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<html> <head> <meta name="Generator" content="Corel WordPerfect 8"> <title>HONOURABLE PIERRE PETTIGREWMINISTER FOR INTERNATIONAL TRADE AT THE OPENING OF THE FIFTH AMERICAS BUSINESS FORUM</title> </head> <body text="#000000" link="#0000ff" vlink="#551a8b" alink="#ff0000" bgcolor="#c0c0c0"> CHECK AGAINST DELIVERY NOTES FOR AN ADDRESS BY THE HONOURABLE PIERRE PETTIGREW MINISTER FOR INTERNATIONAL TRADE AT THE OPENING OF THE FIFTH AMERICAS BUSINESS FORUM TORONTO, Ontario November 1, 1999 I am pleased to welcome you to Canada on the occasion of the Fifth Americas Business Forum (ABF). I would like to take this opportunity to commend your dedication and commitment to the challenge of achieving a Free Trade Area of the Americas (FTAA) by 2005. Your input into the FTAA negotiations focusses our attention on the real challenges faced every day by the business community of our hemisphere. Making it easier for you to do business in the Americas is our goal, and your contribution to helping us achieve that goal is important. My Background is Business I came to my portfolio of Minister for International Trade with an extensive background in global business issues. I spent most of the '80s and half of the '90s dealing with the impacts of globalization on businesses and on the economy of Canada and other countries. I cannot predict the future, and I learned from those years of experience that neither can anyone else. No one can give us the definitive road map to achieve our economic and social goals. But I do believe that the road that we are travelling -- to successfully complete negotiations of an FTAA agreement by 2005 -- is the best road to follow. We want to achieve an Americas for the 21st Century that ensures that our citizens can enjoy not only prosperity, but also good health, a clean environment, and human dignity. Canada has long been an advocate of the benefits of free trade and a guardian against the negative effects of a global economy. As a country highly dependent on trade and investment, Canada seeks, for its business community, an international trade environment with clear and enforceable rules. And for our citizens we seek a fair stake, and protection from the worst aspects of globalization. There is no alternative to globalization -- unless we want to go backwards, and that is not a realistic option. But it must be respectful of all individuals. We can put a human face on globalization. We can ensure that we are working toward the human dimension of the economy, and not simply having economic forces determine our future. Globalization can be a positive force only if we have political systems capable of ensuring that benefits go to all, not just to a few, and that real democracy thrives. I believe that we can guide globalization to become a "virtuous circle" where the economic gains from increased trade generate social benefits for all people. I have always believed that economic policy and social policy are two sides of the same coin -- not just in government, but throughout the life of a country. The success of a society and the healthy growth of its economy go hand-in-hand. Social development and economic development cannot be separated -- they reinforce each other. How can a country hope to be a player in the new economy -- an economy that depends on knowledge workers -- if it does not give priority to human development? There cannot be a gap between economic policy and social policy. They must both be pursued within a single framework. Business Must Promote Free Trade: Jobs are Economic and Social Contributions Canada understands the importance of making connections and establishing good communications. With our geography and our climate, we could not have become a country "from sea to sea," nor could we have developed such a strong economy, without bringing people together. The realities of life in a harsh climate like ours are simple: If you think you can succeed all by yourself -- our winters will probably kill you trying. On the other hand, if you can work with others and build a community with give and take, where everyone contributes, then everyone is more likely to succeed. In Canada, we have learned that we have to communicate, connect and co-operate to survive. Canada has always tried to bring that balance into international relations. We've helped to build stronger international structures with rules in place to govern how countries work with each other. In our experience, it is much better to have clear rules of the game that everyone must follow. The results are obvious. Clear rules governing international trade have opened doors for Canada to grow, and have added jobs to the point where today, one in three Canadian jobs depends on trade. Canada is a trading nation. Our exports account for more than 40 percent of our GDP -- more than any other G-8 country. Since 1993, our export and import performance has exceeded domestic growth by almost two to one. This reality represents more than just economic benefits to Canadians. It is the key to an improved quality of life for all Canadians in all communities across the country. This reality gives us the resources that we need to reinvest in our social programs so that we can ensure that people are not left behind. In this way, everyone benefits from increased trade. The Views of Business are Essential Trade negotiators cannot operate in a vacuum. Because they seek to create the rules and policy framework to suit a business environment that you have already forged, they must understand business, markets and market change. To do that, they have to be where business is -- so don't be surprised if you run into more than one trade negotiator over the next few days here in Toronto. They have to understand what your perspectives are on the main issues being negotiated. They want to make it easy for you to do business, and they are ready to work toward developing new or improved rules of the game. Your engagement in promoting the FTAA is vital to the growing public debate on the merits of trade liberalization. You can add