Operating Manager, CV Triguna Widya, a garment manufacturer in Bali, Indonesia.
- Kathryn Lundquist, Economic Affairs Officer at the WTO
- Kimonique Powell, podcast host, WTO Young Professional
The Global Trade Helpdesk is a multi-agency initiative jointly led by ITC, UNCTAD, and the WTO that aims to simplify market research for companies, and especially micro, small and medium Enterprises (MSMEs), by integrating trade and business information into a single online portal.
Another gateway to trade information is trade4msmes.org with guides and resources for MSMEs, policymakers, and researchers on topics of international trade.
This website also includes a Trade Game.
Learn about what the WTO does for Small business and trade
More about Natali Tjahjadi's family business CV. Widya Triguna
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In the face of recent crises in geopolitics, public health, and the environment, are people better served by the fragmentation of trading relationships or by a new kind of globalization? The WTO’s World Trade Report 2023 tackles the debate head on, as presented by Chief Economist Ralph Ossa.
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Mia Mottley, Prime Minister of Barbados, delivered a thought-provoking Presidential Lecture on "Reinventing the global order" at the WTO in March 2022. In her speech, she explored how the rules-based trading system can be part of the solution to the major problems facing the world today. In her introductory remarks, WTO Director-General Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala had this to say: "She is fearless. She speaks truth to power on issues like climate justice, vaccine inequity, sovereign debt and the unique vulnerabilities facing small economies. She makes Barbados punch above its weight."
Presidential Lecture Series with Mia Mottley, Prime Minister of Barbados:
https://bit.ly/3XG3ZEj
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Without rules and referees there would be no game. Each football match is policed by a cwho has full authority to enforce the law of the game. In multilateral trade, we have plenty of rules but no all-powerful referee to supervise them. The ultimate control on trade disputes remains with the WTO members themselves. In this episode of the Trade Goals podcast, Michael Roberts and Antonia Carzaniga look at how football and trade disputes arise and how they are resolved.
We talked to:
Philippe Senderos, Sporting Director of Servette FC, Geneva
Sean Cottrell, Founder and CEO of the sports law knowledge hub LawInSport
Carol Etter, Swiss Attorney-At-Law specialised in sports law and board member of FC Basel
Clarisse Morgan, Director of the WTO Rules Division
Valerie Hughes, Senior Counsel with law firm Bennett Jones, former Director of the WTO Legal Affairs and Appellate Body Divisions
Show notes
A world-famous football referee with a degree in economics
Pierluigi Collina (Wikipedia)
Peruvian and Chilean Football Associations file appeals with Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS)
Media release by the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) on 30 September 2022
CAS ruling in the matter of the player Byron Castillo
Media release by the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) on 8 November 2022
Rules-based trade explained (video)
Video "Let's Talk Rules-Based Trade"
Learn more about the WTO dispute settlement mechanism
The WTO dispute settlement mechanism explained
Understanding the WTO: the agreements
Overview of WTO agreements
Laws of the Game 2021/2022
Download link to the Laws of the Game 2021/2022 from the FIFA website
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Football video games are popular wherever people have access to the internet. The games are part of the much larger e-sports universe of competitive video gaming. In this episode of the Trade Goals podcast, Michael Roberts and Antonia Carzaniga explore how playing the beautiful game in a virtual format brings together the different strands of trade law dealing with merchandise goods, services, and intellectual property.
We talked to:
Chester King, Founder and CEO, British Esports Association, Vice President of the Board of the Global Esports Federation
Brendan Vickers, Adviser and Head, International Trade Policy, Commonwealth Secretariat, London
JJ Shaw, Senior Associate at the international law firm Lewis Silkin, London.
Special thanks to Melissa, Tamara, Tobias and Tosson and all the others who shared their video game experience with us during the "Futur en Tous Genres" day 2022, when children of staff members visited the WTO to get a better idea of the organization as a workplace.
The FIFAe Nations Cup 2022™
Brazil crowned world’s best FIFA esports nation
Global Entertainment & Media Outlook 2022-2026
Report by consultants Price Waterhouse Coopers
50 years of gaming history visualized
50 Years of Gaming History, by Revenue Stream (visualcapitalist.com)
A short history of gaming (1970-2020)
50 Years Of Gaming History, By Revenue Stream (1970-2020) - Phil Davis (thestreet.com)
Lear more about the ITA agreement:
WTO | Information Technology Agreement
Artificial Intelligence and Intellectual Property Policy
WIPO conversation on intellectual property (IP) and artificial intelligence (AI)
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Football fans' love of the game generates plenty of revenue. The major sources of income in football are merchandising, sponsoring and broadcasting rights. All of these rely on intellectual property (IP) rights. In this episode of the Trade Goals podcast, Wolf Meier-Ewert and Jana Borges cast light on how the WTO Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights, also known as the TRIPS Agreement, enables players, clubs and football associations to monetize their IP through the sale of branded goods and broadcasting deals.
