Source: World Trade Organization – WTO (video statements)
#PF26Asks: What do you hope people took away from the Business Leaders’ Dialogue on Services Trade on Day 1 of #WTOPublicForum?
John Ferguson of Economist Entreprise shares his takeaways.
What is the Information Technology Agreement? | Ask the WTO
Source: World Trade Organization – WTO (video statements)
Trade may not be the first thing that comes to mind when you prepare for a run, but it helps power the technology that will support you during your training.
As Helen Chang explains,, the WTO’s Information Technology Agreement (ITA) has eliminated tariffs on hundreds of high-tech products, from smartphones to semiconductors, data centres and artificial intelligence. The ITA makes them more affordable and easier to trade across borders.
In this video, discover:
• What the Information Technology Agreement (ITA) is
• How it works
• Why it matters for consumers, businesses and economies
• How it supports global value chains
• The role it plays in powering the technologies behind AI
Learn more about the Information Technology Agreement: https://www.wto.org/ita
Download this video from the WTO website:
https://www.wto.org/english/res_e/webcas_e/webcas_e.htm
What is trade in services? | Ask the WTO
Source: World Trade Organization – WTO (video statements)
What is trade in services and why is it becoming increasingly important in today’s economy?
From booking travel and taking online classes to using banking apps, digital platforms and telecommunications, services are part of our everyday lives. But unlike goods, services do not travel in boxes or containers.
Juan Marchetti explains how services cross borders, the four modes of supply defined under the WTO’s General Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS), and how digitalization is reshaping global services trade.
Topics covered:
• What trade in services is • The four modes of supply under the GATS • Cross-border supply, consumption abroad, commercial presence and presence of natural persons • The rise of digitally delivered services • Opportunities created by digitalization • Key challenges affecting services trade • The WTO’s role in supporting transparent and predictable trade in services
Have a trade term you’d like explained in simple language? Let us know in the comments.
Download this video from the WTO website:
https://www.wto.org/english/res_e/webcas_e/webcas_e.htm
==
Transcript:
It’s your first day after moving to a new city.
You take a taxi to go to the bank, open an account, and meet with a real estate agent to visit apartments.
In between, you buy your monthly transport pass with your phone.
Have you ever counted how many services you use in a single day?
We all rely on services every day: logistics, finance, transport, travel, telecom, education and more.
And they all share one thing: they are invisible.
Unlike goods, they do not come in a box or in a container.
Many of the services we use come from other countries.
So how do services cross borders?
Services travel through people, data, ideas and investment.
Let’s take the example of someone who wants to learn French.
I’ll call her Sarah.
She’s British.
If Sarah takes an online course with a teacher in France, that is cross-border supply, meaning the consumer and the provider are in different countries.
Only the lessons cross borders.
Another option: Sarah travels to France to study.
In this case, the consumer crosses the border.
We call it consumption abroad.
If a French language school opens a branch in Sarah’s country, we get the third option.
It is the company that crosses the border and we call it commercial presence.
Another option is when the teacher crosses borders to teach Sarah.
And we call this presence of natural persons.
These are the four modes of services trade defined by the WTO General Agreement on Trade in Services, most commonly known as the GATS.
This framework provides common rules for services trade by ensuring open markets, non-discrimination, transparency, and predictability, making it easier for businesses and individuals to export and import services.
Today, services are the fastest-growing segment of global trade, significantly outpacing trade in goods over the past decade.
Now, one in every four dollars of global trade comes from services.
Driven by digital technology, more trade is moving through fiber optic cables instead of cargo ships.
Digitally delivered services, like software, finance, consulting, online education and streaming now make up more than half of global services exports.
Digitalization is opening doors, particularly for women, youth, and small companies.
Today, a software developer in Nairobi, a consultant in Bogota, or a designer in Manila can reach clients around the world with just a laptop and an internet connection.
But challenges remain.
Unlike goods, services do not face tariffs at the border.
Yet, trade in services is affected by regulations: market access barriers, discriminatory measures, licensing rules, lack of recognition of qualifications, and restrictions on data flows.
Regulations play an essential role in protecting consumers, safeguarding privacy, ensuring the quality of the services and the competence of the supplier.
But regulations that are overly burdensome, discriminatory, or very different across markets can make it harder for services companies to compete globally.
The WTO Council for Trade in Services and its committees provide a platform for governments to address these challenges and other concerns, and also to discuss ways to improve how services flow across borders.
At the same time, the WTO Secretariat works with partner organizations to support developing economies through training, technical assistance, and practical tools that help unlock the full potential of the services economy.
Because in today’s world, everyone relies on services.
They connect people, power economies, and shape our future, helping to solve everyday problems and improving our lives.
Is there a trade term you have always wanted explained in simple terms?
Drop your question in the comments.
We are here to break it down.
Let’s make trade clearer, fairer, and easier to understand.
AI for trade in action: finance and risks made easier
Source: World Trade Organization – WTO (video statements)
AI for trade in action:
How can artificial intelligence help small businesses become more competitive in global supply chains?
Mallika Mathur Lhéritier, co-founder and CEO of Koaloo.Fi, explains how her fintech is using AI to modernize trade finance, promote financial inclusion and help small businesses identify and address risks in global supply chains.
By combining verified supplier data with actionable intelligence, real-time coaching and access to more affordable capital, Koaloo.Fi aims to help small suppliers improve their performance, strengthen their resilience and become more attractive partners for global buyers.
