Trade facilitation

Shaping resilient, efficient, and sustainable global supply chains through trade facilitation reforms, digital innovation, and the UNCTAD Global Supply Chain Forum.

Objectives

Through the Empowerment Programme for Trade Facilitation, UNCTAD helps countries achieve:

  • Stronger institutions: Build capacity of governments and private sector actors to implement trade reforms.
  • Smarter reforms: Use data and analysis to reduce bottlenecks and costs.
  • Better coordination: Strengthen cooperation across border agencies.
  • Digital transformation: Accelerate paperless and data-driven trade systems.
  • Inclusive outcomes: Ensure women, youth, persons with disability and other vulnerable groups benefit.

Empowerment Programme for Trade Facilitation 

The UNCTAD Empowerment Programme for Trade Facilitation offers diverse solutions to support developing and Least Developed Countries (LDCs), Small Island Developing States (SIDS), Landlocked Developing Countries (LLDCs), and economies in transition in strengthening their trade facilitation capacities.

It engages government officials, private sector professionals (including women, young traders, and vulnerable groups), academic and research institutions, and civil society organizations.  

By providing tailored solutions, the programme supports inclusive and sustainable development, supply chain resilience, and good governance through digitalization, improving trade efficiency and cross-border collaboration.

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Trade Facilitation and Supply Chain Solutions

Advisory services and legal assistance on trade facilitation

Advisory services and legal assistance

Delivers expert guidance and legal support to help countries adopt and implement trade facilitation measures, ensuring alignment with international standards and tackling specific legal challenges.

Capacity building and e-Learning for trade facilitation

Capacity building and e-learning

Provides hands-on training and online courses, equipping trade professionals with essential skills and knowledge for efficient trade facilitation, including best practices, compliance, and digital tools.

Database of National Trade Facilitation Committees

Database of National Trade Facilitation Committees

A comprehensive database tracking the activities of National Trade Facilitation Committees globally, enhancing transparency and fostering cross-border collaboration.

Climate-Smart trade facilitation

Climate-Smart trade facilitation

Advances climate-smart solutions for sustainable global trade. Reducing carbon emissions by leveraging digital technologies and enhancing national coordination to streamline cross-border trade processes.

Rapid Scan

Rapid scan for trade facilitation preparedness

Assesses a country's level of trade facilitation preparedness to any emergency situation, identifying gaps and proposing recommendations.

Reform tracker

Reform tracker for trade facilitation

Tracks and reports on the progress of trade facilitation reforms, keeping stakeholders informed and supporting trade modernization goals.

Trade Portals

Trade Portals

Develops centralized digital platforms that streamline trade documentation for importers and exporters, improving accessibility, transparency, and efficiency.

Procedure analysis and simplification tool for trade facilitation

Procedure analysis and simplification tool

Simplifies complex trade procedures, helping countries reduce red tape and make trade processes more efficient and accessible.

Border Agency Cooperation & Transit Coordination

Strengthens coordination among border agencies and transit actors to reduce duplication, delays and uncertainty. It brings together diagnostics, training, cooperation strategies, transit frameworks and governance mechanisms for smoother borders and corridors.

E-Certificates

Moves trade certificates from paper to secure digital systems. This solution offers no-code tools and technical expertise for the digital issuance, transmission and verification of certificates, reducing delays, fraud risks and paper-based processes.

Inclusive trade facilitation

Places the needs of women, youth, persons with disabilities, small traders and other groups often left behind at the centre of reform design. It combines research, gap assessments, action plans, monitoring tools and targeted capacity-building.

Trade facilitation solutions implemented since 2015

 

Select a technical assistance product in the legend to display UNCTAD support worldwide

 
 
List of countries that have benefited from this programme:
 
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Dotted line represents approximately the Line of Control in Jammu and Kashmir agreed upon by India and Pakistan. The final status of Jammu and Kashmir has not yet been agreed upon by the parties.

Technical notes

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