News Stories Archives

New OECD Deputy Secretary General Meets With USCIB

Published on November 11, 2019
L-R: OECD Deputy Secretary General Ulrik Vestergaard Knudsen; Head of the OECD’s Washington office Will Davis

USCIB members and staff had the opportunity to meet with the new Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) Deputy Secretary-General Ulrik Vestergaard Knudsen on November 5 at the USCIB Washington DC office. Knudsen’s diverse policy portfolio at the OECD includes science, technology and innovation, trade and agriculture, the OECD Center for Entrepreneurship, SMEs, as well as regions and cities.

The dialogue between Knudsen and USCIB members focused on areas of mutual interest such as taxation policy, including the pressing issue of digital taxation, as well as cross-border data flows, healthcare, trade and investment, digital trade, and the Going Digital Project. Knudsen also mentioned Artificial Intelligence (AI) as an increasingly important issue for the OECD and the establishment of the OECD AI Policy Observatory, which will help countries nurture and monitor the responsible development of trustworthy AI systems for the benefit of society.

L-R: Norine Kennedy (USCIB), Will Davis (OECD Washington), Ambassador Ulrik Vestergaard Knudsen (OECD), Peter Robinson (USCIB), Eva Hampl (USCIB), Rob Mulligan (USCIB)

USCIB members from Microsoft, IBM, General Electric, CropLife America, Walmart and others, benefited from the opportunity to hear directly from OECD leadership regarding the OECD’s priorities as well as an update on the OECD accession process. USCIB participants underlined the importance of maximizing access for business and other responsible stakeholders in all OECD committee meetings.

“We are grateful that DSG Knudsen took the time to meet with U.S. business,” said USCIB Senior Vice President for Policy and Government Relations Rob Mulligan. “USCIB staff and members always appreciate an opportunity to provide perspectives to the OECD staff and secretariat to help inform the OECD’s science-based policy recommendations.”

USCIB is the U.S. national committee of Business at OECD (BIAC).

P&G, Pepsi Receive Prestigious State Department ACE Awards

Published on November 5, 2019
P&G’s Selina Jackson accepts ACE Award for Women’s Economic Engagement

Secretary of State Mike Pompeo presented the State Department’s annual Awards for Corporate Excellence (ACE Awards) for 2019 at an impressive public ceremony at the Department on October 31. As in most years, USCIB member companies swept the large multinational company categories.

Procter & Gamble Vice President of Global Government Relations and Public Policy Selina Jackson accepted the ACE Award for Women’s Economic Empowerment on behalf of P&G Asia Pacific for its impressive program to develop and promote women executives and managers through that key region.

PepsiCo’s Phil Myers accepts ACE Award for Sustainable Operations

PepsiCo Senior Vice President, Global Government Affairs and Public Policy, Phil Myers accepted the ACE for Sustainable Operations on behalf of PepsiCo India, recognizing its path-breaking work on water conservation and quality in India. Both recipients, as well as the winners in the parallel Small and Medium Enterprise categories, delivered gracious remarks to the crowd of U.S. government officials, foreign diplomats and business leaders.

PepsiCo and P&G were selected from impressive cohorts of nominations by U.S. Ambassadors around the world, each nominating particularly outstanding corporate citizens in the local U.S. business community.  P&G is a repeat winner, having won a 2011 ACE for its work in Nigeria and Pakistan. USCIB Vice President and former U.S. Ambassador Shaun Donnelly represented USCIB at the ceremony and congratulated USCIB member company winners.

“It seems almost every year, USCIB member companies win one or both of these prestigious ACE Awards,” Donnelly said.  “Our member companies, typified by P&G and PepsiCo, are widely recognized as leaders in all areas or corporate responsibility and sustainability in a wide range of foreign countries, developed and developing, including in some very challenging environments. We are very proud to see them recognized.”

For a list of previous ACE Award winners, see here.