In September, the WTO hosts its first ever World Trade and Tech Day to look at how AI is impacting international trade. The event will feature several use cases. Learn more: www.wto.org/worldtradetechday
Download this video from the WTO website:
https://www.wto.org/english/res_e/webcas_e/webcas_e.htm
AI for trade in action:Intelligence in trade regulations
Source: World Trade Organization – WTO (video statements)
How can artificial intelligence reveal trade opportunities and reduce costs?
Kholofelo Kugler and Émilie Delattre from Besso explain how AI is helping businesses navigate complex trade regulations, identify tariff-saving opportunities, and make better use of free trade agreements (FTAs). They also discuss the importance of trust in AI, the role of human oversight, and the potential of digital technologies to support small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), particularly those in developing countries.
Learn how AI-driven solutions can contribute to more inclusive, efficient, and accessible global trade during the WTO’s first World Trade and Tech Day on 14 September.
Learn more: www.wto.org/worldtradetechday
Download this video from the WTO website:
https://www.wto.org/english/res_e/webcas_e/webcas_e.htm
AI for trade in action: Rinato Space
Source: World Trade Organization – WTO (video statements)
How can AI, satellite technology, and real-time data transform agriculture and supply chains?
Ahmad Hamwi, Founder and CEO of Rinato Space, explains how the company combines satellite imagery, weather intelligence, and information from the ground to monitor farms at scale. The Zambia-based company, one of the winners of this year’s Small Business Champions competition, helps farmers, buyers, insurers, regulators, and exporters make informed decisions.
In September, the WTO hosts its first ever World Trade and Tech Day to look at how AI is impacting international trade. The event will feature several use cases such as this one.
Download this video from the WTO website:
https://www.wto.org/english/res_e/webcas_e/webcas_e.htm
AI for trade in action: Digital market in Latin America
Source: World Trade Organization – WTO (video statements)
How can artificial intelligence help close development gaps and unlock new opportunities for businesses across Latin America?
Germán López, Vice President of the Colombian Chamber of Informatics and Telecommunications (CCIT), discusses a regional initiative developed with the Center for International Private Enterprise (CIPE) to create an AI governance roadmap for the private sector in Latin America. The initiative was a runner up at this year’s Small Business Champions competition.
The project aims to help micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) identify their AI needs, overcome implementation challenges, and adopt common standards that enable greater regional collaboration and digital trade.
In September, the WTO hosts its first ever World Trade and Tech Day to look at how AI is impacting international trade. The event will feature several use cases. Learn more: www.wto.org/worldtradetechday
Download this video from the WTO website:
https://www.wto.org/english/res_e/webcas_e/webcas_e.htm
AI for trade in action: monitoring crops from space
Source: World Trade Organization – WTO (video statements)
How can AI, satellite technology, and real-time data transform agriculture and supply chains?
Ahmad Hamwi, Founder and CEO of Rinato Space, explains how the company combines satellite imagery, weather intelligence, and information from the ground to monitor farms at scale. The Zambia-based company, one of the winners of this year’s Small Business Champions competition, helps farmers, buyers, insurers, regulators, and exporters make informed decisions.
In September, the WTO hosts its first ever World Trade and Tech Day to look at how AI is impacting international trade. The event will feature several use cases. Learn more:
https://www.wto.org/english/res_e/reser_e/dtech_1409202609_e/dtech_1409202609_e.htm
Download this video from the WTO website:
https://www.wto.org/english/res_e/webcas_e/webcas_e.htm
Transcript:
Hello, everyone. I’m Ahmad Hamwi, founder and CEO of Rinato Space. At Rinato Space, we use satellite technology combined with weather data and ground truth to monitor sites. Every site gets its own e-agronomist, which is an AI that has learned each crop phenology by itself, through a lot of research, and can figure out what’s happening on every farm. Whether in germination or flowering, or making cobs or cotton, we understand all that. And through that, we are able to predict if it’s going well or there’s something wrong. So your efforts and your resources can be directed to the right place. Farmers are one of the biggest beneficiaries of this project because, at the moment, farmers cannot afford to have the equipment and the skills to provide traceability for their sites. Farmers and buyers are able to prove that they are up to standard when it comes to the European Union’s anti-deforestation regulation. This helps a lot of people, helps insurance companies, helps regulators and helps exporters and buyers figure out who to work with and when. In today’s age of really fast tech growing, AI and innovation, I think policies are not catching up fast enough. We still fall under certain regulations in countries where there are no policies that can help support what we do. You find that on the other side of the world, people do not trust the data that you produce because it’s not up to their standards or just because your company is African-based. Although we are in Zambia, currently, on our platform, we are monitoring sites all the way from Australia to Africa to Brazil. And this is the beauty of using satellites, that you are not really limited or bound by anything. Earth is your oyster.
Marking 100 years of the Centre William Rappard
Source: World Trade Organization – WTO (video statements)
The WTO and the International Labour Organization jointly celebrated the centenary of the Centre William Rappard at an event held on 1 July.
Download this video from the WTO website:
https://www.wto.org/english/res_e/webcas_e/webcas_e.htm
High-level visit from Georgia
Source: World Trade Organization – WTO (video statements)
WTO Director-General Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala welcomed the President of Georgia, Mikheil Kavelashvili, to the WTO on 8 July to discuss Georgia’s economic and trade performance, its engagement in the multilateral trading system, and current developments in the global trading environment.
Download this video from the WTO website:
https://www.wto.org/english/res_e/webcas_e/webcas_e.htm