New York, NY, USA | 7 August 2018 â At its most recent meeting in London, the Board of Directors of the World Trade Centers Association (WTCA) voted to host its 2020 and 2021 General Assemblies at World Trade Centers (WTCs) Taipei and Accra, respectively. In a highly competitive bidding process, both WTCs presented compelling and well-conceived bids to host the event, and as a result of their exemplary efforts, both were selected.
WTC Taipei will cap off a year-long celebration of the Associationâs 50th anniversary, which will begin at the 50th General Assembly in April 2019, hosted by WTC QuerĂ©taro (Mexico). WTC Taipei is a four-in-one complex located in the city's Xinyi District. The complex consists of the Exhibition Hall, International Convention Center, International Trade Building and Grand Hyatt Taipei.
âWe are honored by the Boardâs decision and have already begun the planning process for our GA in 2020,â said Walter Yeh, President & CEO of WTC Taipei. âThis selection grants us an unrivaled opportunity to showcase the vitality and diversity of our city, as well as tremendous business opportunities to the WTCA network and the business world, allowing us to contribute in the celebration of such a historic milestone, and illustrate how Taipei is âopen for businessâ.â
WTC Accra (Ghana) will follow in 2021, emphasizing the countryâs standing as an engine of growth and development in Africa. Consisting of two imposing towers, WTC Accra is home to more than 20 international companies and combines public-private businesses that range from conference facilities to a variety of retail.
âGhanaâs economyâa symbol of stability on the continentâis accelerating at an ever-increasing pace and is already looked upon as an economic powerhouse in Africa,â remarked Togbe Afede XIV, Chairman for WTC Accra, and President of the National House of Chiefs. âWe look forward to an outstanding event in 2021 and demonstrating all of the incredible opportunity in Africa.â
"I want to extend my warmest congratulations to both WTCs Taipei and Accra, two remarkable members," remarked Mr. Scott Ferguson, Chief Executive Officer of WTCA. "Located in two very diverse regions, they stand out for a variety of reasons, and we at the WTCA are confident that they will surpass expectations as the hosts of our next two General Assemblies."
For press inquiries, please contact Alex Brown or Andrea MencĂa at media@wtca.org.
***
About the World Trade Centers Association
The World Trade Centers Association (WTCA) is a network of more than 300 highly-connected, mutually supporting businesses and organizations in nearly 100 countries. As the owner of the âWorld Trade Centerâ and âWTCâ trademarks, the WTCA licenses exclusive rights to these brands for Members to use in conjunction with their independently-owned, iconic properties, facilities and trade services offerings. Through a robust portfolio of events, programming and resources that it offers its Members, the goal of the WTCA is to help local economies thrive by encouraging and facilitating trade and investment across the globe through Member engagement. To learn more visit www.wtca.org.
WASHINGTON, D.C. | 12 June 2018 â The World Trade Centers Association (WTCA) unveiled its first-ever âWTCA Trade & Investment Report: Global Connections, Local Growthâ at a private event at the Foreign Policy (FP) Group Offices. The report was conducted in partnership with FP Analytics and reveals that cities are positioned to lead in this time of geopolitical turmoil by focusing on stakeholder networks, human capital and connective infrastructure.
According to the study, 71 percent of WTCA members polled believe that a significant disruption in trade and investment is likely to occur this year with investments being put on hold amid global economic uncertainty. Additional key findings include:
The results of the full report are available for download at www.WTCAReports.org.
About the WTCA 2018 Trade and Investment Report
This study, conducted in partnership with the World Trade Centers Association (WTCA), is a product of original city-level data analysis , as well as polling and interviews with WTCA members around the world. Cities with a WTCA member constitute more than $26.7 trillion, or more than 35 percent of global GDP , and are home to nearly 1 billion people. Capturing insights from this unique global network of World Trade Centers (WTCs) in more than 300 cities and nearly 100 countries, this analysis seeks to shed light on how global economic trends are shaping trade and investment at the local level, and the innovative ways cities and World Trade Centers are navigating this ânew normal,â building global connections to drive local growth.
About the World Trade Centers Association
The World Trade Centers Association (WTCA) is a network of more than 300 highly-connected, mutually-supporting businesses and organizations in nearly 100 countries. As the owner of the âWorld Trade Centerâ and âWTCâ trademarks, the WTCA licenses exclusive rights to these brands for Members to use in conjunction with their independently-owned, iconic properties, facilities and trade services offerings. Through a robust portfolio of events, programming and resources that it offers its Members, the goal of the WTCA is to help local economies thrive by encouraging and facilitating trade and investment across the globe through Member engagement. To learn more visit www.wtca.org.
