International Herald Tribune

Special Supplement on the World Trade Organization Ministerial

(November 8, 2001)

Interview with ICC Secretary General Maria Livanos Cattaui

ICC Secretary General Maria Livanos Cattaui discusses the outlook for Doha from the perspective of the thousands of companies ICC represents.

The latest news on trade seems as bad as all the other recent gloomy economic data, with volume growth in world goods trade sinking below 2% this year compared with 12% last year. Surely that diminishes the importance of Doha?

Far from it. Every day we read gloomy statistics about the downturn, and many people feel that we are talking ourselves into recession. So a revival of confidence is absolutely essential, and that is something Doha can deliver. This is the message we receive from our members all over the world. And there’s another reason - History shows that protectionism is strongest when the economic outlook is weakest. The remedy must surely be to carry on with the business of pulling down barriers to trade.

The terrorist attacks of 11 September came in the closing stages of preparations for Doha. In your view, how has that affected the prospects for agreement?

We have to remember that the world economy was in trouble well before 11 September. The trade diplomats were struggling to put together a trade deal everybody could accept. What has clearly happened is that the political will of governments to secure agreement has been strengthened. There is a greater readiness for compromise on all sides.

The Uruguay Round took eight years to complete, and even now developing countries are asking for more time to implement some of its provisions. Why do you place so much emphasis on merely launching a new round when it may take many years to get results?

There are many reasons, chief among them that trade liberalization has to be dynamic rather than static. I could reel off statistics demonstrating the phenomenal contribution that the expansion of world trade over 50 years has made to economic growth, jobs and prosperity. But we mustn’t take this remarkable instrument that is the WTO for granted. It requires nurturing and strengthening and that is a never-ending task.

What should be the main goal of a new trade round?

Securing a square deal for the developing countries. There’s a lot of talk about the haves and have-nots of globalization and it is true that the benefits of an integrated global economy must reach all countries, poor as well as rich, if we are to feel confident about achieving a more stable world. Developing countries will stand a much better chance of building a better future for their people if they have more generous access to the markets of the industrialized countries, particularly for their agricultural products and textiles.

So what you are saying is that it’s all about development?

It is about the entire world economy. But it is clear that the essential ingredient for success is that the developing countries should come away satisfied with what is on the table. The benefits of a broad-based round extend to all nations, not least the big industrial countries. The record shows that the multilateral trading system does deliver, whether in terms of job creation, prosperity, economic growth or the spread of technology and ideas. That is the record of the past 50 years. Let us hope it will be more of the same for the next 50 years.