Event: ITC at the WTO Public Forum 2021
The World Trade Organization’s (WTO) Public Forum 2021 will take place between 28 September and 1 October at WTO headquarters in Geneva and online. The WTO’s largest outreach event brings together Member States, international organizations, business, academia, civil society, and the wider public to discuss ‘Trade beyond COVID19: Building resilience’. ITC, with its partners, will bring the voice and needs of micro, small and medium-sized enterprises to the discussions.
Competitiveness of small businesses, resilience, and sustainability are three goals that need to be pursued in tandem to be better prepared for and counter the next big crisis, climate change, according to the 2021 edition of ITC’s flagship report SME Competitiveness Outlook, ‘Empowering the Green Recovery’. Its Green Recovery Plan, a set of recommendations for business support organizations, governments, lead firms in international value chains and international organizations to help small businesses embark on a green transition, underpins ITC’s key contributions to the WTO Public Forum.
The WTO Public Forum sessions led by ITC and partners are:
From Competition to Collaboration: Collective Action in Sustainability Standards
Tuesday, 28 September 2021, 15:05-16:05 CEST
Organized by ITC
This high-level panel is part of ITC’s Trade for Sustainable Development (T4SD) Forum, which takes place on 27-28 September.
Building resilience through strengthened regional integration and AfCFTA implementation
Wednesday, 29 September 2021, 13:30-14:30 CEST
Organized by the Ministry of Trade of the Democratic Republic of Congo, in partnership with the African Union Commission and ITC.
Transforming Global Trade for Smallholders: Building Back Fairer Post-COVID
Wednesday, 29 September 2021, 16:30-17:30 CEST
Organized by Fairtrade International, in partnership with ITC.
MSMEs and COVID: Enhancing resilience
Thursday, 30 September 2021, 13:30-14:30 CEST
High-level plenary moderated by Ambassador José Luis Cancela of Uruguay /
Coordinator, Informal Group on MSMEs at the WTO,
with live keynote by Pamela Coke-Hamilton, ITC Executive Director.
Youth ecopreneurs - Innovating to build back greener
Thursday, 30 September 2021, 15:00-16:00 CEST
Organized by the Permanent Mission of Finland in Geneva and ITC.
Investment facilitation for development: Revitalizing investment for COVID-19 recovery
Thursday, 30September 2021, 15:00-16:00 CEST
Organized by the German Development Institute and ITC.
Mainstreaming the COVID-19 recovery: The importance of supporting women entrepreneurs, MSMEs and digital trade
Friday, 1 October 2021, 11:30-12:30
Organized by the Permanent Missions in Geneva of Canada, Colombia, Nigeria, Switzerland and Uruguay, and ITC.
Lessons learned from COVID-19: Opportunities to boost MSME resilience to crisis
Friday, 1 October 2021, 16:30-17:30
Organized by the Enhanced Integrated Framework, the Permanent Mission of Finland in Geneva, and ITC.
Find the full 2021 WTO Public Forum programme and registration link here.
Registration deadline: 27 September 2021