Policy Areas Archives

USCIB Celebrates International Human Rights Day

Published on December 10, 2019

December 10th is known internationally as Human Rights Day, and marks the 71st anniversary of the adoption of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights in 1948 by the United Nations General Assembly. USCIB joins the UN in celebrating Human Rights Day and all of the work being done by its members to promote respect for human rights in global business.

“USCIB and our members are committed to demonstrating respect for human rights in our operations and in line with the UN Guiding Principles on Business & Human Rights (UNGPs). In 2019 we led or participated in a number of activities promoting the importance of human rights, as well as took bold and innovative action individually and in collaboration with stakeholders to support the realization of the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs),” said USCIB Vice President for Corporate Responsibility and Labor Affairs Gabriella Rigg Herzog.

“This year we proudly became a member of the International Labor Organization (ILO) Global Business Network on Forced Labor, co-hosted a workshop on sports and human rights and the 11th Engaging Business Forum on business & human rights, were honored to host UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet for a dialogue with our members, and helped to successfully negotiate a first ever ILO labor standard (C 190) on violence and harassment in the workplace. At the ILO, we stood up to fight for the rights of LGBTQI individuals to also be recognized in ILO labor standards, and at the UN joined with civil society organizations and government at the 8th UN Annual Forum on Business & Human Rights for a progress check on implementing the UNGPs. USCIB and our network of member companies look forward to another year of partnership, advocacy and action on human rights and business,” added Herzog.

USCIB Urges Resolution to Impasse Over Appellate Body at WTO

Published on December 10, 2019

Washington, D.C., December 10, 2019 – The U.S. Council for International Business believes the role of the World Trade Organization (WTO) in bringing together countries to reach much-needed agreements on global trade and enforcing them constitutes the cornerstone of our rules-based trading system. We are concerned that a key part of the WTO, the Appellate Body, will not be able to function after the impasse reached in the WTO today, and we urge all member governments to resolve outstanding issues needed to restore the Appellate Body to full operation. While the WTO will continue its active negotiations work, as well as the work of the first instance of dispute settlement, it is important to the business community that the WTO is equipped with all of the tools it needs to effectively address the trade challenges of the 21st century.

USCIB supports modernizing the WTO, including improvements to the Appellate Body, and negotiating agreements that will address the new trade policy issues confronting our members. We strongly support the current negotiations of a plurilateral agreement on digital trade by the Joint Statement Initiative (JSI) on E-Commerce, and the effort to make permanent the Moratorium on Customs Duties on Electronic Transmissions. USCIB urges the members of the WTO to find approaches to deal with the issues surrounding the WTO Appellate Body as soon as possible, so that the important work of the dispute settlement body can resume.

About USCIB:
USCIB promotes open markets, competitiveness and innovation, sustainable development and corporate responsibility, supported by international engagement and regulatory coherence. Its members include U.S.-based global companies and professional services firms from every sector of our economy, with operations in every region of the world, generating $5 trillion in annual revenues and employing over 11 million people worldwide. As the U.S. affiliate of the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC), the International Organization of Employers, and Business at OECD (known as BIAC), USCIB helps to provide business views to policy makers and regulatory authorities worldwide, and works to facilitate international trade and investment. More information is available at www.uscib.org.

Contact:
Kira Yevtukhova, USCIB
+1 202.617.3160, kyevtukhova@uscib.org

USCIB Attends UN Biodiversity Deliberations as Accredited Organization

Published on December 3, 2019

The UN Convention on Biological Diversity (UN CBD) has just concluded a scientific and technical round of deliberations, held from November 25 – 29. USCIB Vice President for Environment, Energy and Strategic International Engagement Norine Kennedy attended the meetings in Montreal, representing USCIB as an accredited business organization, and as the only U.S. private sector group on hand for the session.

The UN CBD is currently developing a post-2020 Global Biodiversity Framework, to be finalized in October 2020 at its 15th Conference of the Parties (COP15), which will be hosted by China. According to Kennedy, the post-2020 Global Biodiversity Framework will be a comprehensive agreement that will include new targets relating to the protection and sustainable use of biodiversity.

The Montreal CBD meeting reviewed a wide range of topics including scientific assessments of biodiversity and ecosystems, Digital Sequencing Information (DSI), links between climate change and biodiversity, as well as emerging issues.

USCIB is re-engaging in the UN CBD process following discussions in USCIB’s newly launched Biodiversity Working Group, working closely with the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) Access and Benefit Sharing (ABS) Working Group and the Global Industry Coalition (GIC).