 

USCIB Member Reports on Recent UN International Trade Law Meetings

Published on November 5, 2019

Lauren Mandell, an international investment expert from the Washington DC office of USCIB member WilmerHale and a former deputy assistant U.S. Trade Representative for investment policy, represented USCIB at the October 14-18 meeting of the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law (UNCITRAL) Working Group III in Vienna. Mandell was one of a small handful of business and arbitration community observers at this semiannual meeting.

UNCITRAL’s Working Group III is focused on “reforming” the Investor-State Dispute Settlement (ISDS) arbitration system, which is widely used to resolve investment disputes between host governments and foreign investors. Some governments and civil society activists have long criticized the ISDS system. In recent years the European Union has jumped on board, aggressively pushing its proposal for a government-dominated multilateral investment court and appellate mechanism to replace traditional ISDS. According to Mandell, even long-standing U.S. government policy supporting a high-standard ISDS system has wavered.

Photo source: UNCITRAL.org

“It was very valuable to have an experienced, eloquent investment policy expert like Lauren participating in this important investment policy body,” said USCIB Vice President for Investment Policy Shaun Donnelly. “Although UNCITRAL may be, to some, an obscure UN agency, it’s where the action is these days on international investment policy and, specifically, on ISDS. We at USCIB and many of our member companies see ISDS as a key pillar for global Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) decisions. We will continue to work with Lauren, the U.S. government and our members in UNCITRAL and beyond to defend strong investment protections.”

The next meeting of UNCITRAL Working Group III, scheduled January 20-24, 2020, will be critically important for the business community because the meeting will focus on the EU’s proposed multilateral investment court. For more information, contact Shaun Donnelly or Lauren Mandell (lauren.mandell@wilmerhale.com) for further information.

USCIB Joins Global Business Network on Forced Labor

Published on October 29, 2019

USCIB proudly became a new member recently of the International Labor Organization’s (ILO) Global Business Network on Forced Labour (GBNFL). A “network of networks,” GBNFL seeks to bring together businesses of all sizes and sectors, and their networks, from around the globe to work towards the eradication of forced labor. USCIB Vice President of Corporate Responsibility and Labor Affairs Gabriella Rigg Herzog attended GBNFL’s first annual meeting on October 21 in Berlin, where participants engaged in discussions around what coordination and collaboration looks like, as well as how best to engage smaller enterprises to combat forced labor.

In brainstorming about opportunities for shared action provided by this new umbrella network, participants recognized that many of the challenges stem from local governance gaps. Participants discussed ideas and noted the critical role that the ILO can play in assisting national and local governments to mount a robust domestic labor law enforcement response to this issue. Additionally, participants expressed a hope that additional employer organizations from developing countries would be encouraged to join the GBNFL, particularly as the members of those employer networks are the local businesses and SMEs producing for either domestic or foreign markets. Participants agreed that capacity building, both of governments and SMEs, is crucial to any plan to help achieve SDG target 8.7.

USCIB members will benefit from our active involvement in GBNFL through invitations to participate in special events and webinars hosted by GBNFL, as well as have the opportunity to help inform the USCIB feedback to GBNFL as its leaders develop future workplans. For the broader public, we encourage you to learn more about the GBNFL and avail yourself of the data, tools and resources regarding forced labor and human trafficking housed on GBNFL’s new website and public library of selected resources.

Promoting U.S. Business Access: USCIB Submits NTE Comments

Published on October 29, 2019

USCIB filed comments on October 25 for the annual National Trade Estimate (NTE) report to highlight significant barriers that American companies continue to face with regards to exports of goods, services and U.S. foreign direct investment. The comprehensive comments included barriers faced by U.S. companies in over twenty countries, including in Brazil, China and India.

According to USCIB Vice President for ICT Policy Barbara Wanner, the comments urged the U.S. Trade Representative to encourage Brazil to promote an international, interoperable policy framework for the Internet of Things (IoT) and machine-to-machine (M2M) solutions that includes M2M permanent roaming, among other things.

