Publications

Geneva Barometer

Developments among Geneva-based international organisations from September to December 2024

The ‘Geneva Barometer’ takes an occasional look at selected developments among international organizations based in Geneva.

Fast, but not fast-tracked

Mitglieder der Welthandelsorganisation (WTO) bestätigen WTO-Generaldirektorin, Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala für eine zweite Amtszeit

Am Freitag, den 29.11.2024 bestätigten alle 166 WTO-Mitglieder die amtierende WTO-Generaldirektorin und frühere zweimalige nigerianische Finanzministerin und Direktorin der Weltbank in ihrer zweiten Amtszeit.

The pandemic agreement on the home straight?

The "Geneva Telegram" deals with events in Geneva's multilateral organizations on a current topic, this time the 12th meeting of the Intergovernmental Negotiating Body on the World Health Organization (WHO) Pandemic Convention (INB), which met in Geneva from 4 to 15 November 2024.

The 12th meeting of the intergovernmental negotiating body represented a further step in the negotiations on a global pandemic agreement. Although progress was made, the member states decided not to convene a special session of the World Health Assembly (WHA) in December. Instead, the aim is to conclude the negotiations in May 2025 for the next regular World Health Assembly. WHO Director-General Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus opened the round of negotiations by emphasising the importance of reaching an agreement in the near future: ‘Perfection must not be the enemy of good.’ Nevertheless, numerous delegations warned that content must take precedence over speed to ensure a robust agreement.

Geneva Telegram on the 11th meeting of the intergovernmental negotiating body on the pandemic agreement

The "Geneva Telegram" deals with events in Geneva's multilateral organizations on a current topic, this time the 11th meeting of the Intergovernmental Negotiating Body on the Pandemic Agreement (INB11), which met in Geneva from 9 to 20 September 2024.

This round of negotiations marked another crucial step in the process of finalizing the pandemic agreement. However, WHO Director-General Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus expressed his disappointment at the lack of significant progress: “Progress has been made, but not to the extent we had hoped for.” The urgency of a binding pandemic agreement has further increased after the WHO Director-General declared a Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC) on August 14, 2024, due to the ongoing Mpox outbreak on the African continent. This escalation underscores the importance of globally coordinated pandemic preparedness and response measures and shows that a pandemic will not wait for negotiations to be concluded.

Klare Absage an Reform der Pensionskassen und an Biodiversitätsinitiative

Am Sonntag, den 22.09.2024 wurden die Schweizerinnen und Schweizer zur Urne gebeten, um über eine Reform der beruflichen Altersvorsorge (BVG) sowie eine Volksinitiative zum Schutz der Biodiversität abzustimmen. Der Reformvorschlag des bürgerlichen Lagers über die BVG-Reform wurde mit 67,12% Nein-Stimmen abgelehnt. Auch die Biodiversitätsinitiative fiel mit 63,03% der Stimmen deutlich bei den Wählerinnen und Wählern durch. Die Stimmbeteiligung für beide Vorlagen lag bei etwa 45%. Im Vergleich zur letzten Abstimmung im Juni hat sich die Beteiligung nicht verändert und reiht sich damit knapp unter dem Durchschnitt der letzten Jahre ein.

Bridging the Transatlantic Digital Divide

Reflections from the KAS-Wilson Center Roundtable on Digital Trade

The digital age is advancing at a dizzying pace, a pace that regulators around the world struggle to match. But the speed of digitization is only part of the challenge facing regulators today; even more demanding is the complexity of the issues they confront. Regulating information technology is not contentious. Adequate protection of privacy and of children’s rights must be ensured and widespread dissemination of misinformation must be forestalled. But by the same token too heavy a regulatory hand can stymie innovation, depress growth and undermine competitiveness.

EU–US Divergence on Energy Policy

Differing Economic Structures and Possible Alignment on a Market Based Approach

As part of a joint effort to explore greater alignment between the US and the European Union (EU) on trade related matters, the Wahba Institute for Strategic Competition (WISC) of the Washington DC based Wilson Center and the German Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung having analyzed each continents differing approaches to promoting an energy transition, hosted a transatlantic discussion (June 12th 2024) exploring the possibilities of alignment on a Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM). The event brought together congressional and parliamentary staff, government officials, business leaders, NGOs and members of research organizations seeking to sift through policy options and find common ground. Read the highlights regarding EU and US Climate Policy in the final report.

Geneva Telegram for the July session of the General Council of the World Trade Organisation (WTO)

The ‘Geneva Telegram’ discusses current deliberations in the Geneva-based multilateral organisations, in this case the July meeting of the General Council of the WTO

The telegram covers the proceedings of the General Council meeting of 22-23 July 2024, chaired by Petter Ølberg (Norway).

Geneva Telegram on the 10th meeting of the negotiating body on the pandemic agreement

The "Geneva Telegram" deals with events in Geneva's multilateral organizations on a current topic, this time the 10th meeting of the Intergovernmental Negotiating Body on the Pandemic Agreement (INB10), which met in Geneva on 16 and 17 July 2024.

After the international community failed to agree on a binding pandemic agreement by the 77th World Health Assembly (WHA) from May 26 to June 1, 2024, a decision was made to continue the negotiation process beyond the May 2024 deadline. On July 16 and 17, 2024, the intergovernmental negotiating body, comprising all member states, reconvened. This two-day meeting had been planned as a purely organizational session back in May, so the focus was on further work planning to conclude the negotiations.

Geneva Telegram with key insights from UNHCR’s new global trends report

The "Geneva Telegram" explores events in Geneva-based multilateral organizations on a current topic. This time, the focus is on the new global trends report of the UNHCR.

On June 13, 2024, the UNHCR (United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees) presented its new report on global refugee trends. It focuses primarily on developments in the calendar year 2023, in which 117.3 million people were displaced, 8% more than in the previous year which represents the 12th consecutive annual increase in number of people forcibly displaced.