WTO Meeting Postponed after New COVID Variant Outbreak
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Following the outbreak of a new COVID-19 variant in southern Africa, the WTO postpones in ministerial conference.
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A sign of the meeting posted outside WTO Headquarters in Geneva
The World Trade Organization has decided to postpone its Ministerial Conference (MC12), a gathering of the organization's highest decision-making body that was set to take place next week in Geneva, because of the emergence of the new Coronavirus variant.
WTO Deputy Director-General, Anabel Gonzalez tweeted that the MC12 has been postponed, and all WTO members supported the decision, which she called "the right decision."
@wto #MC12 has been postponed. The full membership is behind the decision of the General Council Chair @CastilloDacio and DG @NOIweala. Health, fairness and inclusiveness informed the call. It is the right decision. Work will and must continue. pic.twitter.com/jVyKThJbXb
— Anabel Gonzalez (@_AnabelG) November 26, 2021
Approximately 4,000 trade officials were planning to travel to Geneva for the conference, which was set to take place from November 30 to December 3.
“My priority is the health and safety of all MC12 participants -- ministers, delegates, and civil society,” Director-General Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala said. “It is better to err on the side of caution.”
Aside from the postponement, prospects for this meeting were not bright, as the WTO has only managed to agree to one update of its rules in its 27-year history. Its 164-member members seemed to be far from agreement on fishing subsidies and spreading COVID-19 vaccines more widely, with some countries calling for a waiver of intellectual rights on vaccines.
