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Tuesday, April 21, 2020, 9:00 ET/14:00 UK/15:00 CET/21:00 CST
Governments around the world are imposing trade controls that may cut off access to life-saving equipment. GW Law held an open webinar on protectionism in the COVID-19 pandemic – the barriers to imports and exports that threaten to deepen the pandemic. The program materials are below.
Background article (with key resources) for this webinar
The panelists discussed:
- Understanding barriers to trade in COVID-19 critical supplies;
- A new U.S. government order banning exports of essential medical supplies;
- How humanitarian supplies can be shipped despite US export sanctions;
- US threats to withdraw from the WTO Government Procurement Agreement; and,
- Emerging approaches to assessing trade barriers’ economic impacts.
Presented with the kind cooperation of the National Foreign Trade Council
Panelists
Simon Evenett, University of St Gallen (Switzerland) – Bio COVID-19 Trade Report
Robert Anderson, Hon. Professor, U. Nottingham (WTO-retired) – Bio – Works – Keeping markets open while ensuring due flexibility for governments in a time of economic and public health crisis: the role of the WTO Agreement on Government Procurement (GPA) (draft – forthcoming, Public Procurement Law Review)
Jean Heilman Grier, Djaghe Consulting (Washington DC) – Bio Works – Perspectives on Trade: ‘US Temporarily Lifts Procurement Ban’
Tom McSorley, Arnold & Porter (Washington DC) – Bio Humanitarian aid US Export Controls
Zornitsa Kutlina-Dimitrova, European Union – DG for Trade – Bio – Works
Moderators: Christopher Yukins, GW Law School; Vanessa Sciarra, National Foreign Trade Council; Laurence Folliot Lalliot (University of Paris Nanterre (joining from Dakar))
Resources on COVID-19 and Procurement
Previous Webinars (and recordings)
Fighting Fraud in COVID-19 Sourcing – Webinar – April 9, 2020
Straight Talk: Emergency Procurement in the COVID-19 Pandemic – April 2, 2020
Public Contracts and the Coronavirus – Online Colloquium – March 24, 2020