Following the meeting in Montreal, Kennedy stated that, “Since the U.S. has never signed the UN CBD or its Protocols on Bio-safety and on Access and Benefit Sharing, USCIB is currently assessing potential impacts and opportunities for its members while tracking the process leading up to COP15.”

Trade Conference Focuses on Inclusive Global Economy

Published on December 3, 2019

Amid backlash to increased international trade and rising populism and protectionism across the globe, the Institute of Human Rights and Business (IHRB) held a conference on December 3 in London entitled Next Generation Trade: Building a Principled, People-Centred Global Economy. USCIB Vice President for Corporate Responsibility and Labor Affairs Gabriella Rigg Herzog and Senior Director for Investment, Trade and Financial Services Eva Hampl represented USCIB.

The conference focused on the issue of building a principled, people-centered global economy, and highlighted issues including climate, the future of work, the multilateral trading system, inclusive trade, and data and technology.

USCIB is very active in the space of trade and investment, as well as corporate responsibility and business and human rights.

“With an increasing public focus on international trade, it is imperative for the business voice to be heard in a variety of fora, emphasizing the message that trade and investment are vital contributors to economic growth and development,” said Hampl.

USCIB continues to believe that the World Trade Organization (WTO) is a pillar of the multilateral trading system and that the value of this trade institution cannot be overstated, and its continued existence is critical.

Stakeholders at IGF Seek to Avoid Fragmentation of the Internet

Published on December 3, 2019
L-R: Barbara Wanner, USCIB (moderator); Ben Wallis, Microsoft; Jane Coffin, Internet Society; Alex Cooke, Government of Australia; and David Gierten, OECD

The fourteenth Internet Governance Forum (IGF) wrapped up on November 29 with an invigorated call from stakeholders for an Internet governance mechanism that preserves the IGF’s multistakeholder model and expands its institutional capabilities, amid warnings from UN and German officials about the potential fragmenting of the Internet. USCIB Vice President for ICT Policy Barbara Wanner attended the four-day IGF in Berlin and reported from the field.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel, who formally opened the IGF on November 26, warned of the crippling effect of growing nationalism that will increasingly fracture the Internet. “The [digital] infrastructure has become the very core of our global economy… [but] there are some who remain in their little bubble and do not actually exchange views with people who are of a different opinion and that is one of the challenges that we face in this overall development of the Internet,” she said.

United Nations Secretary General Antonio Guterres offered a similarly dire outlook, telling the IGF audience that the today’s “accessible, free, secure and open Internet is at risk of fracturing along three intersecting lines … a profound digital divide, a social divide and a political divide.”

According to Wanner, Merkel and Guterres concurred that a comprehensive dialogue involving all stakeholders – citing the IGF as a model – can help to prevent such fragmentation, as this approach best ensures a healthy and thriving digital economy that can realize the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), connect the unconnected and bridge the digital skills gap. “The Internet must not and cannot be shaped only by governments alone because the basic issues revolving around the Internet have an impact on each and everyone’s life, and this is why we need a multistakeholder approach,” Merkel said.

“Against this backdrop, USCIB members who spoke in various workshops highlighted the importance of digital transformation by sharing business best practices and case studies that demonstrate how business’ digital innovations have improved people’s lives and livelihoods, created new commercial and employment opportunities and provided cultural connections,” said Wanner. “Their messages as workshops speakers and in bilateral meetings with UN officials and various government delegations also emphasized the importance of the multistakeholder model in considering the complexity of digital economy issues. In this regard, USCIB members reaffirmed their support for an adequately funded “IGF-Plus” architecture for Internet governance, proposed by the UN High-Level Panel on Digital Cooperation (HLPDC).”

Joining Wanner were members from Amazon, AT&T, CCIA, Disney, Facebook, Google, ITI, Microsoft, Verisign and Verizon.

OECD Turns to Practical Implementation of AI, Privacy Guidelines

Published on November 25, 2019

“Practical implementation” was an underlying theme at the recent discussions of the OECD Committee on Digital Economy Policy (CDEP), according to USCIB Vice President for ICT Policy Barbara Wanner, who reported from the field. The meetings took place November 18-22  at OECD headquarters in Paris. Wanner reported that having devoted more than a year to crafting the Council Recommendation on Artificial Intelligence, CDEP delegates and stakeholders discussed a paper outlining guidance on the implementation of the AI Recommendation, as well as the complementary AI Policy Observatory.

