World Trade Organization Law
Despite the criticism levelled against the WTO, it is here to stay because more and more countries are applying to join. Russia spent over 17 years negotiating to become a member of the WTO.
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Established 2011 · Geneva · Accra
International Trade Institute for West Africa
Student-focused approach with unmatched teaching experts.
About ITIWA
We are the International Trade Institute for West Africa
The International Trade Institute for West Africa (ITIWA) has been training groups since 2011. Among others, it trained customs officers in World Trade Organization (WTO) in Accra, Ghana.
It trained trade officials, lawyers, parliamentarians and ambassadors from the fifteen Member States of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) at a workshop in WTO Dispute Settlement Mechanism in Dakar, Senegal.
Recently, in June 2021, ITIWA in collaboration with the Advisory Center for WTO law (ACWL), Geneva, Switzerland, trained senior members of the Ghanaian Judiciary in international trade law in June 2021 via Zoom.
In July 2021 ITIWA, in collaboration with Bryan Cave Leighton Paisner, Miami, Florida, USA, held a training programme for the senior members of the Ghanaian judiciary via Zoom in international commercial arbitration, with a focus on the New York Convention.
The Executive Director of ITIWA, who has a long-standing experience in international trade law undertook baseline studies in the West African region for the ECOWAS.
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Year Founded
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ECOWAS Member States Trained
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Specialised Courses Offered
Leadership
Word from the Executive Director
"Dear prospective student, the International Trade institute for West Africa (ITIWA) has been established so that you can acquire unprecedented knowledge in World Trade Organization Law and related international trade disciplines through world class tuition by ITIWA's carefully selected international faculty.
For Government officials, legal practitioners, private business people and students that ITIWA has been created to teach and coach, the time has come for you to take advantage of this centre of excellence to acquire the requisite knowledge for doing business effectively on the global market.
ITIWA is the first of its kind in West Africa and the right institute for building your capacity in trade law and practice.
Please check our website for full details of the courses that we offer.
We look forward to welcoming you."
— Gertrude Nimako-Boateng
Executive Director, ITIWA
BA (Hons) · LL.B (Hons) · LL.M · Panelist, WTO Court, Geneva
Our Mission
Mission Statement
The ITIWA strives to create knowledge and encourages its students to take optimum advantage of their educational opportunities. To this end, the ITIWA has put in place excellent courses that are taught by world class faculty drawn from all over the world who provide tailor-made high quality courses to empower its students and participants. Thus the ITIWA transfers knowledge it generates to the business community both locally and internationally. ITIWA also provides up-to-date information to students and participants on the practice of the WTO Law to keep them abreast of multilateral trade agreements and discussions.
Global Standards
World-class faculty from Geneva, the US and West Africa.
Legal Expertise
Deep specialisation in WTO Law, AfCFTA and arbitration.
Capacity Building
Empowering the next generation of African trade lawyers.
What We Teach
Courses Offered
Nine specialised programmes designed for officials, lawyers, judges and business leaders shaping trade across West Africa.
African Continental Free Trade Area Agreement (AfCFTA)
The AfCFTA which came into force on 1 January 2021, has ushered in a single market on the African continent for trade in goods, services, investment, intellectual property and free movement of business people.
Read MoreSkills and Techniques in negotiations
At the WTO and in any business environment, negotiations are taking place on a daily basis either for establishing rules to govern international trade or selling goods and services.
Read MoreDrafting of contracts
This course will teach participants how to draft commercial contracts for both domestic and international trade.
Read MoreDocumentary credit transactions
In international trade where the buyer is resident in a country different from the seller, some reliable means of payment is essential for the smooth conduct of business.
Read MoreInternational Commercial Arbitration
In a commercial transaction, an agreement that is entered into by two parties for the sale of goods or the provision of services may sometimes lead to a dispute when one of the parties reneges on its obligations under the agreement.
Read MoreInternational Trade and Finance: Principles and Policies
National trade and finance regulations are increasingly being determined by WTO agreements.
Read MoreGlobal Trade in Healthcare Services
The revolution in information and communication technologies in the past decades has resulted in increases in global trade in such services as banking, insurance, entertainment, and education.
Read MoreIntellectual Property Law and Valuation
What is the economic value of the knowledge that developing countries create, own, and pretty much give away for pennies? In other words, how do we assist African countries to protect and value the intellectual properties created by their citizens? The World Trade Organization (WTO) Agreement on the Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) concentrates on knowledge existing in developed countries.
Read MoreWhat Participants Say
Voices from the Programme
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The WTO dispute settlement training was exactly what we needed as trade officials in the ECOWAS region.
Senior Trade Official
Dakar, Senegal
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ITIWA's arbitration programme combined New York Convention rigour with practical drafting we use every week.
High Court Judge
Accra, Ghana
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The faculty's depth across Geneva, Miami and Lagos gave our team a genuinely global perspective.
Partner, Commercial Law Firm
Lagos, Nigeria
Study with the ITIWA today.
Join government officials, lawyers and business professionals from across West Africa building capacity in international trade law.
In Collaboration With
ACWL · GenevaBryan Cave Leighton PaisnerECOWASWTOLSE