We talked to:
Loic Luscher, Media & Communications Manager, Servette FC, Geneva
Alex Kelham, Commercial and IP lawyer, Head of Sports Business Group at international law firm Lewis Silkin
Víctor Umaña, CEO FIFA U20 World Cup Costa Rica.
Show notes:
View of Geneva from Mont Salève
The WTO Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS): The TRIPS Agreement explained
WIPO reference guide: Sports and Intellectual Property
Poster with Servette FC jerseys from 1890 (in French): Shop du Servette FC
Lewis Silkin sport business homepage: Lewis Silkin - Sports Business
The relative financial performance of the highest revenue generating clubs in world football: Deloitte Football Money League 2022
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A football game is a service and the clubs that are organizing football matches are providing recreational services. International trade rules may apply when the players on the pitch come from different countries, when a club is foreign-owned, when matches are broadcast internationally or when fans travel abroad to watch their favourite teams play. In this episode of the "Trade Goals" podcast, Markus Jelitto and Antonia Carzaniga explore how the WTO’s Services Agreement (the GATS) applies to the beautiful game.
We talked to:
Philippe Senderos, Sporting Director of Servette FC, Geneva
Raffaele Poli, Head of the Football Observatory at the International Centre for Sports Studies(CIES) in Neuchâtel, Switzerland
Carol Etter, a Swiss Attorney-At-Law specialised in sports law. Carol is also a board member of FC Basel
José Francisco Manssur, a Brazilian lawyer specialized in sports law
Fernando Roitman, Founder of CIES Sports Intelligence at the International Centre of Sport Studies (CIES) in Neuchâtel
Learn more about the WTO's Services Agreement (GATS):
The General Agreement on Trade in Services explained
WTO video about the GATS:
"Let's Talk Services Trade"
Statistical analysis of the football players’ labour market, the technical analysis of player performance and the scientific estimation of transfer values:
The Football Observatory
Facts and figures about global football:
FIFA Professional Football Report 2019
Deloitte Football Money League profiles the relative financial performance of the highest revenue generating clubs in world football:
Deloitte Football Money League 2022 | Deloitte UK"
More about foreign investment in Brazilian football clubs:
Football corporations in Brazil (SAF): new perspectives for foreign investment in Brazilian football teams | International Bar Association (ibanet.org)
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An incredible amount of work is needed to create a perfect football pitch. A lot of international trade is involved, too. In this episode of the "Trade Goals" podcast, players rave about fast pitches, tournament organisers praise robust playing surfaces and seed industry representatives explain how international phytosanitary standards facilitate trade in turf. We will also touch upon the gender dimension of playing on the best possible pitch.
We talked to
Philippe Senderos, Sporting Director of Servette FC, Geneva
Pierre-Yves Bovigny, Maître d'enseignement HES, Institute of Landscape, Architecture, Construction and Territory (HEPIA), Geneva
Darrell Dziver, Vice President of Brett Young, Chair of the Forage and Turf Advisory Group for the International Seed Federation, Canada
Rose Souza Richards, Seed Health Manager, International Seed Federation, Switzerland
Carrie Serwetnyk, player with the Canada women's national soccer team 1986-1991, founder of "Equal Play FC"
Víctor Umaña, CEO FIFA U20 World Cup Costa Rica
Learn more about:
Sanitary and phytosanitary measures explained
Video "Let's talk Food Safety"
The natural-versus-artificial-pitches controversy at the 2015 Women's World Cup in Canada
FIFA standard on pitches
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Footballs are an indispensable item in the global value chain of the beautiful game. Manufacturing, distributing and selling the balls is a complex international business.
It is difficult to pinpoint where in the world a ball is actually made because the sourcing of raw materials, the design and the production happen in different countries. But one thing is certain: WTO agreements play an important role in easing trade in footballs.
WTO experts Roy Santana, Michael Roberts and Úna Flanagan trace the global value chain of footballs from the Servette Football Club in Geneva via Herzogenaurach, Germany to Sialkot, Pakistan. Stopovers in Uganda and Uruguay show how international standards ease trade.
