NEWSLETTER ISSUE #1/2015
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WTO-TRADE roundtable #1
The first WTO-TRADE roundtable on Global Value Chains (GVCs) and trade facilitation was convened by the TRADE entity on 19 March 2015 at the North-West University’s Potchefstroom Campus. Attended by members of the TRADE research team as well as colleagues from the university’s Business School and Engineering and Political Science faculties, officials from the Department of Trade and Industry, and private sector consultants specialising in customs and logistics, marketing and competitive intelligence, and agricultural development, the roundtable focused on South Africa’s policy response to the GVC phenomenon and the implications for the country’s export and economic growth.
The influence of South Africa’s industrial policy on the country’s trade (especially with other southern African countries) and trade facilitation challenges in the region were among the topics put under the spotlight. Prof Wilma Viviers (WTO Chair and director of TRADE at the NWU) spoke of the dangers of an overly-centralised production approach—currently evident in South Africa—which tends to favour labour absorption over competitiveness, while Prof Ludo Cuyvers (an international trade economist from the University of Antwerp) reflected on the central role played by multinationals in GVCs and what this means for a country’s export promotion and expansion efforts. Prof Peet Strydom (a TRADE extraordinary professor) emphasised the importance of a country having strong economic fundamentals and a conducive regulatory climate, which together should promote greater trade efficiency and eligibility to participate in GVCs. A lively debate ensued on South Africa’s successes and failures on the GVC and trade facilitation fronts, and what strategies are necessary to put the country onto a firmer trade and economic footing.
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WTO-TRADE roundtables on Global Value Chains bring together government, business and academia
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