“Many IOT and M2M solutions will only reach their optimal scale if they can operate around the globe,” said Wanner. Monitors on airline cargo or shipping containers must be able to operate wherever their freight travels. Automakers sell vehicles across many different countries and operators drive vehicles across national borders for commercial and personal purposes; automakers and customers alike need a single communications platform to support their connected vehicles.

“The Brazilian government should modify the regulatory framework to support providers of IoT and M2M services and devices and allow them to choose between various available options for numbering and device management (including permanent M2M roaming), rather than imposing a single, one-size alternative for all cases,” added Wanner.

With regards to China, USCIB’s submission focused on China’s WTO compliance record in services, particularly China’s indiscriminate filtering and blocking of online services. China’s expansive definition of value-added services, high capitalization requirements for basic telecommunications services, lack of an independent regulator, and restrictions that specifically apply to the non-Chinese companies for provision of value-added services remain key outstanding issues for U.S. business.

Finally, while India has accelerated broadband deployment, USCIB’s comments stressed that it must also implement policies that foster an innovative environment through predictable, progressive and technology-neutral policies that are compatible with global standards.

“It is important to keep encouraging the Indian government to support further market liberalization and to remove remaining market access barriers,” said Wanner. “India should be urged to continue its efforts to provide legal and regulatory policy certainty both in the development of a body of clear and consistent laws and regulations, and in the transparent and equitable application and enforcement of those laws and regulations. Unfortunately, in recent years the government of India has implemented a number of policies that constitute significant market access barriers to U.S. companies, including in data localization, remote access policy and cloud computing.”

Mulligan Represents Business at OECD Trade Meetings

Published on October 29, 2019
USCIB Senior Vice President for Policy and Government Affairs Rob Mulligan

Rob Mulligan, USCIB senior vice president for policy and government affairs, was in Paris the week of October 21 attending OECD and Business at OECD (BIAC) trade committee meetings. Over the last few months, USCIB members have contributed to the development of BIAC’s trade priorities paper which was released last week. Mulligan, as a vice-chair of the BIAC trade committee, represented BIAC at the OECD Trade Committee Meeting and shared the eleven-priorities for consideration as the OECD develops their program of work for 2021-2022.

“During the OECD meeting, I highlighted the need for continued OECD work on market distorting subsidies and other government support for state-owned enterprises, digital trade and new work on trade and the environment that would underpin the need to balance climate change with ensuring open markets for trade,” said Mulligan.

The OECD Trade meeting also discussed ongoing G7, G20 and Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) activities, including outcomes of the G7 and G20 Summits, as well as expectations for the APEC Economic Leader’s meeting in November, which will be hosted by Chile.

USCIB Announces Launch of a Biodiversity Working Group

Published on October 29, 2019

Responding to intergovernmental policy discussions on biodiversity, their implications for American companies, and the opportunity for private sector nature-based solutions, USCIB has announced the launch of a new multi-committee Working Group on Biodiversity. The Working Group is drawn from USCIB’s Environment, Intellectual Property and Innovation and Food and Agriculture committees to reflect the cross-cutting nature and impacts of proposed policies for U.S. companies doing business in global markets. It will begin its work in early November, with a focus on tracking and disseminating business-relevant information about the United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity (UN CBD) negotiations to interested USCIB members.

According to USCIB Vice President for Energy, Environment and Strategic International Engagement Norine Kennedy, this new group will also provide a platform to work with the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) Access and Benefit Sharing (ABS) Working Group, the Global Industry Coalition and other business initiatives related to biodiversity. The Biodiversity Working Group will also facilitate USCIB representation at UN CBD meetings (by both members and USCIB staff) and support the development of USCIB positions as needed.

“The UN CBD is developing a post-2020 biodiversity framework, which will feed into the UN Sustainable Development Goals,” noted Kennedy. “We hope to use this new platform to work with our international partners, such as ICC, to ensure that governments adopt policies that encourage business innovation and include business in future discussions.”

