In a context of increasing and highly competitive liberalization, the novel concept of Aid for Trade (A4T) - now formally adopted in the multilateral trade system - depicts an emerging consensus on the notion that i) adjustment and adaptation in developing economies are imperative to their successful integration into global markets; ii) effective adherence to current international regulatory frameworks imposes institutional and infrastructure transformations; and iii) the associated costs of such efforts require resources beyond those readily available to most developing economies, making it indispensable to find efficient ways of providing external financing.

A major player in this process should be the private sector. Indeed, a dynamic private sector is the most important vehicle for mobilizing savings and investment, creating meaningful jobs, meeting consumer demand, generating exports and contributing to government tax revenues. Therefore, the opportunities for the private sector in the A4T initiative are high. The private sector's involvement in this initiative could include various roles, depending on which private sector is concerned. These roles could include:

Indeed, the private sector in developing countries has too often been left out of the trade and development debate. In order to re-balance this situation, broad-based consultation processes involving the private sector, relevant government agencies and other key stakeholders, should be a prerequisite for formulating trade policies, action matrices and priority project proposals. There is widespread consensus amongst donors, beneficiaries and international agencies that the private sector should be closely involved in identifying trade needs through structured consultation mechanisms.

In this context, The International Trade Centre and the International Centre for Trade and Sustainable Development are joining forces to organise a dialogue to be held in Montreux, Switzerland on June 03-05 to provide inputs, which will feed into the overall A4T process by highlighting tangible ways, for the private sector involvement in the A4T initiative. The participants will include private sector people from both developing and developed countries, experts and trade negotiators. The dialogue will explore the various roles the private sector can play through the A4T initiative, as indicated above. More...