Digital Commerce

Digital Commerce is a six-week blended learning course that provides an interdisciplinary coverage of digital commerce from both digital and trade perspectives. It builds the knowledge and capacity of participants to engage in digital commerce-related negotiations and discussions on the multilateral and bilateral levels.

It is aimed at Geneva-based staff of permanent missions, international organisations and other trade practitioners from developing countries and LDCs.

The course is offered by DiploFoundation (Diplo), the International Trade Centre (ITC), and the Geneva Internet Platform (GIP), in partnership with the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD).

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What will you learn?

• Enabling issues: e-signatures and authentication, digital identities, and paperless trading.
• Cross-border data flows and data localisation.
• Online consumer protection and privacy.
• Access to the source code.
• The status of e-commerce at the WTO.
• Regional Trade Agreements (RTAs), Digital Economy Agreements (DEAs) and their impact on digital commerce.

How will you learn?

In this course you will interact intensively in discussions with classmates and lecturers from around the world. You will receive guidance, and personalised feedback on your classwork, from the course team.

How long will you learn?

The course lasts for 6 weeks:

• 1 week of course introduction and orientation to online learning
• 5 weeks of addressing the course topics one by one (see below for more details)

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Who should apply

The course will be of interest to the Geneva-based:

• Diplomats from developing countries and LDCs who follow e-commerce negotiations.
• Staff from developing countries and LDCs working at trade-related international organisations.

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Overview

The course consists of 5 modules:

• Placing digital commerce in the context of the digital economy. We present some definitions of the digital economy and unpack the meaning of frequently used expressions such as ‘digital transformation’, ‘4th industrial revolution’, and ‘data economy’. We discuss how digitisation has affected the production, marketing, sale, distribution and delivery of goods and services, particularly focusing on the role of online platforms.
• Digital commerce discussions at the World Trade Organization. The WTO plays an important role in facilitating diplomatic talks about digital commerce within the framework of the multilateral trading system. We summarise the evolution of WTO discussions on e-commerce, including the outcomes of the 13th WTO Ministerial Conference in 2024.
• The dynamics of e-commerce rulemaking: Regional trade agreements and Digital Economy Agreements. We present an overview of how e-commerce is addressed in the context of main regional trade agreements (RTAs), exploring key provisions. We also discuss the growing importance of Digital Economy Agreements (DEAs) and provide examples of issues they tackle.
• Openness and digital commerce. We focus on cross-border data flows and localisation, which are core issues for the growth of the digital economy. We discuss what localisation policies mean from technical and policy angles and analyse provisions on data flows which are present in some key regional trade agreements.
• Promoting trust in e-commerce. We focus on how agreements and negotiations seek to enhance consumer and business trust by tackling specific issues, such as consumer protection, privacy, and limiting requests to access or transfer the source code of computer programs.

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Methodology

The course will run from 14 October to 22 November 2024, based on a collaborative learning approach involving a high level of interaction.

Reading materials and the necessary tools for online interaction are provided in a virtual classroom, while face-to-face meetings will take place once a week.

Throughout each course week, participants will read course materials and interact in an online classroom. During the face-to-face meetings, the course faculty will clarify pending issues and discuss ongoing policy processes with participants.  The meetings will take place on Fridays, from 14:00 to 15:00 CEST, at the Diplo office (WMO headquarters, Av. de la Paix, 7 BIS).

Participants who complete the course successfully will receive a course certificate issued by partner institutions.

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Prerequisites

Applicants for this course should have basic knowledge of trade and digital commerce policies and negotiations.

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Fees and scholarships

The course fee is 990 CHF. Selected applicants from developing and least developed countries will be granted a full waiver of course fees through support from the course organising partners.

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How to apply

Please apply online by 1 October 2024, starting from this short application form: