UNCTAD will organize, in collaboration with the Arab Economic Integration Department (AEID) of the League of Arab States Secretariat (LAS), a regional knowledge and experience-sharing workshop on regional trade Arrangements (RTAs) and trade negotiations for 26 officials from Iraq, Libya, Sudan and the State of Palestine.It will take place at LAS headquarters, in Cairo, Egypt, on 14-15 May 2023.
The workshop is part of technical assistance and capacity-building activities provided by UNCTAD to conflict-affected Arab countries under the UN Development Project, 13th Tranche, titled “Trade Policies and Frameworks to Foster Regional Integration and the Achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals in Selected Conflict and Post-conflict Arab Countries, with a particular focus on Iraq and the State of Palestine.
Additional funding to enhance the delivery by UNCTAD of the said activities was provided by the Islamic Development Bank Group (IsDB) to support concerned countries in the formulation and reform of their trade policies, including enhanced assistance to Iraq’s effort to join the World Trade Organization (WTO). The United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia (ESCWA), and the IsDB are associated in the delivery of this workshop.
In this context, the regional workshop will witness the launching of an UNCTAD new publication, in Arabic, that provides for a training module on services negotiations and analytical chapters on trade in services of some selected Arab countries, including a matrix on specific market access commitments in services they consolidated during their WTO accession negotiations.
Objective and expected outcomes
The regional workshop aims at upgrading the technical knowledge and skills of policymakers, trade officials and negotiators from the participating countries to enable them to adequately prepare for and negotiate bilateral, regional and multilateral trade arrangements, including accession to WTO.
Scope of coverage and methodology
The workshop will cover the following topics:
- Accession to the WTO in the Arab region: implications for conflict-affected Arab countries’ trade policies;
- State of play in WTO accession processes of, Iraq, Libya, Sudan and the State of Palestine;
- Development impact of the new generation of PTAs/FTAs on the Arab region;
- The state of play in the implementation of the Arab Agreement on trade in services;
- Overview and assessment of WTO MC12 outcomes and implications for Arab countries;
- Technical assistance and capacity building in the area of trade policies and negotiations provided to Arab countries by UNCTAD, UN ESCWA, LAS and the Islamic Development Bank (IsDB).
The workshop will be delivered through theoretical and practical modules. The sessions will be followed by interactive discussions moderated by a panel of experts from UNCTAD, LAS, the IsDB and independent trade experts from the region.
