INAUGURAL MEETING OF THE ORGANIZING COMMITTEE OF THE WTO MOCK SUMMIT 2014

INAUGURAL MEETING OF THE ORGANIZING COMMITTEE OF THE WTO MOCK SUMMIT 2014

INTRODUCTION

Let me start by acknowledging that this Group, when you are joined by the trade delegates, commission chairmen and those who take other roles in the WTO Mock Summit, is a collection of young, brilliant, hardworking and talented students of Bayero University, Kano, who come together, under the guide of their teachers to educate and create awareness among Nigerian students and the general public about the World Trade Organization.

It is a Study and Research Group on global trade politics, therefore selection of the leadership and the participants is, not based on any biased criterion. But on competence.

However, anybody who does not want ttbring his intelligence to craft this project is free to drop from the Group.

When I see you around me, indeed of fine ideas and clear thinking, it gives me guarantee and hope that in 2014 we are going to web a performance of higher standard.

I hope that from today when preparation of 2014 WTO-Mock Summit is kicked off, your sprit and determination would be raised for maximum achievement.

MANDATE AND RESPONSIBILITIES

Many members of this committee are already aware of the demands and responsibilities in organizing the summit, yet it is in order to make an outline of your terms of reference:

1)    To provide general logistic for successful WTO-Mock Summit 2014.

2)    To publicize both within and outside the campus, the principles governing the work of WTO as well as the mission and vision of the mock exercise.

3)    To mobilize financial resources for successful execution of the project.

4)    Any other thing which the committee is assigned to do.

This year the task is greater as we are going to celebrate the tenth anniversary of WTO-Mock summit in Bayero University, Kano. It would be a whole week of activities to include the following:-

1)    To plan for engagement in Youth Programme with Freedom Radio;

2)    Plan a programme, to be defined in due course, with NTA Kano or the NTA National Office in Abuja;

3)    There is going to be a public lecture to be delivered by a knowledgeable person on Intellectual Property Rights and Development in Nigeria;

4)    WTO-Mock Summit debate ;

5)    WTO-Mock Summit soccer competition;

6)    Finally, is the Mock display of the Minesterial Summit of the WTO;

7)    Lastly, is a magazine which would report issues about WTO. Whereas, work has already started, an editorial Committee would be set up to formalize its work. As the Secretary of the Organizing Committee has already started talking with ECOWAS Office, I hope funding of the magazine would come from there.

Accordingly, members of the Committee are hereby presented. However, the Committee has the power to incorporate anybody who is going to make effective contribution towards attaining the goal of the Committee, and could propose increase of the terms of reference of the Committee.

Meanwhile, in order to work efficiently and thoroughly, you have to create Committees that would work very closely and advise the main Committee. Such Committees would include:-

1)    Fund Raising Committee

2)    Publicity Committee

3)    Media Crew

4)    Security Team

5)    Decoration of the venue Committee

6)    Human Right Activists Committee

There may be other Committees or Sub-committees the Organizing Committee could constitute if the need arises.

At another level I want advise again that the Committee must know its limits and members of the Committee too. You must note that:-

1)    You are going to share responsibilities but you must work and decide together as a team.

2)    There must be transparency in what everyone does.

3)    There should not be feeling of presidentialism by members carrying assignment on behalf of the Committee.

4)    It is not the responsibility of the Committee to select trade delegates and other actors, but the secretariat will document the names of interested students and may suggest those to be tested to participate.

5)    I will be holding regular meetings with you or the Sub-committees or with the Chairman and the Secretary to be receiving reports.

There are many requests from Old members who graduated, to come and participate. This will remain in view until we see what conditions come to be. Also many other suggestions on the tenth anniversary.

What should we do from now? Just to say that the organization of the Summit 2014 has started and by the beginning of the second semester – Precisely in November – we would conclude and stage the Summit.

THE HISTORY OF WTO-MOCK SUMMIT

WTO-Mock Summit is ten years in 2014. In recognition of collapse of University system in Nigeria which brought down quality of students who graduated I (M. M. Yusif) created WTO-Mock Summit to sustain my style of teaching and empower the capacity of students in learning, research and leadership. But also to achieve wider set goals as contain in the paper “Aims and objectives of WTO-Mock Group”.

When I invited the closest students association to me i.e. NAPSS, as a result of that the first three years of the Summit became of crisis, but because of determination to continue, also of consolidation.

At the time of inaugural meeting of the Organizing Committee of the Summit 2008 we critically made a review of what happened about leadership of the Summit for three years.

In that historical year of the WTO-Mock summit I got many members of the leadership of the Organizing Committee and the participants from Department of Economics, Biological Sciences, and Education as well as from Faculties of Law and Technology.

