As a continuation of our long-standing collaboration with the Ministry of Investments and Foreign Trade on the WTO accession process of Uzbekistan, UNDP in Uzbekistan delivered a training on increasing the negotiation capacity of the Negotiation Group on the accession of Uzbekistan to the WTO. The workshop was attended by over 30 representatives of government officials from various ministries and agencies. As a result of this activity, the participants were able to develop their skills and understanding on holding bilateral and multilateral negotiations as a part of the WTO accession process.
The training was organized in collaboration with Professor Alisher Faizullaev, D.Sc, Ph.D., former Ambassador of Uzbekistan to the European Union, NATO, Benelux countries and the United Kingdom. The workshop session was offered in an interactive manner, using role-playing and learning games, case studies and discussions. It also focused on the importance of an effective communication for collaborative decision making, distributive and integrative negotiations, the art of bargaining and reaching mutually beneficial agreements and developing a mutual concession strategy.
“Every government is interested in improving the skills and knowledge of its government officials. With the irreversible processes of globalization and the increasing volume of international negotiations, there is an urgent need to train government personnel capable of conducting international negotiations, - said trainer Professor Faizullaev. The ability to come to a mutually beneficial solution in bilateral and multilateral negotiations involving countries plays a special role. This skill is especially necessary during the negotiation process for accession to the World Trade Organization, where the candidate country needs to negotiate the terms of accession with each interested WTO member country while protecting its national interests.”
Making successful public appearances and speeches, confidence building, nonverbal communication and body language and other negotiation techniques were also addressed and discussed during the training. The expert enriched these sessions by drawing from his unique experiences on arguments, persuasion and objection handling; as well as providing the participants with interactive complex negotiation exercises.
“Effective communication for us, government officials, plays an essential role in an effective negotiation, - said a training participant Ms. Lolita Irgasheva. This training introduced us a new phenomenon - communication that consists not only of the words we use, but the way we say those words, as well as our conscious and unconscious gestures and movements. These skills and techniques will help to conduct an effective negotiation and cooperation, as well as collaborate in decision making on common issues.”
It is expected that the acquired knowledge and skills would be of particular use in the course of bilateral and multilateral negotiation tracks with WTO Members within the 5th Working Party meeting on the Accession of Uzbekistan to the WTO.
To recall, Uzbekistan resumed WTO membership negotiations when the Working Party on the accession of Uzbekistan met the 4th time on 7 July 2020 – almost 15 years after its last formal meeting.
In order to finalize the accession process, the Government of Uzbekistan is expected to, among others, conclude bilateral agreements with interested WTO Members on market access in goods and services, as well as bring the country’s legislation and practices in line with WTO rules.
The ‘Aid for Trade in Uzbekistan’ project is implemented by the United Nations Development Programme in partnership with the Ministry of Investments and Foreign Trade of Uzbekistan and aimed to support Uzbekistan’s WTO accession process, developing trade, building productive and export capacities for niche products in employment-rich and potentially green sectors to contribute to more economically, socially, and environmentally sustainable growth patterns.
