Foreign Affairs CS Amina Mohamed says Kenya ready for world trade conference

Foreign Affairs and International Trade Cabinet Secretary Amina Mohamed

All is set for the 10th World Trade Organisation (WTO) Ministerial Conference which could put Kenya on international headlines once again after successfully hosting of US President in July.

Addressing ambassadors, high commissioners and other diplomatic corps at a briefing session, Foreign Affairs and International Trade Cabinet Secretary Amina Mohamed assured them that Kenya is ready for the event.

“We are very grateful for the support extended to us by members of the diplomatic corps, development partners and the business community towards the preparatory process. I assures you that we are ready for the conference and look forward to receiving all the WTO delegates to Kenya,” affirmed Amb Mohamed.

The event, which will be the first to take place on African soil, provides a forum to negotiate agreements aimed at reducing obstacles to international trade.

The National Preparatory Committee has been tasked to ensure the event is a success. The CS told the diplomats that President Uhuru Kenyatta has been receiving daily briefing on the state of preparedness in logistics and substance.

“We have established 10 sub-committees each dedicated to specific aspects of the conference. We have also been working closely with the WTO Secretariat which has expressed satisfaction on the preparations,” said Amb Mohammed.

 

The delegates are expected to discuss trade matters to be reflected in a Ministerial Declaration which the CS said may underline the importance of the WTO Multilateral Trading system and also the outcomes of the negotiating groups on the Doha Development Agenda (DDA) and the regular WTO bodies.

DDA is the current trade-negotiation round of WTO whose objective is to lower trade barriers around the world and increase global trade.

The CS said Africa hopes to use the event to inspire multilateralism that strengthens the WTO as the engine of the rules-based trading system.

“We are also seeking a post Bali work programme that is sufficiently robust and reflects the fundamentals in the DDA comprising agriculture, including an outcome on cotton and an understanding on food security, trade and environment, fishery subsidies,an expanded information technology agreement and a package for least developed countries,” said Amb Mohamed.

The First Information Session on the logistic preparations of MC10 was held in July, in Geneva.

The second and final Information Session is planned for December 2 to 3 ahead of the event that will run from December 15 to 18.