Masisi calls for equitable trade
President Mokgweetsi Masisi says trade patterns in the world are skewed and favour developed countries at the expense of the less developed. Delivering a presidential lecture at the World Trade Organisation (WTO) in Geneva, Switzerland this week, Masisi said the imbalance has left less developed countries with no option but to continue surviving on the crumbs that fall from the tables of developed countries.
“Africa expects the WTO to facilitate fair trade that allows African countries to participate equally in the global world of trade,” the President said.
Masisi added the imbalance in global trade was starkly evident during the pandemic.
Countries like Botswana, which self-financed procurement of vaccines, had to wait longer in queue for supply, as drug makers prioritised developed countries.
The situation, he said, had led to delays which spiralled COVID-19 cases.
“There is need for a coordinated global response and I implore WTO to work hand-in-hand with organisations like the World Health Organisation to curb the challenges experienced during COVID-19,” Masisi said.
The President also urged the WTO to act swiftly and introduce affirmative action policies that empower marginalised groups in society and enable them to also equally benefit from the fruits of international trade.
“To set the ball rolling, I believe setting rules that protect vulnerable, less developed countries will be the right step towards a world that is equitable in trade,” he said.
Amidst the standing ovation that greeted Masisi’s statements on protecting the vulnerable, WTO director-general, Ngozi Onkojo-Iweala said while such rules exist, their implementation has been a challenge.
“Delivering the aspirations of the least developed countries has been a mammoth task and there is a critical need from our end to set a space that will ensure their protection,” she said.
Meanwhile, an International Monetary Fund (IMF) paper released this week argues that substantial improvements in African states’ trade environments, combined with the implementation of the African Continental Free Trade Agreement (AfCFTA), could increase the median merchandise trade flow between African countries by 53% and with the rest of the world by 15%.
“As a result, the real per capita GDP of the median African country would rise by more than 10%.
“This result resonates with findings in the literature that trade reforms could help reduce extreme poverty by an additional 30–50 million people across the continent,” the IMF paper indicates.