In a similar spirit, the Privacy Guidelines Expert Group (PGEG), which was convened to advance the mandated five-year review of the 2013 OECD Guidelines Governing the Protection of Privacy and Transborder Flows of Personal Data (the “Privacy Guidelines”), held a workshop on November 18 to explore the practicalities of operationalizing international cooperation in enforcement of privacy protections as well as consider the impact of AI on personal data protection and implementation of the Privacy Guidelines.

“Under the auspices of Business at OECD, USCIB members stepped up at the November CDEP meetings, intervening to underscore the importance of interoperability of privacy regulations to build trust and facilitate cross-border data flows for economic growth and prosperity,” said Wanner.

Citing Business at OECD’s Guiding Principles for the Review of the 2013 Privacy Guidelines, Wanner emphasized, “a consistent global approach to privacy will help companies of all sizes comply with [privacy laws], expand their commercial activities, and in turn grown their national economies with related employment benefits.”

Concerning implementation of the OECD’s AI Principles, Barry O’Brien (IBM Ireland), who chairs the Business at OECD delegation to the AI Experts Group, applauded the OECD’s proposed practical guidance as “building on the excellent work on the AI Principles and promoting the adoption and implementation of trustworthy AI.”

USCIB members actively shaped the development of the AI Recommendation as participants on a special AI Experts Group and are currently feeding business input to the PGEG.  USCIB members also made influential interventions concerning the proposed CDEP Program of Work and Budget 2020-2021 (PWB), work on online platforms, and key topics under the purview of the Working Party on Communications Infrastructures and Services Policy (CISP), such a draft report on price baskets for bundled communication services.

Joining Wanner were USCIB member representatives from Amazon, AT&T, CCIA, Comcast, Deloitte & Touche, Facebook, Microsoft and TMG Legal.

Hampl Weighs In On WTO Discussions on E-Commerce

Published on November 19, 2019

The sixth negotiating round of the Joint Statement Initiative (JSI) on E-Commerce is taking place at the WTO in Geneva this week. The JSI is negotiating a plurilateral agreement on digital trade, also referred to as the WTO E-Commerce Agreement. USCIB Senior Director, Investment Trade and Financial Services Eva Hampl is on the ground in Geneva this week on behalf of USCIB and members in support of this important initiative at the WTO, which attempts to write global rules on digital trade.

The JSI started out with seventy-six WTO members and as of this week that number has risen to 81, with Indonesia being the latest to join the plurilateral effort. Issues discussed this week include customs duties, access to internet and data, business trust, capacity building, legal issues, and market access.

“This will be the final round before the WTO General Council meeting taking place December 9-11 in Geneva. Negotiations are expected to resume in the new year at a similar pace, with an eye toward an outcome by MC12 in June 2020,” stated Hampl.

Earlier this year, USCIB issued recommendations on the E-Commerce negotiations, reflecting member priorities, including issues like data flows and localization. USCIB is actively engaging with governments involved in the negotiations in Geneva through various efforts, including the Digital Trade Network and the International Chamber of Commerce.

On Thursday, November 21, USCIB is supporting a side event by the ICC on the Moratorium on Customs Duties on Electronic Transmission (E-Commerce Moratorium), which is currently expiring at the end of the year. The panel will discuss the implications of not extending the moratorium, including in the context of the recent OECD Report. At this time, fifteen WTO members have proposed to extend the Moratorium until MC12 in June 2020. In order for an extension to be possible, unanimous support is required.

Donnelly Pushes for Strong Investment Protections at UNCTAD

Published on November 19, 2019

USCIB Vice President Shaun Donnelly led a small but vocal team of international business representatives at the November 13 annual High-Level Experts Group on International Investment Agreements (IIAs) at the UN Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) in Geneva. In a room dominated by developing country and NGO reps and academics, Donnelly was the sole business speaker on the opening keynote panel. Donnelly also joined a French business delegate on the key follow-up panel on “Reforming Investor-State Dispute Settlement (ISDS).” Other panels included business representatives from USCIB’s BDI colleagues (German industry group) and from the World Economic Forum (WEF).

“In both my presentations, I emphasized a business view on the need for strong investment protections to help reduce risk and mobilize much-needed foreign direct investment (FDI) flows,” said Donnelly. “With limited public finance and official development aid resources, FDI is key to global economic growth and progress toward the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Furthermore, strong IIAs are key to mobilizing FDI. In turn, strong ISDS provisions are essential to effective IIAs.”

According to Donnelly, on the ISDS panel, he was able to rebut a European Commission official who was pitching, as they are in multiple fora these days, their proposal for a standing multilateral investment court to replace the well-established ISDS arbitration system.

