12th WTO Ministerial Conference in Geneva from 12th until 15th June

Geneva, Switzerland

The World Trade Organization (WTO) met in Geneva for its first ministerial meeting in almost five years. The aim of the meeting is to address threatened food security, overfishing and equitable access to Covid vaccines.
WTO chief Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala opened the four-day meeting on June 12, warning of a “rocky, bumpy road with some landmines”.The Conference will be co-hosted by Kazakhstan and chaired by Mr Timur Suleimenov, Deputy Chief of Staff of Kazakhstan’s President.

Nevertheless, according to media reports, Okonjo-Iweala is “cautiously optimistic”.In fact, the WTO is designed to take decisions only by consensus. According to the report, more than 100 participating ministers agreed on at least one or two of a long list of pressing issues that can already be classified as a “success”.We report promptly on important results.
Editor: Y. Maiga