Written by Arántzazu Sánchez Belastegui, Article No. 124 [UNCTAD Transport and Trade Facilitation Newsletter N°103 - Third Quarter 2024]
Can countries really improve their implementation compliance of the WTO Trade Facilitation Agreement (TFA) by using the Reform Tracker?
The answer is a resounding yes. Between April 2022 and June 2024, only nine out of 95 developing and least developed WTO members reported early implementation of TFA measures. Remarkably, four of these countries (44%) received support from UN Trade and Development under the Accelerate Trade Facilitation Programme, financed by the UK and implemented in partnership with the World Customs Organization. Collectively, Cambodia, Egypt, Eswatini, and Maldives notified that they have achieved early implementation of 19 TFA measures, corresponding to collective implementation of 42 years ahead of schedule. This accelerated timeline collectively saved 507 months, meaning each measure was implemented, on average, two years earlier than expected. Credit has to go to the four countries that through the use of the Reform Tracker have been able to monitor implementation in real time.
However, the actual number of countries implementing TFA measures earlier than notified may be higher. Conversely, some nations may have missed their commitments, highlighting a broader issue: the underutilization of institutional arrangements mandated by the WTO TFA, which complicates the WTO TFA Committee's ability to accurately assess the real status of the implementation of the Agreement.
Let’s look at a concrete example. Article 16 of the TFA requires developing country members to inform the WTO Trade Facilitation Committee about arrangements necessary to provide assistance and support for capacity building for Category C measures. As of June 2024, only 38 out of 95 countries had fulfilled this obligation. Notably, 12 of these 38 countries (32%) were supported by UNCTAD under the Accelerate Trade Facilitation Programme.
So, why have the remaining 57 countries failed to submit this notification, overdue since 2018? Arántzazu Sánchez, UNCTAD’s manager for the Accelerate Trade Facilitation Programme, explains: “Sending notifications to the WTO can be a challenging endeavor. The difficulty lies not in drafting the document per se but in collecting the necessary information from various agencies. This responsibility logically lies with the secretariats of the National Trade Facilitation Committees, but often, members lack proper briefing or awareness of their notification duties and processes. Sometimes, they do not even know who the relevant national experts are, making the task of gathering technical information nearly unattainable.”
The UNCTAD Reform Tracker, currently utilized by nearly 30 countries worldwide, are transformative in this context. The tool track implementation progress and automate notifications, ensuring NTFC (National Trade Facilitation Committees) Secretariats never miss deadlines. Continuous information gathering also simplifies the process of compiling complex notifications, such as those on institutional arrangements. NTFC secretariats feel more confident to notify early implementation or to request an extension of a definitive date, when this information is collected, tracked and has been formally validated and provided by expert agencies through the Reform Tracker.
“The Reform Tracker, combined with UNCTAD’s advisory services and training courses for trade facilitation stakeholders and NTFC secretariats, has significantly impacted the NTFC's ability to oversee and lead the trade facilitation agenda within countries”, states Shamika Sirimanne, Director of the Division of Trade and Logistics in UNCTAD. The large number of notifications sent to the WTO by UNCTAD-supported countries indicates that these nations are receiving the necessary support, and their TFA implementation status is more accurately reflected in the WTO TFA Database compared to countries without such support.
For instance, between April 2022 and June 2024, 39 developing and least developed countries requested extensions from the WTO TFA Committee. Notably, 42% of these notifications came from countries supported by UNCTAD under the Accelerate Trade Facilitation Programme.
The accelerated implementation in partner countries is also evidenced by the Implementation Score of the WTO TFA, and indicator created by UN Trade and Development. This score, derived from data in the Reform Tracker across 21 programme-supported countries, increased by 36.26 percentage points from April 2022 to June 2024.
“The Reform Tracker has significantly strengthened project management and the implementation of trade facilitation measures in Honduras, especially within the framework of the WTO Trade Facilitation Agreement. In recent years, the Reform Tracker has been a crucial digital tool in advancing and achieving goals in a timely manner, by automating the distribution of tasks and the coordinated implementation of key trade facilitation initiatives. Moreover, the Reform Tracker facilitates the engagement, communication, and participation of all stakeholders operating at the border, both from the public and private sectors.” Karen Sosa Salgado, Trade Facilitation Coordinator and Negotiator of Customs Procedures and Trade Facilitation - Vice Ministry of Economic Integration and Foreign Trade, Ministry of Economic Development, Technical Secretariat - National Trade Facilitation Committee of Honduras (CONFACO).
These findings underscore the critical role of UNCTAD tools and advisory services in transforming trade facilitation, driving significant progress and timely implementation of the WTO TFA.
Explore new features of the Reform Tracker with this two-minutes video:
Countries seeking access to the Reform Tracker and its related advisory support from UN Trade and Development can send a request to [email protected].
Author:
Arántzazu Sánchez Belastegui | Economic Affairs Officer| Division on Technology and Logistics, Trade Facilitation Section, UNCTAD | [email protected]
