Global Alliance for Trade Facilitation . Newsletter September 2022

 Global Alliance for Trade Facilitation . Newsletter September 2022

Newsletter September 2022 

ICC: NEWSLETTER | View in the web browser   TARGETED SOLUTIONS GLOBAL IMPACTS Global Alliance for Trade Facilitation Newsletter | September 2022 HIGHLIGHTS Welcome to our quarterly newsletter.   It has been a busy period at the Alliance. Over the past three months, we successfully completed four projects - two in Madagascar and two in Mozambique. In Madagascar, traders are experiencing time and cost reductions from modernised processes, while vulnerable communities in Mozambique are benefiting from faster imports of critical medical goods.   In the coming months, we will continue supporting the implementation of the WTO's Trade Facilitation Agreement across the developing world, completing six more projects in Africa, Asia, and the Middle East.   Besides these activities, we continued expanding our private sector network, signing a partnership with international tyre giant, Michelin. And the success of our public private partnership approach to developing projects was recognised by the US State Department when we were selected as a finalist for Concordia University's Public Private Partnership (P3) Impact Award.   We also found time to co-organise with UNCTAD the first-ever Trade Facilitation Innovation Days, a unique, interactive, and solution-based online event aimed at tackling some of most persistent trade bottlenecks.   Keep reading for more on these and other developments. ALLIANCE COMPLETES FOUR PROJECTS IN TWO LDCs Madagascar Celebrates Successful Transition to ePhytos, Advance Rulings Following the successful completion of two, separate, targeted initiatives designed to modernise export and import processes, Madagascar is experiencing tangible improvements in its trading environment.   “This is a big step – a big revolution," said Saholy Nomenjanahary Ramiliarijaona, Head of the Plant Protection Directorate. “Sanitary and phytosanitary inspectors are already seeing a spectacular change, especially in the way that their work has moved from an archaic process of manual certification into the digital age.”   Read more.    Mozambique Launches New System to Expedite Critical Healthcare Imports Mozambique has introduced new processes to fast-track imports of vaccines crucial for preventing common diseases like cholera, polio and measles, and rapid test kits that enable early diagnosis and treatment of malaria and HIV.   “This new system will ensure timely delivery of critical supplies to protect children from preventable life-threatening infections and diseases in every district, leaving no child behind. We trust the success of this initiative will also inspire other countries where we have programmes in the region, and beyond.” said Edson Madeira, UNICEF Mozambique Chief of Supply & Logistics Section.   Read more.  PROJECTS IN IMPLEMENTATION  MoU Marks Significant Progress in Bangladesh Border Initiative       The Alliance and the Government of Bangladesh have signed a milestone memorandum of understanding (MoU) agreeing a framework for technical cooperation in digitalising border procedures at the country’s Bhomra Land Port.    The manual processing of routine tasks such as verifying relevant documents at the border, generating bills, and collecting payments creates extensive delays at this busy crossing with India, with more than 450 trucks a day on average – many of them carrying perishable goods – forced to wait several hours for clearance.    The Alliance has begun working with the Bangladesh Land Port Authority and the private sector in digitalising and modernising processes.    Read more. Streamlining International Trade for Fish Products in Indonesia Indonesia has started working with the Alliance to align risk assessment with international best practices and to introduce new processes facilitating quick decisions at pre-border, border, and post-border points without compromising food safety.   “A robust risk management system is the basis for reducing business overheads while simultaneously minimising risks for consumers," said Philippe Isler, the Alliance’s Director. “Indonesia and its importers of fish and fish products, particularly MSMEs, will certainly benefit from such a system.”   Read more.    Fiji Takes Final Steps in Transforming Agri-food Trade  In July 2020, Fiji became one of the first countries in the Asia-Pacific Region to use electronic phytosanitary certification. It is now taking the final steps to fully integrate into the International Plant Protection Convention (IPPC) ePhyto Hub, with support from the Alliance.    “The IPPC ePhyto solution is the missing link in our pursuit of a safe and efficient trading vision that is now being realised, and this has only been possible with global partners such as the Alliance and IPPC providing the necessary technical and funding assistance." said Naushad Ali, Biosecurity Authority of Fiji Board Chairman.    Read more.  BUSINESS BRIEFS DHL Executive Urges Private Sector Engagement in Trade Reform       Deutsche Post DHL Group (DHL) is a founding partner of the Alliance and has been on its Steering Group since the start, providing strategic direction. Steven Pope is its long-standing representative. In a wide-ranging interview with the Alliance, he discusses the role of trade facilitation in areas such as corporate responsibility, promoting small business in developing countries and LDCs, gender equality, globalisation, and poverty reduction.    Read more.  Trade is the Spice of Life for Cambodian Woman Entrepreneur  A Cambodian businesswoman is confident that her company, Sela Pepper, is a world-class producer but like many MSMEs in developing countries and LDCs, she is finding it difficult to break into many international markets.   “The world can be very complicated, and trade can be very difficult,” says Sopha Soeng, General Manager, Sela Pepper. “When it comes to finding the right information, some MSMEs just can’t reach out – they are in mid-ocean. These changes will help everyone.”     Ms. Soeng is among the MSMEs that participated in Alliance interviews to determine the main obstacles to trade in Cambodia and how best the Alliance's work can tackle these challenges.   Read more.  PARTNERSHIPS Alliance Recognised as a Leading Public Private Partnership   The Alliance was honoured to be among the five finalists in the 2022 P3 Impact Awards, created by the U.S. Department of State's Office of Global Partnerships (GP), Concordia, and the University of Virginia Darden School Institute for Business in Society to recognise leading public private partnerships (P3s) that improve communities and the world.    Read more.   Tyre Giant Michelin Becomes Latest International Business to Partner with the Alliance “Michelin is delighted to partner with the Alliance. Businesses have a key role to play to facilitate trade in a sustainable way. We are looking forward to being part of the many on-going projects led by the Alliance.” said Maeva Paqueriaud, Group Trade and Customs Director at Michelin.   Ms. Paqueriaud said that joining the Alliance would allow trade and customs teams to be part of the construction of pragmatic solutions, which will ease Michelin’s daily operations and help many other businesses.   Read more.  ON THE TRADE FACILITATION AGENDA Trade Facilitation Innovation Days Attracts Nearly 700 Participants from over a 100 Countries  A joint Alliance-UNCTAD online event to inspire innovative solutions to trade facilitation was an overwhelming success.   Trade Facilitation and Innovation Days 2022 attracted nearly 700 participants with diverse backgrounds from more than 50 countries to collaborate on finding solutions to some of the most persistent challenges in trade reform. This event, held over two days, presented an unprecedented opportunity to explore ways of tackling identified barriers to trade – providing a platform for the cross-fertilisation of ideas from trade facilitation experts, government officials, border agents, logisticians, academics, and other specialists.   Read more. ABOUT THE GLOBAL ALLIANCE FOR TRADE FACILITATION The Global Alliance for Trade Facilitation is a public-private partnership for trade-led growth. We believe that international trade should be simpler, faster and more cost-effective, creating new business opportunities, enabling greater economic and social development and reducing poverty. We bring together governments and businesses as equal partners to identify delays and red-tape at borders, and design and implement targeted reforms that deliver commercially quantifiable results. Our work is designed to help governments in developing and least developed countries implement the World Trade Organization’s Trade Facilitation Agreement. For more information visit: www.tradefacilitation.org.