Digital and Sustainable Trade Facilitation in Asia and the Pacific 2021
The regional report is part of a global survey effort on the implementation of trade facilitation and paperless trade measures, undertaken jointly by the five United Nations Regional Commissions for Africa (ECA), Europe (ECE), Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP), Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC) and West Asia (ESCWA).
Based on the 2021 United Nations Global Survey on Digital and Sustainable Trade Facilitation covering 46 countries of the Asia-Pacific region, this report reviews the progress of trade facilitation reforms and provides a detailed analysis based on 58 trade facilitation measures that are classified into four groups (“General Trade Facilitation”, “Digital Trade Facilitation”, “Sustainable Trade Facilitation” and “Other Trade Facilitation”) and a further 11 sub-groups covering both binding and non-binding WTO TFA measures, and measures beyond the scope of WTO TFA+.
The fourth survey is built upon the earlier surveys and expanded collection of measures on trade finance facilitation as well as on trade facilitation in times of crisis. The latter was incorporated in order to gather information on the implementation of short-term measures in response to the COVID-19 pandemic as well as long-term measures in preparation for future crises and pandemics. The crucial role of trade digitalization has been emphasized not only for increasing regulatory compliance and reducing illicit financial flows, but also as an effective method to mitigate trade disruptions during the COVID-19 pandemic. The fourth survey also continues to pay special attention to sectors and groups with special needs, such as the agricultural sector, small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and women traders, at the outset of the Agenda 2030 for Sustainable Development’s recognition of international trade as one of the key means of implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals.
The report could further support the economies around the region in order to make trade simpler, cheaper, more resilient and sustainable through the use and application of technology and innovation in international trade procedures.
For more information on the UN Global Survey on Digital and Sustainable Trade Facilitation and other reports, please visit untfsurvey.org
Handbook on Provisions and Options for Trade in Times of Crisis and Pandemic
This Handbook explores options for provisions that could be used in future RTAs to better guide how trade could be conducted during future crises. It covers all the major rules areas in RTAs, including Essential Goods and Services, Trade Facilitation, SPS and TBT Measures, Intellectual Property Rights, Digital Trade, Transparency, and Development. The options for provisions include “baseline”, “baseline+”, and “discretionary” options, depending on the extent of obligations, protection, resilience and policy space provided by those provisions.
UN Course based on the Handbook: https://www.unescap.org/training/rta-ttcp
More information about the Initiative is available HERE.
Airship technology for air connectivity and humanitarian aid in the Caribbean and the Pacific
The Hybrid Airship transport alternative has the potential to be a game changing technology with significant development in recent years. The aim of this technical note is to help raise awareness on airships as an innovative mobile services technology.
Implications of the COVID-19 pandemic for commercial contracts covering the transportation of goods in the Asia-Pacific region and beyond
With a view to increase awareness of Government officials and transport operators in Asia and the Pacific region on the ways of addressing some of the key legal implications of COVID-19 for commercial contracts covering transport of goods and to assist shippers and consignees, particularly in developing countries in addressing some of the key commercial law implications of the COVID-19 crisis, the UNESCAP secretariat conducted research and preliminary analysis of the challenges arising from the COVID-19 crisis affecting international commercial contracts, including contracts on international carriage of goods by various modes of transport, focusing particularly on land and multimodal transport.
Proposals for crisis-response provisions in regional and bilateral transport agreements of the ESCAP member States
Having faced the pandemic, most of ESCAP member States had to urgently issue ad-hoc policies and domestic regulations in attempts to prevent or limit the spread of COVID-19 disease through their borders, often without warning or consulting their counterparts and in breach of the rules of transport-related international legal instruments. This situation showcased that existing legal instruments covering international carriage of goods and passengers may lack provisions on cooperation while dealing with critical situations such as the current crisis or other potential extraordinary situations.
In this context, the UNESCAP secretariat took stock of the current bilateral and multilateral agreements on international road transport in Asia and the Pacific Region, analyzing, in particular, the availability of clauses related to crisis response and mutual assistance in emergency situations in those agreements. of information and may be subsequently updated.
Road freight in ASEAN: New COVID-19 Response and Recovery Guidelines
The Association of South-East Asian Nations (ASEAN) Member States will have new tools to help them address issues related to road freight transport caused by the COVID-19 pandemic as part of the initiatives under the ASEAN Comprehensive Recovery Framework. ASEAN has approved guidelines to support the response and recovery of road freight transport among its Member States in the context of the pandemic.
Developed with the assistance of the International Transport Forum (ITF) and the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP), the COVID-19 Recovery Guidelines for Resilient and Sustainable International Road Freight Transport Connectivity in ASEAN were approved ad-referendum by the ASEAN Senior Transport Officials Meeting (STOM) on 11 January 2021.
Online Course on Enhancing Trade Information Portals
Trade information portals (TIPs), sometimes also called National Trade Portals/Repositories (NTP/Rs), are websites where one can obtain information on laws, regulations and procedures that need to be followed when engaging in international trade. The information and services provided through TIPs have the potential to enhance regulatory transparency and greatly facilitate trade. While many countries already have some forms of TIPs, ensuring their effectiveness and sustainability often remains a challenge. The objective of this online course on enhancing TIPs is to provide a framework and guidelines for assessing the as-is conditions of a TIP and generating recommendations for its improvement.
Trade facilitation in times of pandemic: practices and lessons from the Asia-Pacific region
The Coronavirus 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has hit international trade worldwide and in Asia and the Pacific, underscoring the importance of maintaining trade connectivity not only for the immediate pandemic response, but also for the subsequent recovery efforts in order to build resilience to future disruptions. The report first describes, in the section II, the initial developments and lessons learnt in trade and transport facilitation practices in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Section III presents the results of a Survey on trade facilitation in times of crisis and pandemic in the Asia and the Pacific region. Finally, Section IV discusses the ways forward for trade facilitation measures to support a sustainable and resilient recovery from the COVID-19 crisis and how the Asia-Pacific region can be better equipped to build back better.
Regional cooperation for trade and transport connectivity in the age of pandemics in Asia and the Pacific
“Coordination, digitalization, harmonization and partnership” could remain as guiding principles of the trade and transport response during the pandemic and in its aftermath. The existing cooperation mechanisms for trade and transport connectivity in Asia and the Pacific should be mobilized to provide stronger momentum for facilitation, harmonization and digitalization of cross-border trade and transport procedures. This includes the Framework Agreement on Facilitation of Cross-Border Paperless Trade in Asia and the Pacific, and the intergovernmental agreements on the Asian Highway and the Trans-Asian Railway Networks. Complementing this, regional coordination in times of crises can also be institutionalized in future negotiations of relevant regional, subregional and bilateral trade and transport agreements.
Guide to enhancing Trade Information Portals
The Guide to enhancing Trade Information Portals proposes a governance framework and guidelines that can be used as an assessment and improvement roadmap, especially for assessing the current or as-is conditions of an existing Trade Information Portals (TIPs), and then generating recommendations for further enhancing its quality and impacts. The readers of this guide will learn how to evaluate and generate recommendations for enhancing the effectiveness and the sustainability of TIPs.
Readers of the Guide are recommended to take the online course on enhancing Trade Information Portals (TIPs). The online course is available HERE.