The decisions of the inaugural Committee of the Summit 2008 became of vital importance for survival of the programme. I had already stated these decisions while inaugurating the leadership of the Summit 2013. The then Head of Department of Political Science must not be forgotten to be mentioned here, as at this juncture he supported the decisions, even made financial contribution on behalf of the Department which pushed the will to continue with the Summit.

Nevertheless, in spite of everything I continued to partner with NAPSS until the conduct of the top leadership of the Organizing Committee of the Summit 2013 and the NAPSS, which after discussion with Dean Student Affairs, feel that it is better to change the partner – most appropriately to become the Faculty Association.

Because 2008 became a reference point in the survival of WTO-Mock Summit, since then to date the exercise becomes an annual event of critical thinking, comments and observations on WTO politics and we come with resolutions which we communicate to the WTO Secretariat in Geneva and to the Federal Ministry of Trade and Investment.

Since then each Mock Round focused on a specific problem of international trade:-

Þ   In the year 2008 the focus was on the major trade Agreements Under WTO regime with a view to review them for fair trade.

Þ   The 2009 Mock Summit was on Agricultural Trade including various aspects of consultation and negotiations governing the Agreement.

Þ   In 2010 was how the 2008 global financial crisis affected Doha negotiations.

Þ   In 2011, inspite of some problems, was successful in debating General Agreement on Trade in Services, but the Summit ended without recommendations.

Þ   In 2012, “Special and Differential Treatment” was treated and the solution and way out recommended.

Þ   The 2013 performance treated the subject “Trade, Environment and Development”.

The subject of the Summit this year is “Trade-related aspects of Intellectual Property Rights and Development of developing countries”.

The idea of intellectual property is long in the literature, about development of human society. But very obscure and highly technical discipline usually dealt with by lawyers, companies, businessmen, etc.

The more development of capitalism, the more of private power, the need of people to protect their skills, expertise, know-how, ideas etc. from piracy and abuse.

One of the most important methods of intellectual property protection is the enactment and enforcement of international treaties. Secondly is to make domestic laws and regulations in form of patent, copyright, trade mark to protect inventions and similar intellectual property.

Existing International treaties include the Paris convention, Berne convention, and many other Agreements.

The Agreement on Trade-Related Aspect of Intellectual Property Rights, known as TRIPS is widely considered the most relevant intellectual Property treaty. TRIPS came under WTO regime and is enforced by the WTO. TRIPS Agreement contains provisions for protection of patent, copyrights, as well as trademarks.

The Agreement has wider implication for development of developing countries in a way of access to medicine, dissemination of technology, on management and ownership of biodiversity etc.

When a concept of the Summit comes out next week, more details, especially on the areas of Commission Reports would be shown.

THE NEW WTO-MOCK SUMMIT GROUP

Two major events have recently happened which if property utilized would give a new face to this Group.

One is that not quite long ago an old member of this Group advised me to write a brief to the Minister of Trade and Investment and to request to pass the same to WTO Secretariat in Geneva.

I did as requested and within few weeks an officer from Geneva called my GSM line and advised on what WTO Secretariat could give funding. He said, one is by Organizing National or International conference.

I have already slightly altered the name to “WTO-Mock Summit and Research Group”. There will be selection of some lecturers and also students from the University to fulfill the additional mandate of the Group.

Furthermore, the WTO Secretariat has agreed that it will give e-training to selected students of the Group. It has already passed the software to me through Federal Ministry of Trade and Investment. I will appoint a Committee to look at the software, to choose what programme for the E-training, how many students would be involved and when the report is given to me I will write to the Ministry.

Two is that the WTO-Mock Summit Group has thought to expand its base, therefore has abandoned its partnership with NAPSS and signed memorandum of understanding with FOSAMSSA to partner in the activities of organizing WTO-Mock Summit and other educational programmes of the Group.

The memorandum is sealed and on our own part every activity is going to be done as is by FOSAMSSA. We already have lecturers from most Departments in SMS as resource persons, but with due consultation with FOSAMSSA we are going to have more. Again, we register student participants from all Departments of the Faculty, I hope in next few years many more would participate.

Let me say it again, that the engagement of FOSAMSSA is after discussion with Dean Student Affairs. He will of course be duly informed of this Agreement with the Faculty Association.

By way of conclusion let me say that the task before you is very great and is demanding. It needs people with initiative to decide and to act, not wait to be told what to do. Don’t fear making mistake! You are on the ground doing the work!! You know better!!! So, you don’t have to take instruction from me or anybody if is not feasible.

Finally, talk to each other! Think together and work together!! Avoid the manner of being I must be the best!!!

M. M. Yusif

15/08/2014