At an international meeting in Geneva that concluded today, UNCTAD was asked to help develop a global system for trade transactions -- covering both exports and imports -- by identifying obstacles to its implementation and proposing practical means to overcome them.
Attended by delegates and experts from over 100 countries and organizations, the three-day meeting (8 - 10 September) was the first endeavour of its kind to concentrate on the potentially huge opportunities, and challenges, that the expansion of electronic commerce will provide for developing countries and countries with economies in transition to the market.
At today´s joint session with the International Telecommunications Union (ITU), held at the Telecom Inter@ctive meeting in Geneva, the Secretary-General of UNCTAD, Mr Rubens Ricupero said: "Technology is not the problem any more. What the new infrastructure needs is to be able to carry the applications and services which will make it economically viable, in particular in those regions of the world which are less advanced technologically".
At a press conference later, Mr. Ricupero noted that the rapidly growing field of electronic commerce was one that needed new regulations. "It is important to know who will be in charge of different aspects of this subject, which goes well beyond trade to encompass such matters as security and public interest questions," he stated. Ambassador Anthony Hill of Jamaica, Chairman of the Expert Meeting on Telecommunications, Business Facilitation and Trade Efficiency, added that Geneva was becoming "the locus of discussions" on different aspects of this subject.
The experts´ discussions at UNCTAD underlined the continuing uneven character of the so-called "information revolution." It was stressed that Africa, and Least Developed Countries (LDCs) in general, still lag behind in terms of access to basic telephonic services. Practical ways to help these countries catch up, such as the US "Leland Initiative" and UNCTAD´s "Web Incubator", were presented.
Called by UNCTAD´s member States to discuss the potential impact of telecommunications on business facilitation and trade efficiency, the meeting was attended by some 250 participants, including delegates, telecommunications experts and businessmen. Coming after President Clinton´s 1 July address on a "Global Framework For Electronic Commerce" and the Bonn Ministerial Declaration on Global Information Networks of 8 July, it focused on the possible impact on international trade and development of electronic commerce, in particular over the Internet.
Participants stressed the potential of UNCTAD´s Global Trade Point Network as a tool for the acceleration and enhancement of smaller players´ participation in electronic commerce. They identified a series of obstacles to such participation and to the implementation of the recommendations of the 1994 United Nations International Symposium on Trade Efficiency (UNISTE) in that sector. In particular, the issue of secure electronic payments and the transmission of trade-related information over international networks such as the Internet should be closely examined, the meeting agreed.
The experts recognized that present standards used for trade transactions did not make it possible to derive the full benefits from the existing international networks. For example, the difficulty of using an export declaration form to clear imports was mentioned.
The European Commission, meanwhile, confirmed, following an in-depth study of UNCTAD´s work in this field, that it would provide two million ECUs to fund the establishment or further development of Trade Points and human resource training in seven countries in Africa (Burkina Faso, Cape Verde, Côte d´Ivoire, Ghana, Mali, Mauritania, Senegal).
In conclusion, the meeting recommended that the UNCTAD Commission on Enterprise, Business Facilitation and Development should convene, as early as possible, expert meetings on:
- banking and insurance aspects of trade efficiency (including electronic payments);
- the identification of the obstacles to a global system for electronic trade transactions covering both export and import processes and the bodies which need to take action; and, at a later stage,
- the legal dimensions of electronic commerce and other relevant legal aspects of business practices and trade efficiency; and
- human resources development in the area of trade efficiency (with special focus on electronic commerce).
In addition to pursuing its work on the implementation of the 1994 Columbus (Ohio, USA) recommendations at UNISTE on telecommunications, the meeting agreed that UNCTAD´s work on trade efficiency should encompass the following priority areas:
- Electronic commerce: UNCTAD should carry out the necessary analytical and practical work to allow members to better understand the development implications of some of the proposals made for setting up a ´global framework´ for electronic commerce, including the possible revenue impact of ´tax-free internet-based commerce. Special attention should also be given to the following three areas: (1) electronic payments, (2) identification of obstacles and solutions to global electronic trading systems, and (3) legal dimensions of electronic commerce.
- Access to telecommunications-based services: UNCTAD, in close collaboration with ITU, should carry out the necessary analytical and practical work to allow interested members to better assess the various possibilities they may have to access trade-supporting telecommunications-based services at better prices and on more favourable conditions. The situation of smaller firms and under-equipped areas (especially in LDCs) should be given priority attention.
- Human resources development: UNCTAD was encouraged to pursue and develop its activities in enhancing the know-how of decision-makers and trade practitioners of developing countries and economies in transition in the areas of electronic commerce and the use of information technologies for the purpose of business facilitation and trade efficiency, in particular the Internet.
The expert meeting commended the remarkable level of cooperation displayed by UNCTAD and the ITU in organizing jointly the Expert Meeting and Telecom Inter@ctive 97. Participants expressed their wish that the example of this particular meeting could be used as a reference in future inter-institutional efforts of a similar nature.
