The government of Ireland has contributed EUR 350,000 (CHF 367,000) in 2017 to WTO trade-related programmes to help developing countries and in particular least-developed countries (LDCs) participate in multilateral trade negotiations and better access agricultural markets.
EUR 50,000 (over CHF 55,000) of this contribution will help LDCs participate in the 11th WTO Ministerial Conference (MC11), which will take place on 10-13 December 2017 in Buenos Aires, Argentina.
EUR 150,000 (approximately CHF 156,000) will be provided to the Standards and Trade Development Facility (STDF), a global partnership aimed at helping developing countries comply with international food safety, animal and plant health standards and access agricultural markets more easily.
The remaining EUR 150,000 (approximately CHF 156,000) will be donated to the WTO internship programme sponsored by France and Ireland, which aims to assist the permanent missions of developing countries based in Geneva.
Ireland’s donation will help developing countries and LDCs acquire the necessary expertise to participate fully in world trade negotiations and to integrate further into the world economy.
The 2017 Global Review of Aid for Trade held at the WTO on 11-13 July highlighted the importance of continuously supporting developing countries, in particular LDCs, to help them achieve sustainable development.
Ireland has donated almost EUR 11 million (over CHF 12 million) to the various WTO trust funds over the past 15 years.