“The international digital economy has grown to a massive scale, operating in the context of an inconsistent and incomplete governance framework cobbled together at the multilateral, regional and bilateral levels.”
Douglas Lippoldt in Regulating the International Digital Economy, with Trade and Innovation in Mind
CIGI experts, including Robert Fay, Dan Ciuriak and James Bacchus, held up the Digital Economy Partnership Agreement (DEPA) — negotiated by Chile, New Zealand and Singapore — as a model for Canada and others to follow. The Canadian government took note, announcing that it would join the agreement. DEPA goes well beyond traditional trade agreements, and their digital chapters, by facilitating seamless end-to-end digital trade and building trust in digital systems.
This year, CIGI also explored digital trade architecture at the World Trade Organization (WTO) Public Forum and joined the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) in launching its annual Digital Economy Report. UNCTAD highlighted major substantive inputs delivered by CIGI and its experts during the report’s development.