“The world is going through a turbulent period,” said Mr Lamy in his opening address. “We are witnessing a food crisis. The economies in many parts of the world are not growing at a pace sufficient to achieve the fiscal consolidation needed after the measures taken during the financial crisis. In other parts of the world the pace of growth is raising concerns about its ecological and social sustainability. Unemployment remains far too high and its painful consequences are fuelling isolationist tendencies. We are seeing regime changes in many parts of the Arab world … A world in need of a compass. A world in need of more and better global co-operation.”

He said that the WTO “has successfully helped countries navigate during the worst of the recent economic crisis,” but “we need to build a stronger global trading system to face the challenge ahead of us … and this is where this Public Forum has a crucial role to play.”
Before inviting President Laura Chinchilla Miranda of Costa Rica to take the floor, the Director-General noted that her country has demonstrated how to use trade opening to contribute positively to development — and that it is also aiming to become the world’s first carbon-neutral country.

Inaugural speech: Opening address by President Laura Chinchilla Miranda of Costa Rica

In her opening address, President Chinchilla expressed full support to free trade “which has proven to be a powerful tool for economic growth and poverty reduction,” adding that her country “bears testimony to the potential benefits of opening up trade.”

The President said that the most urgent task facing the international community is the Doha Round. She said that “the least we can provide after a decade of discussions is flexibility,” and warned that “without the Doha Round, many of us will lose, particularly countries with small markets and with little capacity to export and attract investment”.