For media inquiries:
Alex Brown
World Trade Centers Association
abrown@wtca.org
+1 212 432 2605
Andrea MencĂa
World Trade Centers Association
amencia@wtca.org
+1 212 432 2644
Sara Stephens
Allison+Partners
sara@allisonpr.com
+1 908 347 5469
TRIESTE, Italy | May 23, 2018 â Representatives of the World Trade Centers Association (WTCA) and the International Association of Science Parks and Areas of Innovation (IASP) today officially signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between the two organizations. The agreement is meant to pave the way for individual science parks to partner with their local World Trade Centers to fuel local economic growth through scientific innovation.
Based in Malaga, Spain, the IASP is a worldwide network of science parks and areas of innovation with nearly 400 members in 76 countries. Focused on connecting professionals managing science, technology and research parks, all of which have a tremendous impact on economic growth, the organization is a natural partner for the WTCA whose Members work at the grass-roots level to find global trade and investment opportunities for local businesses. For its part, the WTCA counts more than 320 Members located in nearly 90 countries.
âBoth the World Trade Centers Association and the IASP operate as nonprofit, non-political membership organizations with a global point-of-view,â remarked Andrea Garwood, Executive Director of WTC Trieste, WTCA Board Member, and signatory to the agreement representing the New-York-based association. âThe opportunities that are created in connecting both of their vast global networks are significant and hold great potential for the cities where this agreement makes such cooperation possible. We have, in fact, seen this very kind of development here in Trieste, in partnership with our own local science park.â
Luis Sanz, IASP Director General who was in Trieste to sign the MOU, commented: âTwo global organizations reaching agreements to develop actions that will benefit their respective members is something to celebrate, especially considering that as well as both being worldwide networks, we both deal with companies, business and economic activity. Building bridges for companies to cross from shore to shore is absolutely essential in an increasingly networked global society. WTCA and IASP have reached a clear common vision and have begun work to make it happen.â
Signatories vowed to identify appropriate opportunities to connect Members of both organizations in order to:
Scott Ferguson, CEO of the WTCA added, âAs an organization we are always looking for new partners to help fulfill our mission of âconnecting the business world.â In todayâs ever-advancing technological revolution, science parks and areas of innovation are vital incubators for the next big idea, and we are delighted at the opportunity for our Members to play a part.â
Cities with both a local IASP-affiliated science park and a local WTC include: Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates; Abuja, Nigeria; Al Khobar, Saudi Arabia; Almaty, Kazakhstan; Barcelona, Spain; Beijing, China; Berlin, Germany; Bogota, Colombia; Boston, United States of America; Brasilia, Brazil; Brest, France; Bucaramanga, Colombia; Buenos Aires, Argentina; Cairo, Egypt; Casablanca, Morocco; China (Beijing), China; Chongqing, China; Curitiba, Brazil; Daejeon, South Korea; Dubai, United Arab Emirates; Dulles Airport, United States of America; Edmonton, Canada; Eindhoven, Netherlands; Guanajuato, Mexico; Guangzhou, China; Guiyang, China; Havana, Cuba; Hong Kong (AF), China; Hong Kong International Airport, China; Islamabad, Pakistan; Istanbul, Turkey; Jakarta, Indonesia; Jeddah, Saudi Arabia; Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia; Kunming, China; Lima, Peru; Lund, Sweden; Luxembourg, Luxembourg; Madrid, Spain; Malmo, Sweden; Marseille Provence, France; Medellin, Colombia; Merida, Mexico; Milan, Italy; Montreal, Canada; Moscow, Russia; Muscat, Oman; Nairobi, Kenya; Nanjing, China; Nantes Atlantique, France; Nice/Sophia Antipolis, France; Nizhny Novgorod, Russia; Panama; Poznan, Poland; Punta del Este, Uruguay; Qatar; Ramallah, Palestine; Rio de Janeiro, Brazil; Sao Paulo, Brazil; Seoul, South Korea; Sevilla, Spain; Shanghai, China; Sharjah, United Arab Emirates; Shenzhen, China; Sofia, Bulgaria; Sofia (AF), Bulgaria; Stockholm, Sweden; Suwon, South Korea; Taichung, Taiwan; Tallinn, Estonia; Tianjin, China; Tokyo, Japan; Tokyo (AF), Japan; Trieste, Italy; Turku, Finland; Utrecht, Netherlands; Utrecht-Papendorp Branch, Netherlands; Wuhan, China; Wuhan CBD, China; Zaragoza, Spain; Zhengzhou, China; and Zurich, Switzerland.
