Ecorys Nederland BV was founded in 1929 as the Netherlands Economic Institute (NEI) and currently is part of the international group of companies ECORYS group.
Ecorys Nederland BV, is the largest economic research and consulting organisation in the Netherlands with a permanent staff of more than 200 qualified professionals, primarily economists. Ecorys Nederland currently provides services to public and private sector clients from around the world and works for many national and regional governments, international organisations such as the European Commission and United Nations Agencies, private sector clients and international financial institutions including the World Bank, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development other regional development banks. ECORYS has extensive experience working in developing and emerging economies.
The Trade Unit is part of the Economic Policy Analysis Advisory group of Ecorys Nederland. This advisory group is composed of a team of highly qualified economists/consultants with a wide range of experience in addressing trade, industry and enterprise policy issues in developed, transition, and developing country contexts. The activities we engage in include policy advice, sectoral analysis, applied economic research, institutional development and capacity building, monitoring and evaluation, and training. In addition, within Ecorys, there are other units involved in social sector development and environment, which work in close cooperation with the Trade Unit.
INTEGRAL
Located in Buenos Aires, Argentina, and in Miami, Florida, USA, the Center of Studies on Economic Integration and International Trade, Inc. (INTEGRAL), is a non profit civil association founded in 1998, primarily oriented to tackle the issues and policies on economic integration, trade and international trade negotiations, and economic and social development, aiming to establish a nexus between the generation and debate of ideas in these areas and the practical effects of trade policies implementation on business sectors, economic agents and society as a whole.
Integral’s goals are:
- To contribute to the knowledge and dissemination of trade, trade policies and economic growth in order to foster economic development and social welfare.
- To expand people’s opportunities by improving their skills as a mean toward social progress.
- To deliver comprehensive training and assistance programs providing professional and business development so to improve competitiveness in local and global marketplace
- To provide assistance to governments, business organizations and civil society organizations, to promote trade growth as an instrument of economic and social development.
- To conduct research to find creative solutions to overcome the obstacles that impede economic progress and social inclusion.
INTEGRAL Board Members and more than its 50 Associate Consultants from different countries throughout the world (Germany, Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Ecuador, Spain, Uruguay, Trinidad & Tobago, Dominican Republic, Venezuela, and the United States, among others) form an extensive roster of experts in the most relevant areas of international trade and economic and human development. Most of them have been government officers or private sector executives, and consultants for companies and governments.
In 2006, INTEGRAL signed a new cooperation agreement with SOAC-LACC, establishing a Joint Working Group on Trade and Intellectual Property (JWGT&IP) – up to March 2007 – to analyse, research and disseminate the most controversial subjects in the area of Intellectual Property Rights and its connection with Trade and Development. The Working Group defined a Trade and Intellectual Property Rights Capacity Building Program, comprising capacitation, research and technical assistance in four main axes: implementation and enforcement of the commitments taken on Intellectual Property Rights within trade agreements; Intellectual Property and Access to Medicines; Protection of undisclosed test data; and Consensus on Biologic Biodiversity. Within this working program, INTEGRAL and SOAC-LACC organized the seminar “Intellectual Property, Trade and Development: seeking consensus”, that took place in Miami, USA, in March 2006.
Within the European Commission Development and Cooperation Programs (EuropeAid), INTEGRAL has performed several activities, mainly of technical assistance to Latin and Central American governments.
