Accra, 20 April 2008 — The United Nations Secretary-General, Mr. Ban Ki-moon, chaired the launching of the Interagency Cluster on Trade and Productive Capacity that was established within the UN Chief Executive Board. The Cluster aims to coordinate joint operations of a number of international organizations in the area of trade and capacity building. In addition to UNCTAD, its current members are the United Nations Industrial Development Organization, Food and Agriculture Organization, International Trade Centre, World Trade Organization, UN Development Programme and the five UN Regional Commissions.
The Cluster reflects the UN´s commitment to improving the coherence of work done by international agencies, as set out in its Delivering as One effort. Mr. Ban Ki-moon said the Cluster can contribute to making UN country assistance plans more coherent. He called for greater coherence in aid, trade, debt, investment and technology policies to enhance productive capacities in developing countries. The UN Secretary-General urged member States to provide financial support to the UN development operations and to work towards a more balanced sectoral allocation of development assistance.
UNCTAD Secretary-General Supachai Panitchpakdi hosted a working lunch with the senior representatives of these member agencies, followed by a session attended by delegates and participants in the UNCTAD XII ministerial conference. After statements delivered by the agencies on the role of the Cluster, the Delegations of Norway, Spain and the EU expressed their support for this new interagency mechanism. The National Coordinator of the Integrated Framework of Mali made a presentation on the interface Integrated Framework and the UN country level operations related to trade and productive capacity.
The main goal of the Cluster is to coordinate joint operations related to trade and productive capacity issues in the eight “One UN” pilot countries and in the UN development assistance plans at the country level. The Cluster will operate with a flexible membership in each initiative, particularly joint missions and joint operations, that may include two or more agencies as required in each case and in each country.
The Cluster began coordinating joint programmes and joint missions in April 2007, including in Cape Verde, Mozambique, Rwanda and Albania, and is preparing new interagency initiatives. These include training UN Resident Coordinators on trade issues and their interface with the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). The Cluster is expected to be instrumental in coordinating the UN´s work regarding Aid for Trade.
The members of the Cluster provide assistance on policies designed to improve the trade performance and productive capacities of development countries. These cover a range of areas, including: export performance, implementation of trade and rules; dispute settlement; negotiating capacity; and research, analysis and training on trade and related issues. Given the pivotal role of trade as an engine for pro-poor economic growth and human development, the Cluster aims to help spread the benefits of trade to the wider economy in developing countries, with a view to contributing towards achieving the MDGs. The Trade and Capacity Building Interagency Resource Guide, compiled by UNIDO and including information on 22 UN entities, identifies the main areas of assistance and facilitates interagency cooperation.
