Developing Countries Lay Out E-Commerce Plan As Basis For WTO Ministerial

A group of ministers from developing countries released a roadmap today for global digital commerce discussions, aimed at paving the way to discussions on electronic commerce at the World Trade Organization ministerial conference in December.

The United Nations Conference on Trade And Development (UNCTAD)’s “E-Commerce Week,” it taking place from 24-28 April.

On the side of the event, a group of developing countries, calling themselves the “Group of Friends of E-Commerce for Development” gathered for their first ministerial meeting to discuss the future of e-commerce, and its role in the economic development of developing and least-developed countries.

The Friends of E-Commerce for Development (FED) currently include: Argentina, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Kenya, Nigeria, Mexico, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, and Uruguay.

The roadmap [pdf] devised by the FED consists of seven key issues: e-commerce readiness and strategy, ICT infrastructure and services, trade logistics, payment solutions, legal and regulatory frameworks, e-commerce skills development and technical assistance, and access to financing.

“The roadmap marks an important milestone on the road to the 11th WTO Ministerial in Buenos Aires in December and it will certainly help shape the debate on outcomes for the meeting – and beyond,” Susana Malcorra, Argentina minister of foreign trade, said in a FED press release [pdf].

The press release said invited ministers from other developing economies, not yet members of FED, “supported the discussions and applauded the efforts that the FED Group has been engaged in to create awareness by sharing national experiences, listening to the concerns of least-developed countries and organizing seminars and technical activities to approach those concerns and translate them into opportunities.”

The FEDs are a non-negotiating group of WTO members and UN members, the release states. They “came together to build an inclusive and open space for discussion of e-commerce viewed from the development perspective,” it says.

According to some sources, some countries, including the FEDs, are seeking to get an e-commerce mandate for WTO in December.

 

Image Credits: Flickr – Scott Lewis