NEWS RELEASES
CANADA TO HOST FREE TRADE AREA OF THE AMERICAS MINISTERIAL MEETING
October 28, 1999 (2:00 p.m. EDT) No. 233
CANADA TO HOST FREE TRADE AREA OF THE AMERICAS
MINISTERIAL MEETING
International Trade Minister Pierre Pettigrew will host the Free Trade Area of the Americas (FTAA) Ministerial
Meeting in Toronto on November 3 and 4. The meeting is the culmination of Canada's 18 months as Chair of
the FTAA process.
"The FTAA is an unprecedented opportunity to unite the economies of the western hemisphere into a single
free trade group, which would stimulate job creation and growth throughout the region," said Minister Pettigrew.
"These negotiations hold the potential for creating the world's largest free trade area, with 800 million people
and a combined GDP of almost $15 trillion."
The FTAA is a comprehensive free trade negotiation among the 34 democratic nations of the western
hemisphere. Its aim is to reach a comprehensive, state-of-the-art agreement consistent with World Trade
Organization agreements. It is also one element of a wide-ranging agenda of co-operation under the Summit of
the Americas process to address issues voiced by individuals and civil society groups such as poverty, living
standards, education, democratic values and institutions.
"We must remember that our exporters are not just dealing in goods and services, they are also exporting
Canadian values," said Mr. Pettigrew. "We need to strengthen the the hemisphere's social foundation to
increase economic activity, including trade."
In addition to putting in place the institutional infrastructure to manage such complex negotiations, substantial
progress has already been made in the area of business facilitation during Canada's chairmanship of the FTAA
negotiations. At the Toronto meeting, besides reviewing progress and next steps, ministers will consider a
package of measures to simplify customs clearances in the hemisphere, and to make government rules and
regulations governing trade and investment more accessible to the public.
Minister Pettigrew will also attend several events related to the FTAA while in Toronto. On November 1, he will
open the Americas Business Forum (ABF), a private sector Forum that will bring together more than 500
business leaders and senior government officials from 34 countries in the hemisphere for a wide-ranging
exchange of ideas on hemispheric trade and the development of the FTAA.
Minister Pettigrew will then meet with a hemispheric coalition of NGOs on November 3 at the Americas Civil
Society Forum, an event that is supported by the Government of Canada and being held in parallel with the
FTAA meeting. The Forum will focus on recommendations reflecting concerns and perspectives on the socio-economic impact of hemispheric trade and the FTAA process.
"Canada is committed to conducting the FTAA negotiations as openly as possible," said Mr. Pettigrew. "Canada
has also been the driving force in establishing a process to seek input from civil society in the FTAA process."
The FTAA Trade Ministers Meeting and the ABF are part of a series of hemispheric events being held in
Canada over the next two years. Canada hosted the Pan American Games this past summer in Winnipeg, and
the Conference of First Spouses of Heads of State and Government of the Americas in Ottawa last month. The
city of Windsor will host the General Assembly of the Organization of American States in June 2000, marking
Canada's tenth anniversary as an OAS member, and Quebec City will host the third Summit of the Americas in
2001.
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For further information, media representatives may contact:
Sylvie Bussières
Office of the Minister for International Trade
(613) 992-7332
Media Relations Office
Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade
(613) 995-1874
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