Thursday, August 26, 2021

The WTO Chairs in Barbados, Chile and Mexico are launching a series of webinars on trade and gender in the Americas under the auspices of the WTO Chairs Programme.
 
Within the framework of the WTO Chairs Programme and with the financial support of the Dutch Government, the WTO Chairs in Barbados, Chile and Mexico have launched a joint research and outreach project to improve Members' understanding of the nexus between trade policy instruments and gender equality and to foster mainstreaming gender concerns in the context of trade policies.
 
Speaking at the opening ceremony, DDG Anabel González recalled that "Women's economic empowerment has gained momentum in the last years." She also emphasized that gender equality sits at the intersection of many international issues, negotiations and policies such as climate change, labour, trade or the COVID-19 pandemic. She highlighted that all include a gender perspective because women are at the centre of countries' economic and social lives and women have been more impacted by the pandemic.
 
She also reaffirmed that a gender responsive trade policy can lift the many obstacles faced by women in trade, create new opportunities for women and reduce wage gaps. Finally, she recalled that building capacity is also about bringing political awareness on trade and gender issues and this research project is timely. Recalling the Buenos Aires Declaration on trade and gender, DDG Anabel González reaffirmed that the WTO is engaged in contributing to gender equality in many ways as women's empowerment is now an integral part of its work. The WTO is currently focusing on developing a number of gender and trade policy tools that could help its Members support women though trade. Last May, the WTO has also launched the WTO Gender Research Hub to enhance collaboration and exchange among trade and gender researchers. The Hub will also serve as a platform for dialogue between researchers and the Informal Working Group on Trade and Gender established at the WTO in September 2020.
 
LINK TO THE FULL SPEECH
 
H.E. Chad Blackman, Ambassador, Permanent Representative of Barbados, H.E. Mathias Francke Schnarbach Ambassador, Permanent Representative of Chile, and H.E. Angel Villalobos, Ambassador and Permanent Representative of Mexico to the WTO attended the opening ceremony, presented their views on trade and gender issues and expressed their support to the three Chairs for this initiative.
 
The seminar series will consist of six online roundtables, one each month, that will address the main topics regarding trade and gender issues. These seminars will feature academics, policymakers, trade negotiators, and experts from international organizations. A special issue of the Latin American Journal of Trade Policy will be issued on gender and international trade.
List of forthcoming research webinars:

DATE

TOPIC OF THE WEBINAR

(July 2021)     

Mainstreaming gender perspectives in International Relations

(August 2021)           

Gender and trade

(September 2021)      
 

Trade policy instruments and gender: the case of Latin American and the Caribbean

(October 2021)

International organizations and gender inclusion recommendations

(November 2021)

Export promotion with gender perspective: the case of Latin American and the Caribbean

(December 2021)

Wrap up session: Policy recommendations on gender and trade for Latin American and the Caribbean

 
WTO Trade and gender focal point: Mrs Anoush der Boghossian
For more information on the WTO Chairs Programme: wtochairs@wto.org