Global Review 2026 spotlights partnerships for trade and development
The Global Review looks at how USD 795 billion of investments in Aid for Trade has helped developing economies and LDCs build the infrastructure, skills and institutions they need to benefit more fully from global trade. The Review will also allow participants to exchange views on ways to help developing economies address their growing trade-related needs. The opening session saw the launch of a joint OECD-WTO report on trade and development partnerships, which looks at trends and impact of the Aid for Trade initiative.
Underscoring why this initiative came about, DG Okonjo-Iweala said in her opening remarks: "In launching the Aid for Trade initiative, the international community recognized that trade opportunities matter to the extent that economies have the capacity to seize them." She also noted that despite significant Aid for Trade efforts, African economies and LDCs are yet to see a qualitative expansion of their exports, with their shares in global exports remaining around 3 and 1 per cent, respectively. "We need to ask ourselves how to do better for the poorer countries and what must change to make this initiative more impactful," she said.
The Secretary-General of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), Mathias Cormann, said: "Connecting more people and businesses in developing countries to global markets and global supply chains is the best development policy there is. Twenty years of Aid for Trade show that it works. With public budgets under pressure, we now need stronger partnerships, with the private sector above all, so that every aid dollar brings much more investment with it. Private finance does not replace aid. It multiplies its impact."
The President of Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), Akihiko Tanaka, emphasised the importance of building "mutual trust" through Aid for Trade and development cooperation. He highlighted the role of long-term investments in quality infrastructure, institutions and human capacity in enabling countries to fully benefit from global trade. He stressed that meaningful and lasting impact is achieved when Aid for Trade supports initiatives driven by partner countries' own priorities and aspirations.
The Review will also feature two thematic plenaries outlining the priorities of LDCs and the future of partnerships. Three regional spotlights will bring perspectives from Africa, Asia-Pacific and the Americas.
More than 30 member-led sessions will showcase partnerships in action. The topics range from value chain development to trade facilitation and efforts aimed at strengthening trade capacities. Discussions will also cover services and digital trade, including the role of artificial intelligence in making trade more inclusive. Some sessions aim to explore efforts in strengthening partnerships between all stakeholders, including the private sector, and cooperation among developing economies.
The OECD-WTO report launched at the opening session reveals that developing economies now account for nearly half of global merchandise exports, up from 38 per cent in 2006. Their share of services exports has risen from a quarter to a third. This points to a positive contribution from Aid for Trade in helping developing economies expand their exports, even if progress across economies has been uneven.
At the same time, as development finance comes under pressure, the Report indicates that bilateral Aid for Trade could fall by around 22 per cent between 2024 and 2026. It also emphasizes the importance of channelling scarce resources where they are most needed and of mobilizing additional resources for trade, including from the private sector. The full report can be accessed here.
The Review will also launch a "Challenges and success stories" magazine, capturing over 20 success stories showcasing experiences and lessons learned from WTO members and partners across the world and at various development levels. The stories demonstrate how specially tailored support provides practical solutions to trade challenges faced by producers, entrepreneurs and exporters.
At the Trade Solutions Clinic - an interactive space connecting trade practitioners, technical assistance providers and other participants - trade experts will analyse specific trade challenges and work with participants to identify practical pathways forward. The Clinic will feature experts from the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, the International Finance Corporation, the International Growth Centre, the Global Trade Helpdesk, the Global Alliance for Trade Facilitation, the St Gallen Endowment and the WTO Chairs Programme.
The Global Review also features a Trade and Taste Corner showcasing food and wellness products from developing economies, including LDCs, and the producers and stories behind them. The Corner will feature the Enhanced Integrated Framework, the Standards and Trade Development Facility, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO).
Other publications to be launched at the Global Review include the Asian Development Bank's "Aid for Trade in Asia and the Pacific 2026: Unlocking Opportunities in Services and Agrifood Value Chains" and a publication on South-South and triangular cooperation co-published by the WTO and the UN Office for South-South Cooperation.
Aid for Trade aims to help developing economies tackle trade-related obstacles, strengthen their capacity to trade and build the infrastructure they need to integrate more fully into the international trading system. It is part of Official Development Assistance (ODA), comprising both grants and concessional loans. Aid for Trade accounts for one-fifth of the total ODA.
More information on the opening session is available here and the recording can be watched here.
The Global Review's full programme can be found here.
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