On the international political front, the headlines are full of ‘trade wars’ news. The rise of populist sentiment in the developed world is challenging many of the post-cold war assumptions, wherein the march of trade liberalisation and liberal political systems were in lockstep.

Political debates increasingly reflect these international tensions, as well as the broader, deteriorating, regional security environment.

Security, trade and investment are now more, and increasingly, entwined, affecting trade policies and regulations across the globe.

Yet threats bring new opportunities including new trade routes opening and technological advancements that will simultaneously render cross-border trade easier to do, while multiplying the possibilities for dispersing production facilities internationally and bringing goods and services closer to consumers.

Our recent session as part of the Aid for Trade Global Review emphasized the importance of women entrepreneurs in international trade. The title of the session "Women who rock the international trade" had its origins in a social media campaign that coincided with the international day of women to celebrate the contribution of women to the world of international trade. The campaign particularly focussed on the unsung heroes, the women who daily make a contribution, but out of the spotlight. The focus of the discussion was how women can capitalise on their huge potential to contribute to the world economy. Discussion centred around gender equality in trade, sustainable initiatives to encourage women to trade globally, and the constraints faced by women. The participants also discussed the need to integrate gender aspect into trade policy. The session was organised by GTPA and EIF.

“The GTPA congratulations the 76 WTO members committed to establishing eCommerce rules. The rapid pace and scale of technological change and global flows of information, among other forces, are disrupting labour markets and fundamentally altering the future of work. While these shifts may create economic growth, new jobs and flexible work, they may also lead to the automation and consequent disappearance of routine, manual roles,” said Lisa McAuley, CEO of the Global Trade Professionals Alliance (GTPA).

Technological advancements, despite the disruption, also create opportunities for expansion into global markets for sectors of the population excluded from more traditional trade mechanisms. The ability to seize these opportunities and manage potential obstacles, however, is not evenly distributed.

As the Executive Director of the GTPA I have worked in international trade for over a decade, focused on supporting SMEs to build their capacity and capability to engage in global trade. During my time as the CEO of the ECA it was our goal to support SME’s to successfully compete on the global stage. This was achieved through the support of the Government and the private sector. At the ECA we engaged in activities such as skills development, research, the development of online tools as well as trade policy and advocacy.

It has been widely researched and broadly acknowledged that SMEs and micro-enterprises are important drivers of economic value-creation around the world, whether in developing markets or OECD economies. Similarly, the character of international trade as an engine of growth was axiomatic for decades prior to the global crisis.

The “TPP-11” has finally moved forward under a new agreement to be known as the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership, with talks finalised in Japan overnight. Canada is back on board and the agreement is on track to be signed in March this year.

Happy New Year and all very best wishes to you and yours from the ITAC and the GTPA Team, and here’s hoping that all who celebrated over the past weeks have had an enjoyable Holiday Season!

In the New Year I will be moving on to head up the Global Trade Professionals Alliance (GTPA). Over the years a group of us explored different avenues in which companies and the community of service providers that support them could obtain international certification to recognise their competency in the field of global trade. We could find no pathway in which there was a global standard (which I found rather strange), particularly as we advocate for the harmonisation of global standards in other sectors.

GTPA is a new not-for-profit, membership-based organisation connecting individuals and organisations to a trusted network with recognised capabilities that power supply chains and their communities around the world.