Trade and Industry Minister Nivine Gamea underlined the importance of promoting joint efforts of African countries in confronting economic and health challenges facing the world.

She made the remarks on Saturday 11/06/2022 during an African ministerial meeting on the fringe of the 12th World Trade Organization (WTO)’s Ministerial Conference (MC12) which is held in Geneva on June 12 through 15.

WTO Director-General Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala attended the meeting along with other senior officials, the Trade and Industry Ministry said in a statement on Saturday 11/06/2022.

Gamea asserted that the WTO should play an effective role in confronting pandemics through facilitating access to medicine, vaccines and medical equipment to contain such crises.

She urged mobilizing African ministers’ efforts for development axis to be at the core of the conference’s recommendations, accentuating the importance of giving top priority to food security.

She called for supporting a proposal presented by Egypt on behalf of African, Arab and least developed countries to trigger through the WTO a response to food security challenges.

She underlined the importance of reforming WTO at all levels of its activities.

She urged intensifying efforts in the coming period on an e-commerce program, stressing Egypt’s commitment to a multilateral trade system and cooperation with participating member states to push forward the process of economic development in Africa.

Source: State Information Service Egypt