Sustaining transparency in trade through Trade Information Portals in PACER Plus Countries

UNCTAD has developed expertise in providing technical assistance and capacity building on trade facilitation and regulatory transparency to developing countries and least developed countries, including Small Island Developing States in the South Pacific.

For over 40 years, UNCTAD has effectively supported the establishment of public-private platforms that enable communication between government agencies and businesses in developing countries.

National Trade Facilitation Committees (NTFCs) are recognized as valuable knowledge-sharing and training platforms. They may also engage in broader activities such as advisory services, training sessions, and information initiatives. To date, UNCTAD has assisted more than 50 NTFCs worldwide with gap analysis, needs assessments, and project proposal development aimed at enhancing the transparency of trade procedures.

In addition, UNCTAD supports the design, development, and maintenance of Trade Information Portals. These online platforms disseminate crucial trade-related information, including required documents, forms, costs, timelines, relevant laws, and contact data. UNCTAD is currently running trade information portal projects in approximately fifteen developing countries.

This project outlines a seven-month initiative focused on sustaining and building upon the momentum achieved by PACER Plus countries in implementing transparency provisions from 2018 to 2024. 

It builds on the successful collaboration between PACER Plus member states and UNCTAD under the "Transparency in Trade Regulation and Facilitation in the Pacific Agreement on Closer Economic Relations (PACER) Plus" project, which is funded by the Governments of Australia and New Zealand.

Objective

The overall objective of this project is to enhance trade efficiency and transparency in trade procedures within PACER Plus countries. This will be accomplished by ensuring that project information teams obtain the necessary skills to regularly update the trade information portals.

Specific areas of focus include:

• Developing an annual work plan for project information teams (PITS)
• Strengthening the training and knowledge of PITs on mapping trade-related import and export procedures, as well as managing the trade information portals
• Accessing, using and managing web analytics for the trade information portals

Link to SDGs

The project is aligned with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) 8.3, 16.6, 17.11, and 17.14.

Monitoring and evaluation

After the completion of the project, a follow-up meeting will be organized with each beneficiary country and the donor to ensure that the project continues to deliver benefits post-implementation and to explore additional areas where further support may be needed.