Background
Funded by Global Affairs Canada, the Expert Deployment Mechanism for Trade and Development (EDM) provides technical assistance to Official Development Assistance (ODA)-eligible countries to maximize the development impacts of trade and investment. Over seven years (2018-2025), EDM will invest CAD 16.5 million to support Canada's developing country trading partners to negotiate, implement, benefit from, and adapt to trade and investment agreements with Canada.
EDM is a demand-driven project that will benefit potential partners – including governments, local private sector groups and local civil society organizations – through capacity building and technical advisory support on policy reform issues that have a high potential to reduce poverty and gender inequalities and support progress in trade and investment agreement negotiations.
The ASEAN regional economic integration project has been a remarkable success, advancing slowly but steadily towards a common market and full enjoyment of the four economic freedoms (the free movement of goods, services, labour, and capital) by the region's 650 million people. The evidence of this success is ASEAN's impressive economic growth, which has outperformed the global economy over the past two decades.
Trade liberalization has made an important contribution to ASEAN's economic development. ASEAN has pursued an active program of trade negotiations with external trading partners, which has, to date, yielded 13 bilateral or plurilateral trade agreements. ASEAN Member States have also concluded over 80 bilateral trade agreements.
ASEAN is currently engaged in trade negotiations with Canada. The EDM has provided expert assistance to deepen Member States' understanding of negotiating issues, build consensus negotiating positions among the Members, and strengthen their capacity to implement the obligations of an eventual agreement.
As part of the agreement, Canada seeks provisions to protect trade secrets (see Article 18:78 of the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership and Article 20, Section I of the Canada-United States-Mexico Agreement for examples of provisions on trade secrets in recent Canadian trade agreements). In that context, the ASEAN Secretariat has requested expert assistance to deepen the understanding of Member State negotiators regarding the settlement of trade secrets disputes under Canadian law (i.e. the common law, with the exception of the Province of Quebec, where the civil law applies).
Linkage to EDM Performance Measurement Framework
This assistance is consistent with the EDM Performance Management Framework, Immediate Outcome 1100: Enhanced ability of partner country MDAs to engage in exploratory discussions and negotiate sustainable and inclusive trade and investment agreements.
The assistance aligns with the EDM Country Needs Assessment Plan for ASEAN, Mandate 1: Strengthening ASEAN Readiness for Trade Negotiations with Canada and Implementation of a Potential Agreement.
Description of Technical Assistance Request/Key Responsibilities
The technical expert(s) will:
- Prepare a background paper on how disputes on trade secrets are conducted under Canadian (common and civil) law. The paper will serve as a resource for negotiators and provide the foundation for a workshop to provide an in-depth examination of the law, the relevant legal procedures, and obligations in Canadian trade agreements. It is expected that the paper and workshop will include case studies of significant disputes and legal precedents.
- Design and deliver a workshop for officials of ASEAN Member States to present and discuss the background paper. The workshop is to be delivered virtually to a maximum of 50 participants, including negotiators, intellectual property officials, legal practitioners, and judges responsible for the enforcement of trade secrets. Despite its virtual format, the workshop is expected to be highly interactive, to provide ASEAN officials an opportunity to seek detailed answers to legal and technical questions.
- Provide a responsive advisory service, for a period of 30 days after the delivery of the workshop, to respond to additional questions raised by the workshop participants.
The background paper, workshop, and follow-up advisory service are to be delivered in English.
Consistent with Canada's inclusive trade approach, the EDM promotes gender equality and social inclusion as cross-cutting objectives of all technical assistance. Proposals should explain how these objectives will be integrated into the planning/approach, content, and conduct of the background paper, workshop, and advisory service.
The direct beneficiaries of this technical assistance will be the ASEAN Member State and Secretariat officials responsible for developing trade and intellectual property policy. Indirectly, the assistance will result in better trade policy outcomes for ASEAN businesses, increasing sustainable trade, prosperity, and poverty reduction.
The immediate outcome of the technical assistance is expected to be increased knowledge of trade secrets enforcement among ASEAN Member State and Secretariat officials. In the medium term, the assistance is expected to contribute to developing trade and intellectual property policy, consensus on ASEAN negotiating positions, and effective protection of ASEAN intellectual property rights.
Technical Expert Profile/Expertise Required
Bidders for this technical assistance activity must demonstrate expert knowledge and extensive experience in the following:
- Legal procedures for the settlement of trade secrets disputes under Canadian law
- Provisions on trade secrets in Canadian trade agreements
- Research methods and the preparation of research papers
- The design and delivery of workshops on trade and intellectual property issues
- The design and delivery of trade technical assistance to developing countries
- The impact of trade and intellectual property law on gender equality/social inclusion and environmental protection
Note: The EDM includes a core focus on gender and social inclusion as well as on environmental issues associated with trade activities. Successful applicants must research and integrate specific good and emerging practices in this area, partnering with other expert consultants if necessary. Any prior experience providing TA on gender equality, social inclusion, and the environment will be considered a strong asset. Before starting activities, the successful Consultant(s) will be required to complete the Government of Canada's online Gender-Based Analysis Plus (GBA+) training (approximately 2 hours).