The deputy director general of the international entity, Jean-Marie Paugam, emphasized that sustainability must occupy a central place in the business models of the future.

The WTO knows how to do classic trade policy, trade liberalization and trade disciplines, Paugam pointed out.

And he stressed that the organization inherited a model of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade and the services sector, based on very powerful principles such as transparency, non-discrimination and binding commitments to the rule of law.

Meanwhile, the WTO director stressed there are many other new dimensions of trade that are not yet fully understood and include climate change, a scenario that currently affects trade patterns.

Most multinationals and governments develop and implement net zero strategies, in particular through the decarbonization of value chains and the traceability of their inputs, said the manager.

In this sense, he emphasized that one of the main current challenges is to reconcile the classic trade policy pattern with the emerging one.

The good news is that this has already begun to happen in the WTO, said Paugam, noting that some of the 89 members of the organization are now taking decisive action in this regard.

The specialist explained that the structured discussions among its members on circular economy, climate change policies, biodiversity, liberalization of environmental trade and services and subsidies for fossil fuels are clear indications of the proximity of sustainable trade.

Paugam stressed that the fight against climate change is present on the WTO agenda through reviews of trade policies, regional trade agreements and initiatives to reshape and restart agricultural negotiations, among other activities.

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