WTO - ITA Symposium: 25 Years of the Information Technology Agreement (2023)

Opening Session

Moderator: Ms Katarzyna Stecz, Chairperson of the ITA Committee

10:00 – 10:15

• Opening Address by Dr Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, Director-General of the World Trade Organization

10:15 – 10:30

• Keynote Address by Ambassador Michael Punke, Vice President of Global Public Policy, Amazon Web Services

Session One: Trade liberalization under the ITA and the evolution of global trade in ICT products

Moderator: Ms Katarzyna Stecz, Chairperson of the ITA Committee

10:30 – 10:45

• Mr Christophe Degain, Senior Statistician and Mr Eric Ng Shing, Senior Statistician, WTO: “Evolution of ICT Trade over the 25 years”
  Presentation

10:45 – 11:00

• Mr Jun Nakaya, Chair of Trade Policy Committee, Japan Electronics and Information Technology Industries Association (JEITA): “Digital Transformation and ICT: Opportunities and Challenges”
  Presentation

11:00 – 11:15

• Mr Hendrik Abma, Director-General of the European Semiconductor Industry Association (ESIA): “Perspectives from the European Semiconductor Industry on Further Expansion of Semiconductor Trade”
  Presentation

11:15 – 11:30

• Ms Bing Guan, Director of Institution of Industry Economy, China Centre for Information Industry Development: “The Development of China's Information Technology Industry and Future Challenges”
  Presentation

11:30 – 12:00

• Q & A

Session Two: Combatting the COVID-19 pandemic: the role of ITA products, ICT and digital solutions

Moderator: Mrs Suja Rishikesh Mavroidis, Director, Market Access Division, WTO

12:00 – 12:15

• Mr Magnus Nordéus, Chair of DIGITALEUROPE’s Export Control and Customs Working Group and Corporate Head of Trade Compliance, Ericsson Group: “How the ITA has Contributed to Resilience in the COVID‑19 Pandemic, and How to Go Forward”
  Presentation

12:15 – 12:30

• Dr Trevor Gunn, Adjunct Professor Georgetown University and Vice President for International Relations for Medtronic; Founder and Chair of the USA Healthcare Alliance: “Unlocking the Potential of Lifesaving Medical Technologies through the ITA: Removing the Barriers to Access and Responding to the COVID Pandemic”
  Presentation

12:30 – 12:45

• Mr Daniel Sun, CTO, TCL Industries Holdings Co. Ltd: “Smart Display Extends the Productivity of Working from Home”
  Presentation

12:45 – 13:00

• Ms Larissa Haas, Scientific Advisor for Innovative Technologies, Swiss Federal Office of Civil Aviation (FOCA): “How Switzerland became the 'Home of Drones'”
  Presentation

13:00 – 13:15

• Q & A

13:15 – 15:00

• LUNCH BREAK

Session Three: Latest advances in technologies and the ICT sector

Moderator: Ms Uma Muniandy, former Chairperson of the ITA Committee

15:00 – 15:15

• Ms Karen Bland, Head of Global Trade, Global Trade and Cybersecurity Counsel, HP: “3D Printing: A Vital Technology for Economic Development and Sustainability”
  Presentation

15:15 – 15:30

• Ms Julia Jasinska, Head of International Relations and Trade Policy in the government relations team of Nokia: “How the ITA is Key in Allowing 5G+ Technologies to Create New Value for Industries in a post-COVID World”
  Presentation

15:30 – 15:45

• Mr Fredrik Forslund, Vice President, Enterprise & Cloud Erasure Solution at Blancco Technology Group, UK: “The use of Data Protection Technology in an ICT Circular Economy”
  Presentation

15:45 – 16:00

• Mr Ziyang David Fan, Head of Digital Trade, World Economic Forum (WEF): “TradeTech, the Future of Trade and Implications for the ITA”
  Presentation

  (Video) Information Technology Agreement marks 15th anniversary

16:00 – 16:15

• Ms Andrée-Ann Audette, Policy Analyst, Telecom Equipment Regulatory Requirements Department of Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada (ISED): “Conformity Assessment Procedures for ICT Products in Canada”
  Presentation

16:15 – 16:45

• Q & A

Session Four: The role of ICT as an economic development tool

Moderator: Ms Uma Muniandy, former Chairperson of the ITA Committee

10:00 – 10:15

• Mr Stephen Su, Vice President and General Director, Industry, Science and Technology, International Strategic Centre (ISTI) of Industrial Technology Research Institute, Chinese Taipei: “Contribution by the Semiconductor Industry in Energy Efficiency and Decarbonization”
  Presentation

10:15 – 10:30

• Mr Santisouk Phounesavath, Deputy Director-General, Department of Foreign Trade Policy, Ministry of Industry and Commerce, Lao PDR: “Lao PDR's Perspective on Information Technology Agreement Accession”
  Presentation

10:30 – 10:45

• Mr Saurabh Gaur, Joint Secretary, Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology, Government of India. “Developments in Information and Communications Technology (ICT)”
  Presentation

10:45 – 11:00

• Mr Torbjörn Fredriksson, Chief of ICT Policy Section, Division of Technology and Logistics. UNCTAD: “Recent Trends in ICT Goods Trade and Digital Developments”
  Presentation

11:00 – 11:30

• Q & A

Session Five: The future of the ITA

Moderator: Ms Katarzyna Stecz, Chairperson of the ITA Committee

11:30 – 11:45

• Mr Stephen Ezell, Vice President Global Innovation Policy, Information Technology and Innovation Foundation and Mr John Neuffer, President and CEO of the Semiconductor Industry Association (SIA): “How a Third ITA Expansion Would Benefit Developed and Developing Nations Alike While Advancing Climate, Health, and Sustainability Goals”
  Presentation
  Presentation

11:45 – 12:00

• MrPeter Proebster, Senior Director, Infineon Technologies, speaking on behalf of World Semiconductor Council (WSC): “How an ITA-3 Can Facilitate a Further Expansion of Trade in Semiconductors and Related Downstream Products, and As Such Help Address Global Challenges around Health, Economic Recovery, Sustainability, Climate and Secure Connectivity”

12:00 – 12:15

• Ms Shige Zhang, Global Trade and Corporate Strategy Expert, Huawei Technologies: “Moving Forward to a Sustainable Digital Trade in the post‑COVID Era”

12:15 – 12:30

• Rt. Hon. Philip Dunne MP, Chair of the House of Commons Environmental Audit Committee, United Kingdom: “Promoting Better, Greener, and Greater Trade in ICT Goods”
  Presentation

12:45 – 13:00

• Q & A

13:00 – 13:10

• Concluding remarks by Ms Anabel González, Deputy Director-General of the WTO.