• Adopts statement on e-commerce in Argentina
Nigeria has been named among some nations slated to benefit from the $300m Japan’s support for the growth of Information Communication Technology (ICT) in developing countries.

The announcement was made at the e-commerce meeting holding in Buenos Aires, Argentina.

Similarly, Nigeria and some 69 other countries have adopted a joint statement on electronic commerce at the 11th ministerial conference of the World Trade Organization (WTO).

This was contained in a statement by the Strategy and Communication Adviser to the Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Constance Ikokwu yesterday in Abuja.

According to him, the joint statement provides a channel for countries to begin exploratory work on e-commerce issues, dealing with both the challenges and opportunities.

“We share the goal of advancing electronic commerce work in the WTO in order to better harness these opportunities, we recognize the particular opportunities and challenges faced by developing countries, especially LDCs, as well as by micro, small and medium-sized enterprises, in relation to electronic commerce.

“We also recognize the important role of the WTO in promoting open, transparent, non-discriminatory and predictable regulatory environments in facilitating electronic commerce. We, as a group, will initiate exploratory work together toward future WTO negotiations on trade-related aspects of electronic commerce,” the statement read in part.

Ikokwu said participation would be open to all WTO members and would be without prejudice to participants’ position on future negotiations.

The statement further read: “Our work will build on WTO rules. Our initiative will be undertaken without prejudice to existing WTO agreements and mandates. We encourage all WTO members to join us and to support and enhance the benefits of electronic commerce for businesses and consumers across the globe.”

Some of the countries that have adopted the statement are Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Cambodia, Hong Kong, China, Iceland, Israel, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, Mexico, Ukraine, United States of America, Uruguay, New Zealand, Moldova, Liechtenstein, European Union and Colombia.