ICC News

13 March 2020 ICC has partnered with the New England Complex Systems Institute to develop a round-up of actions businesses can take to reduce the spread and impact of the COVID-19 outbreak. The menu of options for consideration aims to help businesses of any size, in any region, develop or implement business continuity plans depending on geographic location of the business. The free to download document, underscores the key role businesses can play in minimising the likelihood of transmission stating that early, bold and effective action will reduce short-term risks to employees and long-term costs to businesses and the economy. “Prevention

12 March 2020 The International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) has issued a call for G20 leaders to urgently agree on a comprehensive global action plan to address the escalating COVID-19 outbreak, and restore confidence and stability to the global economy. Following yesterday’s decision by the World Health Organization (WHO) to designate COVID-19 as a global pandemic, ICC believes that coordinated action among the world’s largest economies is urgently needed to boost ongoing efforts to manage the spread of the outbreak – while minimizing the potential social and economic impacts of COVID-19. In an open letter to Saudi King, Salman bin Abdulaziz

4 March 2020 ICC has launched the Digital Trade Standards Initiative (DSI) – a collaborative cross-industry effort to enable the standardisation of digital trade. The ICC Digital Trade Standards Initiative (DSI) will build on work done by various likeminded initiatives, many of which aim to digitise trade, notably through the development of open trade and technology standards to promote interoperability. The ICC DSI will promote greater economic inclusion through the development of open trade standards. This will facilitate technical interoperability among the variety of blockchain-based networks and technology platforms that have entered the trade space over the past two years. “Universal

28 February 2020 ICC Albania in cooperation with the Ministry of Justice and with the support of the Embassy of the Netherlands in Albania and the Delegation of the European Union to Albania organized the ‘’Week of Integrity in Albania’’ which took place from 3 to 11 February 2020. This first edition of the Week of Integrity was joined by twenty eight partners – that introduced their initiatives focusing on the raising of awareness and promotion of ethical behavior, transparency, accountability, responsible business conduct and any effort in the fight against corruption. A closing Conference was held on 11 February 2020 in

25 February 2020 ICC has published a paper on an issue central to the vitality and growth of the digital economy: liberalisation of global markets in electronic payment services (EPS) and the trade commitments necessary to achieve it. The brief – part of a series by ICC to assist World Trade Organization (WTO) Member States in their plurilateral negotiations in Geneva on the trade-related aspects of e-commerce – is the product of extensive consultation with businesses across a range of sectors participating in or affected by the digital economy. The negotiations, now involving 83 Member States, seek to achieve a high standard

24 February 2020 The International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) will support the next generation of entrepreneurs and start-up talents with initiatives provided by the ICC Centre Entrepreneurship. Mr Denton launched the ICC Centre for Entrepreneurship in Istanbul. In the past decade, multilateral trade has been transformed by the emergence of the gig economy, with entrepreneurs, start-ups and venture capitalists congregating in local innovation hubs to develop transformative products and services. Building off its global network of businesses, chambers of commerce, academic institutions, and intergovernmental organisations, ICC has launched the ICC Centre for Entrepreneurship, to connect local entrepreneurs to global markets and

20 February 2020 ICC and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) have signed a new Memorandum of Understanding to promote business engagement in UNDP’s flagship SDG Impact initiative. The new partnership aims to leverage ICC’s global network to drive a transformation in how economic growth is generated by ensuring that the private sector has the necessary tools to embed sustainability in corporate decision-making. Experts and industry leaders now widely recognise that a step-change is needed in the level of private sector investment in the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)—with only a fraction of global assets currently invested in SDG-aligned activities and only

11 February 2020 During the Conference on Integrity held on February 11th, business leaders, public sector officials, international partners, academic personalities and civil society activists gathered in Tirana to share their initiatives their efforts and challenges faced in the fight against corruption today in Albania and worldwide. Organized by ICC Albania, this Conference was the concluding event of the Week of Integrity an initiative introduced for the first time in Albania this year and adopted from ICC Netherlands. The panel discussions and academic debate sessions provided an overview of the most endemic challenges faced by the society, academia or at the

7 February 2020 ICC is partnering with government, business and other stakeholders to create digital solutions that will advance economic prosperity for all. In line with ICC’s Declaration for the Next Century of Global Business, we are committed to maximising the benefits of the digital economy through establishing key partnerships to unify, simplify, and transform trade processes for all. Here are seven ICC digital initiatives that will prepare business for the future of global trade: 1). TradeTrust facilitating ICC TradeFlow During the World Economic Forum Annual Meeting in Davos, ICC joined the Singapore Government and major firms from key industries to launch TradeTrust,

31 January 2020 ICC Secretary General John W.H. Denton AO has responded to the outbreak of a new coronavirus which has infected thousands and led to the deaths of more than 200 people. In a message to the ICC global network, Mr Denton said: “Businesses worldwide are now taking actions to support the government and people of China in their response efforts. We too must demonstrate our support as the global institutional representative of many businesses in China and many more in newly affected countries.” Mr Denton underscored that contributing to a coordinated effort to protect lives, livelihoods and the global