Leaders Attending G20 Trade and Investment Promotion Summit
Determined Next Steps Encouraging the Generation and Promotion of
Global Value Chains
MEXICO CITY, Nov. 19, 2012
/PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The following is being released
today by Marca Pais – Imagen de
Mexico:
Following the dialogue between business and policy makers, the
G20 Trade and Investment Promotion Summit 2012 concluded a
successful two-day event on November
6 with a promising agenda and determined next steps.
Under an environment of close cooperation and discussion between
agencies, the following five strategic challenges were
identified:
1. Strong emphasis on policy coherence and sustainable
development are more than ever needed due to: a) the emergence of
the new global economic landscape characterized by the relevant
link between trade and investment, b) the rapid evolution of global
value chains in scope, scale and depth, and; c) the shift of trade
and investment promotion paradigm.
2. Existing constrains of public funding for trade and
investment promotion, and strong desire for working on customized
trade promotion optimization (TPO) and investment promotion agency
(IPA) country solutions while fostering international peer
cooperation and learning.
3. Need for local small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs)
to access and benefit from global value chains (GVCs).
4. Include private business in the economic development
strategy-making process.
5. Missing fast-moving networks for best practice exchange
integrating trade and investment.
At the inauguration ceremony and plenary session, executives
from the organizing committee provided an overview and positioning
of the Summit, including the International Chamber of Commerce
(ICC)'s executive director of policy and business practices
Stefano Bertasi and welcoming
remarks by ProMexico's CEO Carlos Guzman Bonfill. The World Trade
Organization (WTO)'s chief of staff Arancha
Gonzalez Laya spoke about the changing landscape of trade,
where she highlighted the need to focus on global value chains to
further trade and investment around the world, and later on the
United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD)'s
director for investment and enterprise division James Zhan discussed the key trends and
strategic challenges global investment is facing nowadays.
Following a series of closed-door roundtables, key
representatives offered a wrap up press conference where they
presented the key strategic challenges listed above as conclusions
for the summit. Key representatives speaking to members of the
press included ProMexico's CEO Carlos Guzman Bonfill, UNCTAD's
James Zhan, and OCDE's chief of staff and sherpa to the G20
Gabriela Ramos.
Alejandro Ramirez, CEO of
Cinepolis and B20 chair, also attended the event, where he provided
closing remarks and conclusions on a closed door session. In an
exclusive interview with MexicoToday, Ramirez stated, "The G20
Trade and Investment Promotion Summit was one of the
recommendations we presented at the B20 Summit in Los Cabos which recommended all trade and
investment promotion agencies to get together to share best
practices and analyze ways how business and government can work
closer to advance free trade and investment, and put pressure on
G20 countries at a time of growing protectionist threats." Ramirez
also added, "This event allowed trade and investment promotion
agencies to understand the importance of global value chains, and
to analyze ways they can help, especially to small and medium
enterprises, in having access to those global value chains which
will make them more competitive, resulting on their countries to
become more competitive."
For photos of the G20 Trade and Investment Promotion Summit
2012's inauguration ceremony and plenary session, click here. For
photos from the wrap up press conference, click here.
SOURCE Marca Pais - Imagen de
Mexico