The project supported Belarus, Kazakhstan and Moldova in strengthening their institutional mechanisms and tools to improve coordination and implementation of trade facilitation reforms in compliance with the WTO Trade Facilitation Agreement and other relevant international standards related in particular to the freedom of transit and exchange of information between customs authorities. In particular, this project contributed towards (i) the adoption in Kazakhstan of the national trade facilitation roadmap (January 2019), (ii) enhanced capacities of national stakeholders in Moldova in managing trade facilitation reforms in the area of cross-border e-commerce, (iii) raising awareness of different stakeholders in Belarus about the stage of implementation of digital tools in their respective fields, and about available solutions and best practices in the field of paperless trade and integrated single window.

23.2 National Committee on Trade Facilitation

The project aims to promote intra-regional and international trade in Central Asia (CA) by enhancing the transparency of cross-border requirements, removing regulatory and procedural barriers, strengthening business capability to comply with trade formalities and standards, as well as by improving cross-border e-commerce. The project is structured according to four expected results:
1. Key regulatory and procedural obstacles to international trade are addressed; 2. SMEs capacities to comply with cross-border requirements (including notably quality standards, technical regulations, relevant preferential trading schemes/GSP+) are improved; 3. Improved Central Asia countries readiness, in particular women-led companies, for conducting cross-border e-commerce; 4. Increased opportunities for participation of women-led enterprises in international trade.

To discuss possible contents of new WCO Transit Guidelines