USCIB is planning to attend a workshop on November 6 in Madrid, organized by ICC and Business for Nature Consultation. Workshop participants will discuss and develop draft policy recommendations to governments that are needed to further scale-up existing actions and commitments taken by business to reverse nature loss and restore natural systems.

 If you are a USCIB member interested in joining this Working Group, please contact USCIB Vice President for Energy, Environment and Strategic International Engagement Norine Kennedy.

USCIB Issues Climate Change Statement on UN Day

Published on October 24, 2019

In light of the United Nations celebrating the ratification of its 1945 Charter on October 24, USCIB issued the following statement:

“On this UN Day, USCIB would like to join others in recognizing the indispensable importance of the UN system to American business in advancing international cooperation and providing the infrastructure in which we create shared value and serve society.

USCIB reaffirms our support for U.S. involvement in the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and its Paris Accord. We welcome the growth of the American energy economy from fossil fuels to nuclear to renewables to new options for energy efficiency. The Paris Accord allows every country to define its own pathway to tackling climate risks, and the U.S. has already made good progress on that front, reducing emissions and improving efficiency while advancing its own energy security, growing U.S. jobs and opening new markets for innovative American technologies.

Without U.S. leadership at the Paris Accord table, promoting its strategic and economic interests alongside other countries, opportunities for the deployment of these American private sector solutions could be threatened. We encourage the Administration to revisit its decision and submit, as appropriate, its own visionary plan to the UNFCCC and Paris Accord, in which American energy objectives can co-exist with environmental protection, private sector innovation and sustainably meeting both American and global growing energy demands.”

Private Sector Led Active Role at FAO Meetings on Food Security

Published on October 22, 2019
46th Session of the CFS, Rome. Copyright ©FAO.

USCIB and its members participated in the bilateral meetings at the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) 46th Session of the Committee on World Food Security (CFS) the week of October 14 in Rome to discuss the private sector’s commitment to ending hunger, malnutrition and food insecurity for all.

“It was a very successful week in Rome,” said USCIB Vice President for Product Policy and Innovation Mike Michener, who leads USCIB’s work on food and healthcare policy. “This year’s meeting of the Private Sector Mechanism (PSM) was the largest and most diverse delegation to date, with 211 farmers, agri-businesses and youth representatives from forty-five countries. USCIB looks forward to furthering its work on nutrition policy and working more closely with these stakeholders.”

The USCIB delegation, led by Michener, participated in several bilateral meetings with U.S. Ambassador Kip Tom, Dutch Ambassador Hans Hoegeveen, the Mission of Italy to the UN, the German delegation from Berlin, and the Secretariat of the New Economic Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD). In addition to these meetings, PSM members organized five side-events on the topics of nutrition, agroecology and innovation, multi-stakeholder partnerships and youth. These side-events were attended by over 900 CFS delegates. This year PSM also participated in the World Food Day activities at FAO.

The PSM is a network that coordinates input from business into the UN Committee on World Food Security. This year’s delegation included representatives from USCIB members including Bayer USA, CropLife International, International Food & Beverage Alliance (IFBA), Mars and PepsiCo.

USCIB Welcomes Ratification of UN Convention That Helps SMEs

Published on October 22, 2019

After years of effort by USCIB and a coalition of other trade associations, USCIB welcomed an announcement that the United States has formally ratified the United Nations Convention on the Assignment of Receivables in International Trade, having deposited the instrument on October 17 at the UN Treaty Office in New York.

Enactment of the Convention makes it easier for U.S. small and medium-sized businesses to access additional financing from lenders based on their sales of goods and services to customers located in other countries that ratify the Convention.

USCIB has been urging the U.S. to ratify this convention since 2016 and worked through a coalition to send letters to high-ranking Senators at the Committee on Foreign Relations and the Committee on Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs.

“We need three more countries to ratify the Convention for it to enter into force, and we have an active list of those countries most likely to ratify,” noted USCIB Senior Director for Trade, Investment and Financial Services Eva Hampl.