Egypt submits draft resolution on enhancing WTO response to food security challenges

CAIRO – 10 June 2022: Egypt submitted on Thursday a draft resolution to the World Trade Organization (WTO) on enhancing the regulatory organization’s response to the food security challenges in net food-importing developing states and the least developed countries.

The draft resolution will be discussed during the 12th ministerial meeting of the WTO scheduled to be held in Geneva on 12-15 June, the Egyptian Foreign Ministry said in a statement.

“This comes within the framework of the Egyptian government’s tireless efforts to deal with the global economic crisis and its broad repercussions on the Egyptian economy in particular and developing countries in general,” the statement read.

Ambassador Ahmed Ihab Gamal El-Din, Egypt’s permanent representative to the UN and other international organizations in Geneva, said the Egyptian delegation presented the draft resolution to the organization on behalf of the Arab and African groups and the least developed countries.

This comes after rounds of intensive consultations with various member states to mobilize the necessary support to sponsor the draft resolution, he added.

This move comes within the framework of efforts to deal with the global food crisis and its repercussions on the least developed countries and net food-importing developing countries, such as Egypt, Gamal El-Din stressed.

The draft resolution aims at providing practical solutions to support farmers and producers and enhance the production capacities of grains and crops in those countries in accordance with the rules of the organization, the representative added.

The resolution also aims at educating the world public opinion about the severe damage caused to the economies of developing countries in this regard, especially amid the record rise in food and energy prices.

The global food crisis is part of the major crisis facing the global economy since the COVID-19 pandemic and the accompanying slowdown in economic growth, production and investment, as well as high inflation rates, disruption of global supply chains and high debts, Gamal El-Din said.

He added that this requires strengthening international solidarity through international organizations, especially the WTO, to grant net food-importing developing countries and least-developed countries the required flexibility that would allow them to deal with any exceptional circumstances that affect their food security.