The International Council of Chemical Associations (ICCA), the global voice of the chemicals industry, has released its consensus paper outlining a progressive set of recommendations for modernizing the World Trade Organization (WTO). The paper is a seminal achievement for the ICCA, bringing together a common agenda from geographically diverse, developed and developing economy members, and representing trading partners both large and small. Through this paper, ICCA is defining a path forward for reforming the WTO and restoring functionality to the rules-based trade system as well as advancing substantive multilateral negotiations.
“ICCA’s 164 members account for more than 98 percent of all global chemicals trade, contributing nearly $2 trillion to the global economy,” said Lisa Schroeter, global director of trade and investment policy at Dow, and chair of ICCA’s Trade Policy Network. “No one has seen an entire global industry coalesce around clear actions for the WTO membership quite like this before. We’re proud of the work we’ve done and we look forward to discussing our recommendations at the WTO Public Forum later this month.”
In developing the paper, ICCA sought input from across the full spectrum of economies, including Latin America, the Middle East, Africa, and Southeast Asia. The result, ICCA believes, is a series of recommendations that are worker-centric, focused on protecting human health and the environment, and designed to support a more sustainable economy.
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