There is a “broad agreement” among WTO members that repositioning and reform of the organization must be a central priority for the 14th Ministerial Conference (MC14) due to take place in March 2026, Director-General Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala said on 7 May. She spoke at a meeting of the WTO’s Trade Negotiations Committee (TNC) in her capacity as Chair of the body.
“We are now in the midst of one of the largest disruptions in world trade in history,” the Director-General told members. “But we are also now less than a year away from MC14, and we must think of what we need to do to maximize our chances for success there, including tackling some of the issues thrown up by this trade crisis.”
Against this backdrop, DG Okonjo-Iweala said, she has spent the past few weeks engaging with members to discuss what might constitute a credible roadmap to MC14, which will begin on 26 March 2026 in Yaoundé, Cameroon.
The Director-General said members stressed the importance of MC14 sending a clear political message reaffirming the WTO’s relevance and resilience amidst ongoing global uncertainty. There was also strong support for prioritizing WTO repositioning and reform at MC14, she noted.
In regard to substance, many members have proposed forward-looking corrective actions to inadequacies in the WTO’s existing rulebook, together with reforms across core functions, including monitoring and transparency, negotiations, and dispute settlement, she said.
“The present disruption is seen as a vital opportunity to address the system’s weaknesses and reposition the WTO for the future,” the Director-General said. “We must not waste a crisis.”
As part of this, workstreams could be established on issues such as dispute settlement reform, how to ensure the current WTO agreements remain dynamic and relevant, and looking at future trade rules so that the WTO remains responsive to evolving needs, the Director-General said.
She proposed a phased approach, consisting of a facilitator-led scoping exercise prior to MC14, ministerial guidance at MC14 on actionable steps for moving forward, and post-MC14 implementation within the workstreams, with the view to presenting concrete outcomes for endorsement at the 15th Ministerial Conference or earlier.
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