Minister Ng meets with OECD and international partners to advance trade and economic priorities

June 9, 2023 – Paris, France – Global Affairs Canada

This week, the Honourable Mary Ng, Minister of International Trade, Export Promotion, Small Business and Economic Development, was in Paris and met with international partners and participated in the 2023 Ministerial Council Meeting of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD).

During the OECD meetings, Minister Ng reiterated Canada’s commitment to work with OECD members to address the economic and trade impacts of Russia’s illegal and unjustifiable aggression towards Ukraine.

Minister Ng then led an Ottawa Group meeting on WTO reform and participated in the Australia-hosted WTO Informal Ministerial, where she discussed key priorities for the WTO’s 13th Ministerial Conference (MC13), such as establishing a fully functioning dispute settlement system and addressing food insecurity.

Minister Ng also held bilateral meetings with counterparts from Australia, Brazil, South Korea, and Vietnam to discuss shared commitments and priorities and highlight Canada as a leader in international rules-based trade. Minister Ng also took advantage of her visit to speak with Ministers from Costa Rica, Colombia, Sweden, UK and US, among others.

At the conclusion of the OECD Ministerial Council Meeting, members, including Canada, endorsed a joint statement on their commitment to maintaining and strengthening the rules-based international economic order, and to building a strong, sustainable and inclusive future. 

After the conclusion of the OECD Ministerial Council Meeting, Minister Ng met with counterparts from Australia, Japan, New Zealand, the United Kingdom and the United States of America to address economic coercion and unfair trading practices.  Together, they issued a Joint Declaration Against Trade-Related Economic Coercion and Non-Market Policies and Practices.

As 2023 Chair of the Global Forum on Steel Excess Capacity Ministerial Meeting, Minister Ng also led discussions focused on addressing global excess steel capacity issues and decarbonizing the sector to meet climate goals.