USAID and ITC collaboration: Capacity Building; Market Analysis; Partnerships

Today in Geneva, Ambassador María Pagán, Deputy United States Trade Representative and Permanent Representative of the United States to the World Trade Organization (WTO) and Dorothy Tembo, Deputy Executive Director of the International Trade Centre (ITC) participated in a ceremony to celebrate a $7.9 million grant from the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) that will support green growth, MSME development, and digital trade and enhance developing countries’ participation in the international trading system.

The grant has three key components: (1) a trade competitiveness project in Nepal entitled “Nepal: USAID Economic Growth Accelerator;” that will support exports in the pashmina, coffee, and medicinal plant sectors; (2) a market-based program for smallholder farmers in Latin America supported through locally based social enterprises; and (3) a program to develop a diverse and inclusive workforce of standards professionals and secure their participation in international standards organizations on matters related to critical emerging technologies (CET).

The USAID grant will continue to support ITC’s Green to Compete initiative which entails the development of new and innovative tools and approaches in relation to trade and environmental sustainability. USAID will also continue to support ITC’s ecomConnect program which provides a platform for exchange and learning for small and medium sized enterprises on e-commerce.

Ambassador Pagán said “This grant reflects the United States recognition of the ITC’s practical and accessible capacity building programs.  Through your programming to support individual traders and small businesses, particularly in developing countries, the ITC helps bring diverse private sector voices to the table, which is critical to building inclusiveness at the WTO.”

Deputy Executive Director Tembo said: “Our partnership with USAID helps ITC to create innovative approaches to help thousands of small businesses become more competitive, sustainable and digital. The work on critical emerging technology standards will be especially important to help developing countries benefit from rapidly evolving technologies such as artificial intelligence.”