“UNCTAD can be a challenging organization, often promoting unhelpful non-market views, but in the investment area it offers a unique opportunity for good dialogue with developing country officials and a platform to confront unhelpful EU initiatives,” he added.

Domain Name System Abuse: A Hot Topic at Recent ICANN Meetings

Published on November 19, 2019

The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) wrapped up six days of annual meetings on November 7 in Montreal, Quebec, which featured, at times, heated debate about the roles of ICANN and the contracted parties in mitigating domain name system (DNS) abuse and related security problems. According to USCIB Vice President for ICT Policy Barbara Wanner,  who attended the meetings in her capacity as the Business Constituency’s (BC) representative to the Commercial Stakeholder Group (CSG), while security threats and the way the ICANN community tracks, reports, and mitigates them have always been an important focus of ICANN’s work, attention to this issue has intensified in recent months amid reports of sharp increases in phishing attacks and studies estimating that the cost of global cybercrime reached approximately $600 million in 2018.

“ICANN’s Business Constituency (BC), of which USCIB is a member, highlighted profound gaps in DNS abuse mitigation throughout the week’s meetings with the ICANN Board, senior ICANN staff, and other constituencies and the need to clarify definitions of abuse and aggressively enforce against offenders,” said Wanner.

According to Wanner, participants at ICANN 66, the organization’s Annual General Meeting, continued to advance discussions about the building blocks of a model to enable third-party access to nonpublic domain name system registration data for legitimate purposes that would comply with EU General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and other privacy regimes. The draft model may be finalized as soon as December, more probably in early 2020, following receipt of legal advice from the European Data Protection Board (DPB).

The meeting also continued to explore how to evolve ICANN’s multistakeholder model to improve its efficiency and effectiveness as part of the FY 2021-2025 Strategic Plan as well as other DNS management issues.

Wanner’s role as BC representative to the CSG has enabled greater input to policy discussions at the CSG executive committee-level on behalf of USCIB members and facilitated important meetings with senior ICANN officials and other key constituencies.  USCIB member representatives from Amazon, AT&T, BT Americas, CenturyLink, Facebook, Google, Microsoft, and NBC Universal were present in Montreal and actively contributed to all policy discussions.

Focus on Sustainability, New Technologies at 2019 World Trade Symposium

Published on November 11, 2019

USCIB once again sponsored the World Trade Symposium this year November 6-7 in New York. The Symposium, hosted by Finastra and programmed by The Economist Events, brought together researchers, government officials and private sector leaders to discuss “Trade in an Uncertain World.” According to USCIB Assistant Policy and Program Manager Daniella Goncalves, several themes emerged throughout the Symposium, including the impact of new technologies on trade and investment, the need for greater interoperability of new technologies, the importance of sustainability to trade and investment and the continued importance of free trade.

Political uncertainty took center stage during the event’s discussions. The rise of populism and protectionist policies, as well as perceived lack of efficiency and productivity in multilateral fora, were identified as threats to be addressed. Many participants expressed the need to reform multilateral institutions and reaffirmed their support for trade liberalization. The need for U.S. leadership in such reform and trade liberalization activities was highlighted as a priority. Participants were in agreement that the restoration of predictability, reciprocity and fairness is required to bolster global trade and investment.

Digitization has the ability to drive down costs and speed of getting goods to market, but standardization of data protection and date flow regulation are priorities. The importance of regulating data flows and the need for standardized data protection laws, new technologies and the issue of illicit trade were highlighted by several panelists, including the World Trade Organization (WTO) Deputy Director-General Ambassador Alan Wm. Wolff, Research Professor of International Affairs & Director of Digital Trade & Data Governance hub Susan Ariel Aaronson and President of the Mediterranean Shipping Company Fabio Santucci.

The use of blockchain was characterized as a means to more efficiently engage in trade and investment, as well as increase sustainability through decreased paper usage. However, interoperability of blockchains and standardization of regulatory frameworks remain hurdles to wide-spread deployment of this technology.

It was noted that the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) is working with an Asia-based partner to develop a blockchain technology to enable traceability and tracking of goods. The goal ultimately is to promote interoperability among various blockchain networks and technology platforms.

Recognizing the rise of consumer interest in sustainability, the issue of sustainable trade and investment was discussed. According to the panelists, millennial consumers are driving interest in and profitability of sustainable goods and services. Trade has lifted hundreds of millions out of poverty; to continue to see the benefits of trade, growth needs to be inclusive. USCIB is actively advocating on these important issues in various multilateral fora, including at the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) in Paris.