For nearly 30 years, the World Trade Organization (WTO) has been the bedrock of the global trading system, serving as a negotiating forum for its 164 members, providing a system for resolving trade disputes, and acting as an essential clearinghouse for trade-related information. Over three-quarters of cross-border trade is carried out based on members’ WTO commitments, fostering an environment that has seen global trade soar from $5 trillion in 1995, the year of the WTO’s founding, to almost $25 trillion in 2022.

Paradoxically, despite decades of success and the overwhelming benefits of trade for developed and developing countries alike, the WTO faces growing challenges and growing skepticism—particularly among US policymakers—regarding the benefits of globalization.

It is our pleasure to welcome Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, director-general of the WTO, to the Cato Institute for a frank discussion on the threats facing both the WTO and globalization more broadly, as well as their implications for the global economy, developing countries, and the world’s most vulnerable people. Indeed, there may be no better person to discuss these topics than Okonjo-Iweala, given her current position at the WTO and her distinguished 40-year career as an economist, international development expert, Nigerian government official and finance expert. We’d be thrilled for you to join us for this important conversation.

Lunch to follow