The member countries of the
International Trade Centre (ITC) today endorsed the organization’s plans for
delivering trade-related technical assistance to developing countries in 2011
at the end of the 44th annual meeting of ITC’s Joint Advisory Group
(JAG).
The delegates from many of the 192
member countries discussed ITC’s Annual Report for 2009, its Consolidated
Programme Document and Operational Plan for 2011, and there was broad agreement
on the importance of developing the capacity of poorer countries to increase
their share of world trade.
Delegates were particularly
pleased that ITC had managed to surpass its target of devoting more than half
of its extra-budgetary funding to projects and programmes in the least
developed countries (LDCs), land-locked developing countries (LLDCs), small
island developing states (SIDS), and sub-Saharan Africa (SSA).
Closing the meeting, ITC Executive
Director Patricia R. Francis welcomed members’ endorsement of ITC’s priorities.
‘We must focus on raising the value of exports. Market-led solutions are where
the value lies. We work with the private sector so that we know where the
opportunities are to be found before we start work,’ she said.
ITC is a joint agency of the
United Nations and the World Trade Organization (WTO), and the opening session
of the JAG was addressed by the Secretary-General of the UN Conference on Trade
and Development (UNCTAD), Dr. Supachai Panitchpakdi, and WTO Director-General
Pascal Lamy.
ITC focuses on supporting small
and medium-sized private-sector enterprises in developing countries, and this
approach was endorsed both by Dr. Supachai and Mr. Lamy. Delegates agreed that
this was the area of ITC’s comparative advantage and should remain its prime
focus.
Members appreciated ITC’s
commitment to the WTO Aid for Trade agenda, and agreed that the third Global
Aid for Trade review in July 2011 would be an opportunity to demonstrate the
impact of its work in developing countries. Another important event in 2011
would be the fourth UN conference on LDCs in Istanbul in May.
Delegates also welcomed progress
in reforming ITC with the introduction of results-based management (RBM)
approaches, and a shift from small projects to larger, multi-year programmes,
at the country and regional levels. Support was also expressed for ITC to invest
in the Enterprise Resource Planning project and to implement the International
Public Sector Accounting Standards as this would contribute to further
embedding efficiency and RBM at ITC
The financial overview showed that
the total income/appropriation available to the organization in the 2010–2011
biennium was projected to reach US$ 157.7 million, compared to US$ 149.2
million in the previous biennium. Donor countries were urged by developing
countries to maintain their support for ITC and for the continuation of the
administrative arrangements as they exist between the United Nations and WTO. A
number of countries took the opportunity of the JAG meeting to announce funding
commitments.
Delegates endorsed ITC’s efforts
to focus on working towards the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) and
especially to mainstream gender in its work and its effective partnerships with
other agencies. There were calls for equal attention to be given to poverty
reduction, the environment and youth.
The Consolidated Programme for 2011
is structured around ITC’s five programme delivery responses, as defined in the
organization’s Strategic Plan. These set the focus as being on LDCs, LLDCs,
SIDS and SSA; export capacity building with a country focus; export capacity
building with a regional focus; expanding the numbers of users of ITC’s global
public goods; and targeting the MDGs.
The programme document also
describes ITC’s approach by region for 2011, the delivery of global public
goods and the continuous development of its technical expertise.
Delegates endorsed a management
proposal to move the annual JAG meeting next year from December each year to
the second quarter of the year, making it possible to present the Annual Report
for the previous year in a more timely way.