As WTO Members prepare for the 14th Ministerial Conference (MC14) in Cameroon this March, WITA International is hosting a new global webinar series: WTO Matters. The series explores the core functions of the WTO, reforms needed to keep the institution effective and relevant, and the key policy issues shaping debates.

In this session, panelists discussed the relevance of the WTO’s core principle of Most Favored Nation (MFN).  While MFN remains essential for most of world trade, its critics, including the U.S., question its relevance. Panelists will discuss the impact on MFN of the Trump tariffs; the negotiation of trade deals that do not apply broadly; the U.S. reform proposal rejecting a one-size-fits-all approach; and the EU reform proposal noting the need for dynamic adjustment of rights and commitments given lack of reciprocal liberalization.

Featured Speakers:

David Henig, UK Director, European Centre for International Political Economy (ECIPE)

Ambassador Maria Pagan, former Deputy United States Trade Representative and US Ambassador to the WTO; and Former Deputy General Counsel, Office U.S. Trade Representative, among other positions she has held.

Dawn Shackleford, President at Looking Glass Trade, LLC; former Executive Director for Trade Agreements Policy & Negotiations, Department of Commerce; former Assistant USTR for WTO & Multilateral Affairs

Alan Wolff, Senior Fellow at Peterson Institute for International Economics; former Deputy Director-General at the World Trade Organization

Moderator: Angela Ellard, Senior Advisor (non-resident), Center for Strategic and International Studies; former Deputy Director General, World Trade Organization

Thank you to our WITA International
Sponsors!

Thank you to our WITA Academy
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