CAIRO: Egypt's Trade Minister Mahmoud Essa will head an Egyptian delegation to the ministerial conference of the eighth World Trade Organization (WTO) in Geneva. At the conference, which takes place Dec. 15-17, the Egypt delegation will highlight the country's position in global trade and its commitment to development. “Egypt confirms its support for the multilateral trading system and takes into account the idea of development and interests of developing countries,” said Essa in a statement. A priority for the delegation is to propose ideas that will help developing countries, in particular, expand their global trade. Alongside the ministerial conference, the Group of 90 which includes the world's developing countries will hold a series of intensive talks with the trade ministers and conference participants. Officials taking part in the conference will be discussing new international trade negotiations. Essa is expected to present a speech to the attendees confirming Egypt's support to the multilateral trading system and advocating free trade while highlighting the country's commitment to abolishing “unfair” practices when it comes to international trade, thus easing the flow of goods globally. The conference will bring together 153 trade ministers from member countries in the WTO to discuss new trade and development opportunities as well as the Doha Development Round. “This conference is a great opportunity to invite and attract senior officials and representatives of participating countries to come to invest in Egypt,” Essa added in the statement. Essa underlined that Egypt is a key player in the global market and an influential partner in the Middle East as well as Africa. Aside from current members of the WTO, several international bodies and organizations will be taking part, including non-governmental organizations. Several delegates from the Middle East as well as Africa will be attending. Participants from Brazil, the United States, Malaysia, the European Union, India, Zambia and Algeria will also take part in the global trade discussions. The Egyptian delegation includes Hisham Badr, Egypt's permanent representative and ambassador to Switzerland; Hany Bassiouny, president of the commercial office in Geneva; and Alaa Qenawy, president of the Trade Representation Office. According to the trade ministry, Egypt's delegation members also held a meeting on Wednesday with the Islamic Development Bank to strengthen collaboration among Arab states and Muslim members of the organization as well as use the capacity building and negotiation skills to promote the interests of the bank's partners. In January to June 2011, Egypt's total global exports — which include raw oil products, agricultural products, leather, chemical and cotton goods — amounted to $15.8 million, a $2.4 million (18 percent) increase from the same time last year. On the other hand, the country's total revenue from imports amounted to $27.8 million, a 14 percent increase from the previous year's $24.5 million. Egypt currently exports a wide range of products that includes cotton, textiles, food and agriculture goods, clothing, electronics, chemical and medical products, as well as oil and raw resources.
