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

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 Professional 

Links

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

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

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

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)

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

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