Geneva (VNA) – The World Trade Organisation (WTO) on December 13 held a closing ceremony for its 2024 class of young professionals.
The WTO Young Professionals Programme (YPs) is an internship initiative aimed at young professionals from developing and least-developed economies, who are underrepresented in the WTO Secretariat's specialised agencies.
Launched in 2016, the programme is a stepping stone to enhance diversity and expand member representatives in the WTO, while also building a team of young trade experts. In 2024, one official from Vietnam was selected to participate in this programme, together with other 19 outstanding young professionals out of 5,500 applications submitted by WTO member countries.
During the closing ceremony, WTO Director-General Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala congratulated the efforts demonstrated by the young professionals throughout the 12-month programme.
She emphasised that the programme provides an excellent opportunity for outstanding individuals to intern and work at the WTO Secretariat, enhancing their skills and gaining knowledge from WTO activities.
Okonjo-Iweala said she believes that the knowledge and experience gained by the professionals from this programme will make a significant contribution to the development of the international trade system.
Minister-Counsellor Le Dinh Ba, who is also Deputy Permanent Representative of Vietnam in Geneva, expressed his honour that Vietnam had a representative selected to participate in this programme.
He praised the programme's practicality in nurturing and developing the next generation of trade professionals while highlighting the vital role of the WTO Secretariat and the WTO Institute for Training and Technical Cooperation (ITTC) in the programme's success, contributing to the stability and development of the international trade system amid various challenges./.
