The support and engagement of the business community as direct users of the WTO system are particularly important, said WTO Director-General Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala.
She was speaking at the opening of the Business Forum at the 13th Ministerial Conference (MC13) on Wednesday.
After the Forum, DG Okonjo-Iweala and MC13 Chair Dr Thani bin Ahmed Al Zeyoudi received from the International Chamber of Commerce its global business priorities for MC13.
Earlier in the day, the DG also met with her Business Advisory Group.
In her opening remarks, Iweala said: “You are the exporters and importers. Trade costs come out of your bottom line. Uncertainty around market access weighs on your investment choices. At this critical juncture for the multilateral trading system, and for all businesses that operate across borders, your engagement and support really matter.”
The Business Forum was organised jointly by the International Chamber of Commerce and the WTO, bringing together officials and business leaders from around the world for a dialogue on the most pressing issues facing the WTO.
The opening session featured remarks by DG Okonjo-Iweala, MC13 Chair Minister Thani Al Zeyoudi and ICC Secretary General John Denton.
DG Okonjo-Iweala said: “I know there are specific things many of you want out of this meeting, such as progress on the dispute settlement system, and the extension of the e-commerce moratorium.
“These are important issues, but the bigger issue at stake is the system itself. We are at an inflection point. Will we continue to have a reasonably open, integrated and predictable global economy? Or will we move towards an increasingly fragmented and divided one? The answer will shape business prospects for the years and even decades ahead.
Minister Thani Al Zeyoudi said: “This meeting is a timely reminder of the importance the international business community places on the trading system. As the Minister of State for Foreign Trade, I understand fully that although policymakers set the rules, it is business who must navigate them and then deliver the benefits they are meant to create.
Following the Business Forum, the International Chamber of Commerce presented to the Director-General and the MC13 Chair its global business priorities, which were developed following consultations with businesses and private-sector associations across the world.
ICC Secretary-General John Denton said: “One of the most striking aspects of this ministerial has been the groundswell of support for the multilateral trading system that we have seen from the business community.
“Today, we are urging governments to show the necessary political will to deliver outcomes capable of preserving and strengthening the WTO — starting with a deal to renew the longstanding moratorium to keep digital transactions free of distortionary tariffs.”
Earlier in the day, the Director-General held an in-person meeting with her Business Advisory Group for the first time since its creation. They discussed expectations for MC13, and she sought the group's view on the 2030 Secretariat Strategy, which aims to create an agile and forward-looking organization that more effectively services its members.
