The different trade facilitation measures required in developing and developed economies were discussed at a Workshop on Trade Facilitation, present issues and solutions held on 2-3 April 2001 by the International Trade Procedures Working Group (ITPWG), a subsidiary group of the United Nations Centre for Trade Facilitation and Electronic Business (UN/CEFACT).

"On the one hand there are countries that lack the basic infrastructure which is essential for implementing modern technology, such as electricity and telephone lines" said Hans Hansell, Deputy Director of the Trade Division of the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe, "and on the other hand, there are developed countries which already implement new technologies such as electronic business solutions. A priority of our Working Group is to help bridge the gap between these countries before it becomes too wide".

The Group has drawn up a new work programme, focusing on identifying and analysing the regulatory barriers to trade, and defining solutions such as audit-based controls, risk assessment, the creation of a "single window" for Governments, as well as some new Customs initiatives. It will prepare guidelines to show countries how to use benchmarking to measure trade-facilitation and service standards. Another principal task will be to identify non-regulatory barriers to trade.

"We hope to present the problems experienced by the different countries into challenges for their Governments and for the organizations engaged in trade facilitation" said the Group’s Chairman, Alex de Lijster of the Netherlands.

The Group’s 35 members include experts from ministries, port and customs authorities, export promotion agencies, etc. The Group was set up in 1997 under the United Nations Centre for Trade Facilitation and Electronic Business for the purpose of identifying, simplifying, harmonizing and aligning public and private-sector practices, procedures and information flows relating to international trade transactions both in goods and services.

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