Imperial Royale Hotel, Kampala, Uganda
September 29, 2009

In September 2009, the Ugandan Ministry of Tourism, Trade and Industry (MTTI) and the Private Sector Foundation of Uganda (PSFU), in collaboration with International Lawyers and Economists Against Poverty (ILEAP) organized a meeting on services – as the most dynamic area of international trade - aimed together enhancing competitiveness, stimulating economic development and reducing poverty. At the same time services reforms and negotiations remain understandably contentious due to their potential to expose vulnerable stakeholders to a variety of risks.

Despite the acknowledged role such coalitions can and should play in harnessing services for development, their existence in Africa is virtually non‐existent (including in East Africa). As such, the broader objective of this workshop is to help create awareness about the role of services coalitions in pursuing services reforms and negotiations, as well as to promote information and knowledge sharing amongst stakeholders of national/regional experiences with services associations. Building consensus for such coalitions is thus a key expected outcome. By helping to elaborate on how such coalitions can be properly situated within the existing institutional landscape, the ultimate aim is to help catalyze the formation of Uganda services coalition.

Aide Memoire/Agenda

Participants List

Presentations

Papers

Final Report