“The new Cold War between the United States and China and the acceleration of the digital transformation by the pandemic-induced intensified use of online systems have generated new and urgent pressures for regulatory intervention and the development of new international rules.”
Dan Ciuriak on the need for post-pandemic institutional reforms
Pandemic Exposes Need, and Opportunity, for Institutional Reform
The pandemic highlighted the importance of multilateral cooperation, but it has also exposed gaps and outdated mechanisms. CIGI’s experts identified innovative opportunities for much-needed reforms.
Dan Ciuriak noted that trade agreements struggle to keep up with changing technologies but suggested the World Trade Organization (WTO) can still focus on establishing a new regime for e-commerce. Susan Ariel Aaronson argued that policy makers use trade agreements to counter disinformation through financial and trade sanctions.
Robert Fay told the Canadian Parliament’s Standing Committee on International Trade that the WTO must respond to rapid economic, political, social and technological changes by reforming digital trade rules and trade-related aspects of IP, while C. Randall Henning outlined innovative ways to deepen collaboration in governance, digital privacy and climate change.