credibility to this message. We know that free trade works. We have all seen it work, and we know that it holds the key to our continued prosperity. So make your voices heard. Speak out for trade liberalization at every opportunity. We Need Clear Rules of the Game NAFTA has made Canadian companies more attuned to commercial opportunities in Latin America and the Caribbean. This new interest is being reinforced by the FTAA negotiations. Canada has much to offer as a competitive, technologically advanced place to do business. We want to do more business in Latin America and the Caribbean region. We want to use the FTAA to build on our NAFTA success to develop new partnerships. Given the effects and trends of globalization, it only makes sense to build on relationships that already work. That is why a Free Trade Area of the Americas is so important to us. The FTAA will be a modern, comprehensive and WTO- consistent free trade agreement embracing all 34 democratic nations of the Americas in a single undertaking. All of this translates into more and better jobs and higher incomes for our citizens. That is why Canada has been a leading advocate of the FTAA from the outset. That is why we embraced with enthusiasm the initial chairmanship when negotiations were formally launched at the 1998 Summit of the Americas in Santiago, Chile. That is why we encourage the input of the business community in the FTAA process. Your role is crucial to sustain the momentum needed to bring the FTAA negotiations to a successful conclusion in 2005. The FTAA : The Hemisphere's Response to Globalization By 2005, the successful completion of the FTAA negotiations will open up the largest market in the world -- a market that today has over 800 million people and embraces 34 countries with a combined Gross Domestic Product [GDP] of US $10 trillion. This agreement is our response, tailored to the needs and conditions in our region. Of more immediate relevance to you, as members of the private sector, is the progress that has been made on business facilitation measures under Canada's chairmanship of the Trade Negotiations Committee. The focus to date has been on streamlining customs procedures to cut red tape and make it easier for you to get your goods across borders. We've also made progress on transparency of government rules and regulations affecting trade and investment in the hemisphere. Given the excellent progress to date in this area, I hope to have good news to report to you on this subject at the end of this week's Trade Ministers Meeting. Our work on business facilitation is not only a key benchmark for progress in the FTAA as a whole, but should have an important early impact on simplifying the conduct of business in this hemisphere. This, in turn, should have a positive impact on your bottom line. My highest priority going into the FTAA Trade Ministers Meeting is to ensure that we give clear guidance to our officials as to what we expect between now and 2001. The need for clear direction for the next 18 months is particularly important, given that the Argentine Ministers Meeting will occur shortly before the 2001 Summit of the Americas in Quebec City, and leaders will expect substantive progress by that time. Canada views the FTAA negotiations as an essential part of the overall plan to promote greater economic and social integration in our hemisphere -- but there must be balance. The Santiago Plan of Action is the far-reaching vision that provides this balance. Economic and social progress for all the peoples of the Americas is our common goal. The ABF Plays an Invaluable Role This Fifth Americas Business Forum carries on the important tradition of the business sector of the Americas contributing to the FTAA negotiations. At ABF Canada, you will address important immediate business issues and longer-term trade and economic development issues in the Americas. The ABF offers you practical business value by giving you an opportunity to learn more about the FTAA negotiations, and to meet face-to-face with potential business partners. It also offers you a strategic business planning opportunity for the future. Since the First Americas Business Forum in Denver in 1995, the ABF has met on four occasions, immediately preceding FTAA Trade Ministers Meetings. Each time, the recommendations that you have presented to Trade Ministers have added important perspective to their deliberations. Do Business and Deliver the Free Trade Message You are the engine of economic growth in our hemisphere -- growth that is raising the standards of living throughout the Americas by speeding up the free movement of capital, goods and ideas, and the transfer of technology. The FTAA is needed so you can continue your growth and increase your ability to create more jobs in the Americas. I can assure you that I, and my fellow Trade Ministers, will be listening closely to the recommendations that you present to us at our Joint Session on Wednesday. Making it easier for you to do business in the Americas is the principal goal of the FTAA negotiations. Successful completion of the FTAA negotiations is also needed to solidify the gains made over the past decade in hemispheric trade. We must lock in the economic reforms of these years, and keep the Americas committed to open markets and rules-based systems. Conclusion Gabriel García Márquez, the Colombian author and winner of the Nobel Prize for Literature, stated earlier this year: "Do not expect anything from the 21st Century; it is the 21st Century that expects everything from you. It is a century that does not come ready-made, but rather ready to be forged by you, and it will only be as glorious as the limits of your imagination." I know that you will continue to support the FTAA negotiations -- and I hope that you will remember Gabriel García Márquez's words and never limit your imagination. You are the engine of the Americas economy. We need you -- the businesswomen and businessmen of the Americas -- to help us create a good future for all our citizens. Thank you </body> </html>

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