How do you evaluate the significance of the Public Forum this year for developing countries?
I'm quite happy that more representatives from developing countries are participating in the Public Forum this year and more subjects are related to their concerns and expectations.
For example, developing countries have inquiries about how remittance can be reduced. India submitted a proposal to the service committee. However, Morocco, another African developing country, brought this issue to the public forum. We discussed this complicated issue with international organizations such as the World Bank and the Central Bank of Morocco. This is just an example that demonstrates why the public forum is relevant to developing countries.
This is a platform for everyone developed and developing, but it is especially significant for developing countries. In the past, this organization was dominated by developed countries. When more developing countries participate, we will earn the right to participate in negotiations and the rulemaking process.
Yet, there is still a gap in knowledge and expertise, hence our responsibility to help developing countries narrow the gap to make the voice of the developing countries heard in the organization. We need more discussions, collaboration, technical assistance, transparency, and digital knowledge to help developing countries reduce the cost of remittances.
Is there a way that the WTO can promote the solution to climate change? And can some developing countries play a big role in that?
It isn’t easy as some global leaders may fear the loss of factories and jobs to other countries.
The mitigation of climate change is a global challenge. Despite having the technology and expertise, Chinese enterprises could not shift from the coal power plant to a more renewable component. The transition is so difficult.
But the direction is clear. Developing countries have realized this is the right time to establish the correct relationship between trade and the environment. Several years ago a few developing countries participated in the discussion of climate change and worked on an initiative presented by China, Fiji, and Morroco on plastic pollution. Now 77 members are participating, including major players such as the United States, Japan, and the European Union. Therefore, this constitutes a good example. Developing countries have their expectation for the mitigation of climate change. So the situation is different now than it was 20 years ago.
Now developing countries also share the view that we have one globe. We must do our part to protect the environment and mitigate climate change.
The WTO is now, especially as it turns 30 years old, discussing how to reform its trade rules. How can these rules be reformed to better serve developing countries in the upcoming decades?
There's a basic consensus among council members, including developing countries, that the WTO is subject to reform after 30 years. We need to reform this organization to make it more relevant to the new dynamic of economic development, globalization, and technology development. Now the objectives of the organization should better serve developing countries. One of the major targets of the structural reform is helping developing countries better integrate into the multilateral trading system to benefit sufficiently from the integration of the global economy and globalization. The multilateral trading system was quite obvious in the past three decades. Some developing countries reaped great benefits, such as my country, China, Vietnam, Kazakhstan, and Costa Rica. However, I understand the uneven allocation of benefits to developing countries integrating into the global economy.
Some developing countries, especially those in Africa, fail to benefit sufficiently from the integration. There are a lot of reasons behind this. In the legal system, the rules are not balanced. We need to improve it. And there's also the gap in knowledge and expertise. Developing countries need more technical assistance to help them catch up with the development of technology. So, in the structural reform process, development should be an important dimension. In my view, developing countries need to participate actively because they will determine what kind of outcome they will get.
The WTO is formulating a new vision for globalization, how can developing countries, especially African ones such as Egypt, profit from this new vision?
Like many other developing countries, Egypt also established the basis for export that works. And you made a lot of progress. And in the process of adaptive reform, I think that large developing countries like Egypt can play a significant role. You have a representative in the WTO. He is very active and can accurately explain the position. We appreciate that very much. If all developing countries can do the same, we will have a very vocal position in the reform process of the field. So we encourage developing countries like Egypt to continue to play this constructive positive role in the long-term reform. More constructive and positive participation could lead to more favourable for developing countries. I think the worst option is to keep ourselves outside of this process. We need to be part of that.
Is there a need to develop new rules for trade to promote e-commerce and the digital economy? How can developing countries benefit from this area?
Rules to promote e-commerce and the digital economy trade are on the table.
The way developing countries can benefit from it remains an open question. It depends on the participation of developing countries. If all developing countries are interested and participate actively the outcome could be quite different. If only a few developing countries sit at the table, it would be difficult to say whether or not the outcomes would be favourable.
* This story was published in Al-Ahram Hebdo (in French) on Wednesday 18 September.
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