The session was opened and moderated by Prof. Will Milberg, who pointed out that global value chains are a very important aspect of international trade, creating a more liberal environment for global trade. Value chain implications on trade have become the main drivers of trade.

Mr Lucien Cernat of the European Commission described the European Union’s experience and highlighted the importance of the Made in the World initiative. He said that both trade and job creation have to be supported by the people.

Mr Henrik Isakson of Sweden’s National Board of Trade stressed that Swedish exports are not only “Made in Sweden”. Half of Sweden’s GDP is generated by exports. He said that “made in …” labels are mostly misleading. He suggested that countries should focus more on import promotion rather than export promotion.

Costa Rica’s Minister of Foreign Trade Anabel Gonzalez presented the case of her country in global value chains. She noted that Costa Rica has become an active participant in global value chains thanks to strategic vision, the business environment, a solid export platform, an educated work force and its privileged geographical location close to the US market. She pointed out that the next step is to diversify, strengthen and upgrade global value chains in order to take advantage of key opportunities such us increasing the link between Asia and Latin America, and expanding global value chains to other areas of production and to the offshoring of services.

Mr Hubert Escaith of the WTO noted the importance of services in terms of trade. He said that preferential trade agreements harmonize regulations and global value chains. Bilateral negotiations cannot be in competition with multilateral negotiations. Production and employment are dependent on developing countries. Finally, he highlighted the importance of having global policies and finding a global solution for an interdependent world.
Answering questions from the audience, Minister Anabel Gonzalez pointed out that in Central America, regional integration would be needed. Preferential trade agreements could provide the foundations for an integrated system. Mr Escaith said that Made in the World is not a new concept, but in recent years it has become increasingly relevant in terms of jobs and political implications. Finally Mr Cernat invited policy makers and researchers to get involved in this initiative.