About the World Trade Centers Association
The World Trade Centers Association (WTCA) is a network of more than 300 highly-connected, mutually supporting businesses and organizations in nearly 100 countries. As the owner of the âWorld Trade Centerâ and âWTCâ trademarks, the WTCA licenses exclusive rights to these brands for Members to use in conjunction with their independently-owned, iconic properties, facilities and trade services offerings. Through a robust portfolio of events, programming and resources that it offers its Members, the goal of the WTCA is to help local economies thrive by encouraging and facilitating trade and investment across the globe through Member engagement. To learn more visit www.wtca.org.
For media inquiries:
Alex Brown
World Trade Centers Association
abrown@wtca.org
+1 212 432 2605
Andrea MencĂa
World Trade Centers Association
amencia@wtca.org
+1 212 432 2644
LEEUWARDEN, Netherlands â More than three dozen World Trade Centers (WTCs) from across the globe officially signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) on agriculture during the World Trade Centers Association's (WTCA) 49th General Assembly, taking place from April 22-27. This marks the Association's largest MOU in recent history.
As signatories on this important agreement and Members of the WTCA's proprietary global network, the MOU will build a robust framework for collaboration on agricultural trade issues. Spearheaded by WTC Harbin (China), each Member of the group of participating WTCs has deep ties to their local agriculture industries and the challenges they face. This group of organizations from more than one dozen countries offers a stable platform to foster trade ties during a time of increasing uncertainty.
Steven Lo, Executive Director of WTC Harbin remarked, "As a Member of the WTCA I understand the great potential in working together to find new opportunities for our home regions. The objective of this signed understanding is to equip participating Members with a robust knowledge base, specialized services, and a means of collaborating so that each WTC may, in turn, enable their local business communities with tools to access and participate in global agribusiness."
The ceremony memorialized the occasion and encouraged other WTCs to join the initiative. Signatories vowed to work on increasing opportunities for trade, as well as bridge the gaps that exist between their local agricultural sectors and the global trade community. "This is a prime example of a benefit that our global network can offer," remarked Mr. Scott Ferguson, Chief Executive Officer of WTCA. "As an association whose Members are intricately woven into the fabric of their local economies, we are incredibly well positioned to connect local communities to global opportunities, even in an environment that may not always seem conducive to this kind of collaboration. My sincerest congratulations to all of the signatories of this important agreementâthis is what our association is all about."
Participating WTCs include the following from across the globe: Accra, Ghana; Algiers, Algeria; Amman, Jordan; Anchorage, United States of America; Arkansas, United States of America; Beirut, Lebanon; Bengaluru, India; Boston, United States of America; Brussels, Belgium; Chandigarh, India; Chennai, India; Curitiba, Brazil; Cyprus; Delaware, United States of America; Denver, United States of America; Dublin, Ireland; Edmonton, Canada; GIFT City, India; Haiti; Harbin, China; Houston, United States of America; Indianapolis, United States of America; Joinville, Brazil; Kochi, India; Leeuwarden, the Netherlands; Miami, United States of America; Montana, United States of America; Monterrey, Mexico; Mumbai, India; New Orleans, United States of America; Noida, India; Perth, Australia; Greater Philadelphia, United States of America; Porto Alegre, Brazil; Qatar; Saskatoon, Canada; St. Louis, United States of America; Sydney, Australia; Riyadh, Saudi Arabia; Trieste, Italy; Twente, the Netherlands; Vancouver,Canada; Washington D.C., United States of America; Washington Dulles Airport, United States of America; and Winnipeg, Canada.
For press inquiries or interviews, please contact Alex Brown or Andrea MencĂa at media@wtca.org.
***
About the World Trade Centers Association
The World Trade Centers Association (WTCA) is a network of more than 300 highly-connected, mutually supporting businesses and organizations in nearly 100 countries. As the owner of the âWorld Trade Centerâ and âWTCâ trademarks, the WTCA licenses exclusive rights to these brands for Members to use in conjunction with their independently-owned, iconic properties, facilities and trade services offerings. Through a robust portfolio of events, programming and resources that it offers its Members, the goal of the WTCA is to help local economies thrive by encouraging and facilitating trade and investment across the globe through Member engagement. To learn more visit www.wtca.org.