The Office of the U. S. Trade Representative has released a fact sheet outlining the United States' contributions to helping poor countries develop their capacity to participate in the global trade system.

Office of the United States Trade Representative [USTR], www.ustr.gov

September 8, 2003

U.S. Contributions to Trade Capacity Building:
Helping the Developing World Participate in the Global Trading System

The United States is the world's largest bilateral donor of trade-related technical assistance, reflecting our commitment to helping everyone participate fully in achieving the principles outlined at Doha. U.S. trade capacity-building efforts stem from the basic belief that trade and globalization are critical to the growth of developed and developing countries.

Mainstreaming Trade and Development

"The ongoing global trade negotiations in the World Trade Organization's Doha Development Agenda offer a once-in-a-generation opportunity to tear down barriers among all countries and spur the kind of full economic integration that will be a catalyst for sustained global growth and development." -- USTR Robert Zoellick July 2003

Trade capacity building stands at the nexus of trade policy and development policy. When successful, such capacity building accelerates poverty elimination and economic growth in developing countries.

Through increased capacity to participate in trade negotiations, implement the rules, and seize opportunities, developing countries can achieve win-win results for themselves and their trading partners.

Shortly after Doha, USTR established the Office for Trade Capacity Building to infuse USTR's institutional knowledge into the provision of trade-related technical assistance. The creation of this office underscores the U.S. commitment -- and the commitment of U.S. Trade Representative Zoellick -- to broadening the benefits of trade in developing countries.

U.S. Contributions to Trade Capacity Building [TCB] and the WTO

As the largest bilateral donor, the United States devotes resources from USAID [U.S. Agency for International Development] and a dozen other agencies that total more than $2.5 billion in funding for TCB activities (FY00 through FY03) [fiscal year 2000 through fiscal year 2003]. The USG [U.S. government] provided $752 million in TCB activities in FY03, an 18 percent increase from the previous fiscal year. These figures show that U.S. assistance far exceeds simply supporting the WTO [World Trade Organization].

The WTO's 2003 Technical Assistance Plan provides trade-related technical assistance in areas such as customs valuation, information technology, and negotiating skills. The United States supports the Plan through a $1 million pledge in 2003 to the WTO's Global Trust Fund (GTF). This matches the pledge made by the United States following the Doha Ministerial.

The WTO is now implementing two grants, totaling $1 million, under the Africa Trade and Investment Policy Program (ATRIP), supporting WTO training for Africans

USAID will provide WTO accession and implementation services for as many as three countries, including a current project in Cape Verde. This project is planned for as much as $4 million dollars over three years, subject to Congressional appropriations.

Trade Capacity Building in Free Trade Agreements

To complement the on-going CAFTA [Central American Free Trade Agreement], FTAA [Free Trade area of the Americas] and SACU [Southern African Customs Union] FTA [Free Trade Agreement] negotiations, separate Cooperative Groups on Trade Capacity Building were established to define and identify the priority needs that enable governments to effectively participate in negotiations, implement commitments, and maximize the long-term benefits of free trade.

To ensure this process is demand-driven, our FTA partners are preparing National Strategies to pinpoint their needs for the TCB Cooperative Group. This is a practical, business-like approach to these priorities.

The TCB process brings together a broad array of agencies, institutions, corporations and non-governmental organizations. Active participation by corporations and foundations brings additional resources, creativity, and help in order for us to identify the best possible programs to meet the needs identified in each country's trade capacity building strategy.

Public outreach and citizen participation are important components of the ongoing trade negotiations between the United States and our FTA partners. The U.S. has provided technical assistance to foster such efforts, which generate greater public support for FTAs, better trade policy development, and improved transparency throughout negotiations.

In free trade negotiations with Central America, the United States used a practical approach to yield tangible results when it helped El Salvador directly explain the benefits of an FTA to its citizens and private sector by assisting with El Salvador's first-ever public hearing--on any subject.

Trade Capacity Building Supporting Tariff Preference Programs

World Bank research shows income per capita in globalizing developing countries grew more than 3 times faster than in non-globalizers in the 1990s. Absolute poverty rates for globalizers have also fallen sharply over the last 20 years. The World Bank also finds that trade barrier elimination in conjunction with related development policies would accelerate the decline in the number of people in poverty in 2015 by an additional 300 million -- more than the entire population of the United States.

To enable eligible countries to fully take advantage of preferences, the United States incorporates considerable technical assistance into programs such as the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA). FY03 funding for such assistance was $69 million, a 13 percent increase over FY02 levels.

AGOA trade capacity building assists countries to maximize the legislation's benefits. Under AGOA, the USG assists countries to identify markets, obtain textile visas, improve food safety and conduct pest risk assessments.

To help African countries better maximize the benefits of global markets, USAID recently established regional Hubs for Global Competitiveness in Kenya, Botswana, and Ghana. A cadre of technical experts on WTO issues, AGOA implementation, private sector development, pest risk assessments and other trade topics will staff each Hub.