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STORY: WTO / COVID-19 AND TRADE RESILIENCE
TRT: 4:22
SOURCE: WTO
RESTRICTIONS: NONE
LANGUAGE: ENGLISH / NATS
DATELINE: 28 SEPTEMBER 2021, GENEVA, SWITZERLAND
1. Zoom in, WTO headquarters exteriors
2. Zoom in, WTO logo at entrance
3. Zoom in, Public Forum banner at WTO’s entrance
4. Pan left, Okonjo-Iweala arrives for the Opening Session
5. Wide shot, Okonjo-Iweala arrives for the Opening Session
6. Wide shot, Okonjo-Iweala arrives for the Opening Session
7. Wide shot, cameraperson preparing for the session.
8. Pan right, session under way
9. SOUNDBITE (English) Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, WTO Director-General:
“In the pandemic, trade has been a source of resilience, helping households, businesses, and governments cope with dramatic shocks. Trade has enabled access to food and medical supplies, and contributed to economic recovery.”
10. Med shot, Dr Okonjo-Iweala addresses session under way
11. SOUNDBITE (English) Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, WTO Director-General:
“Let us be clear that the picture is not all rosy. The rebound in growth and trade is unequal across countries and regions, as is access to COVID-19 vaccines.”
12. Med shot, Dr Okonjo-Iweala addresses session under way.
13. SOUNDBITE (English): Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, WTO Director-General
“The trading system can and must do more to reduce vaccine inequity, and to help us tackle pressing challenges elsewhere, from our oceans to our climate.
That is why it is so important to deliver results at the WTO, in the weeks remaining before our Twelfth Ministerial Conference.”
14. Wide shot, Ramaphosa on screen, Okonjo-Iweala seated
15. SOUNDBITE (English) Cyril Ramaphosa, President of South Africa:
“The rapid and equitable roll-out of life-saving medical products is the best response to the virus and the best stimulus plan for a strong and sustained economic recovery. The WTO has a role to address trade and intellectual property related barriers to boost and diversify production of vaccines, diagnostics as well as therapeutics. Passing a time-bound, targeted TRIPS waiver, as proposed by South Africa and India, and now supported by many countries around the world, is urgent if we are to save millions of save lives. This is a proportionate response to the exceptional circumstances presented by the COVID-19 pandemic.”
16. Med shot, meeting room, President Ramaphosa on screen
17. SOUNDBITE (English) Cyril Ramaphosa, President of South Africa:
“The current global pandemic has presented the world with one of its greatest health, social and economic challenges in more than a century. Through collaboration, unity, solidarity and mutual respect. Through bodies like the WTO, we can rise to these challenges, and let us build a fairer, more prosperous and more resilient world.”
18. Pan right, delegates
19. SOUNDBITE (English) Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, Director-General, World Health Organization:
“There are many gaps and blockages along the way. Right now $2.4 billion doses of COVID-19 vaccines are needed to vaccinate the world's most at risk people, like health workers, the elderly, those with underlying conditions, and other vulnerable groups. The vaccines exist, but they're still not reaching the people who need them most.”
20. Cutaway, notebook
21.SOUNDBITE (English) Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, Director-General, World Health Organization:
“Let me leave you with three priorities. First, we need to remove unnecessary trade and travel constraints so that we can make vaccines and other vital available tools to those most in need. Second, we need to support the capacities of all countries to roll out COVID-19 vaccines. And finally, WHO looks forward to continuing collaboration with the World Trade Organization, and all member states to lower the barriers to trade and travel during health emergencies.”
22. Various shots, meeting
The WTO Public Forum, the largest yearly outreach event by the World Trade Organization, came back for its 20th edition after being cancelled in 2020 because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
In the opening panel, participants heard a discussion about effects of the pandemic on trade and how the multilateral trading system can help countries build resilience to COVID-19 and promote inclusive recovery from this and future crises. They discussed how trade can contribute to keeping supply chains operational to ensure equitable and affordable global access to medical supplies and equipment.
President Cyril Ramaphosa of South Africa delivered a keynote address; Dr Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, Director General of the WTO, also addressed the session as well as the WHO’s Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
