Key Development Updates
EU backs Nigerian, Korean candidates for head of WTO
THE European Union has agreed to endorse Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala and Yoo Myung-hee in their bids to become the next director-general of the World Trade Organisation (WTO). Dr. Okonjo-Iweala, a former Managing Director of the World Bank, was twice a Nigerian finance minister; while Myung-hee, a career civil servant and trade specialist, is the current Minister of Trade of South Korea.
The race for the successor of the former DG of WTO, Brazilian Roberto Azevedo, has entered its final month. Five candidates were still in the race at the beginning of October. The number will be reduced to two finalists after Oct. 6 and the winner will be named by Nov. 7.
UN report says women are left out of COVID-19 response, recovery
THE COVID-19 Global Gender Response Tracker launched last month by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and UN Women shows that social protection and jobs response to the devastating pandemic has largely overlooked women’s needs. The tracker reveals that most of the world’s nations are not doing enough to protect women and girls from the economic and social fallout brought on by the COVID-19 crisis.
The tracker highlights responses that have integrated a gender lens in three areas, namely violence against women and girls (VAWG), support for unpaid care work, and strengthening women’s economic security. According to a statement by the two UN entities sent to Financial Nigeria, only one in eight countries worldwide have measures in place to protect women against the social and economic impacts of the pandemic. Out of 2,517 measures implemented across 206 countries and territories to tackle COVID-19, only 992 (39 per cent) were gender related.
The UN agencies advised that fiscal packages must be devised to ensure that women are not left out of the pandemic response and recovery. They also called for governments to support women’s active participation in leadership and decision-making processes in their COVID19 response and invest in sex-disaggregated data to ensure that the gender-differentiated impacts of the pandemic are recognised and effectively addressed.
South Korea, Singapore, Germany ranked leaders in digitalization markets
SOUTH Korea, Singapore and Germany are the top three markets for industrial digitalization according to BloombergNEF (BNEF). The top-10 countries on the BNEF’s 2020 National Industrial Digitalization Ranking are predominantly from Asia and Europe. The UK ranks 4th, China 5th and Japan 6th. The U.S. took seventh place, the remaining top10 ranked countries being France, Canada and Sweden
According to a statement sent to Financial Nigeria by BNEF, since its first review in July 2019, 21 countries have launched national AI strategies and 14 have launched digitalized manufacturing initiatives. South Korea’s top ranking was based on its policy developments, including a national AI strategy and ‘new deal’ recovery package, which set digitalization and green technology as top national priorities.
Several pieces of legislation solidified the link between digitalization and sustainability globally in 2020, with leading nations elevating these two imperatives as vital elements for future economic growth. Digitalization has become a key pillar of government policy as nations globally struggle to prop up Covid-19 impacted economies. Government digital strategy is aimed at boosting industrial competitiveness and building capabilities in key technologies such as artificial intelligence (AI) and the Internet of Things (IoT).
BNEF said the annual ranking highlights the top countries for industrial digital transformation and technology development, taking into account policy, technology, investment, education levels, venture funding and more.
African countries urged to remove non-tariff barriers to trade
THE African Union (AU) Commission has said that the success of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) depends on the removal of non-tariff barriers by countries on the continent. The statement noted that Africa is about to become the world's largest free trade area but that if unaddressed, non-tariff barriers may slow down this effort.
"The success of the AfCFTA depends in part on how well governments can track and remove non-tariff barriers," Albert Muchanga, AU Commissioner for Trade and Industry, said. As part of urgent efforts to remove non-tariff barriers towards the success of the continental free trade deal, the AU launched late last month a new campaign to spotlight and remove non-tariff barriers in intra-continental trade.
According to the AU, the "Trade Easier Campaign" is promoting the uptake and use of the African Union's trade barriers platform, a non-tariff barrier reporting tool. The tool, which was developed by the AU in partnership with United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), supports efforts to make continental trade easier and less costly by helping African businesses report such barriers and supporting their elimination with the help of governments.