We talked to:
Philippe Senderos, Sporting Director of Servette FC, Geneva
Qasim Malik, Vice President of the Sialkot Chamber of Commerce, Pakistan
Nouman Butt, CEO of Capital Sports, Sialkot, Pakistan
Gerardo Cal, Guide at the Estadio Centenario Football Museum in Montevideo, Uruguay
Robbert de Kock, President and CEO of the World Federation of the Sporting Goods Industry, Switzerland
George Opiyo, TBT National Enquiry Point, Uganda National Bureau of Standards
Oliver Hundacker, Senior Director of product operations at Adidas, Germany
Special thanks to Arshad Nawaz, Intern at the WTO Institute for Training and Technical Cooperation (ITTC)
Links:
One match, two balls. The 1930 World Cup in Uruguay featured two footballs with different designs in the final match:
Photo of the ball team Argentina used in the first half of the final of the 1930 World Cup in Uruguay
Photo of the ball team Uruguay used in the second half of the final of the 1930 World Cup in Uruguay
About the famous Wembley goal — or “Hurst's overtime goal” — in the final of the 1966 World Cup between England and Germany:
England v Germany (1966): The Most Controversial World Cup FinalLearn more about rules of origin:
Rules of origin explained
Learn more about Technical Barriers to Trade (TBT):
Technical barriers to trade explained
Video "Let's Talk Product Quality"
Learn more about tariffs:
Tariffs explained
Video "Let's Talk Tariffs"
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There is probably no group of people who will talk with more passion and expertise about trade-related aspects of the game of football than soccer enthusiasts within the WTO.
In this first episode of "Trade Goals", we introduce a group of WTO pundits with deep knowledge in realms such as trade in goods, trade in services, trade-related aspects of intellectual property and communications who talk about what football means to them, both personally and professionally. Throughout the podcast season, they will try to make sense of the global value chain of the beautiful game.
Setting the scene are Michael Roberts, Roy Santana, Antonia Carzaniga, Wolf Meier-Ewert, Jana Borges, Markus Jelitto, and Una Flanagan.
The figure about the size of the global football economy comes from FIFA President Gianni Infantino, who visited the WTO in September 2022.
Football and trade for development. WTO Director-General Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala and FIFA President Gianni Infantino at the Public Forum 2022
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International trade has progressed enormously since the founding of the WTO in 1995. The world trades a lot more – from just over 5 trillion dollars' worth of goods in 1995 to more than 22 trillion dollars in 2021. The world also trades in new ways - e-commerce accounts for more than 20 percent of total retail sales worldwide. Supply chains have also revolutionized trade, leading to the rise of products made "in the world".
Despite this radical transformation, the WTO and the rules of trade remain largely unchanged. Ambassador Didier Chambovey of Switzerland, the General Council Chair, and the WTO's Joan Apecu talk about the efforts to keep the organization fit for purpose and ready to respond to the realities of 21st century commerce. -
Even in less stressful times, agriculture talks at the WTO tend to be difficult and highly emotional. The COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted how important fundamental questions regarding food and health are to all of us. Complicating the situation have been developments such as the war in Ukraine and droughts resulting from climate change, both which are contributing to immediate and longer-term concerns about food insecurity.
Listen to Ambassador Gloria Abraham Peralta of Costa Rica, Chair of the agriculture negotiations at the WTO and Ulla Kask, agriculture expert at the WTO Secretariat, decipher the issues addressed in the MC12 Ministerial Declaration on the Emergency Response to Food Insecurity and the Ministerial Decision not to impose export restrictions on foodstuffs purchased for humanitarian purposes by the World Food Programme. -
It was the most hotly debated issue in the run-up to MC12 and at the very last minute, negotiations nearly broke down because of a footnote. The issue was the WTO's intellectual property response to the COVID-19 pandemic, commonly known as the TRIPS waiver. There is good news to report in this episode as WTO members agreed at MC12 to waive certain requirements under the Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) making it easier for developing countries to produce and export COVID-19 vaccines.
Anabel González, WTO Deputy Director-General and Ambassador Lansana Gberie of Sierra Leone, the chair of the TRIPS Council, talk about how WTO members adopted a problem-solving approach on the waiver issue and agreed on a strategy to ensure trade can support the expanded and diversified production of essential goods needed in the fight against COVID-19 and future pandemics. -
Our ocean, the planet's largest ecosystem, is endangered by overfishing. What's the WTO got to do with it, you may ask. By prohibiting harmful fisheries subsidies that contribute to overcapacity and overfishing, WTO members agreed to play their role in the sustainable use of marine resources. Listen to Ambassador Santiago Wills of Colombia, the chair of the fisheries subsidies negotiations at the WTO and to Sainabou Taal, legal expert at the WTO Secretariat, explaining the importance of the Agreement on Fisheries Subsidies that was concluded at MC12.
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When ministers and other delegates filed out of the World Trade Organization's Council Room on 17 June, night was giving way to dawn in Geneva. WTO members had just gavelled a historic package of results after five and a half days of intense and sometimes fraught negotiations. Let's Talk Trade looks at the outcomes produced during the Twelfth Ministerial Conference and how they came about.
In this first episode, Director-General Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala gives an overview what is being called the "Geneva package" and insights into her efforts to bring the 164 WTO members together to support the deal in a conversation with WTO spokesperson Daniel Pruzin. - Show more
