- This note provides updates on the evolution of border process up to 2024. It shows progress on trade facilitation – through more efficient border processes – is occurring since 2022 in all regions as countries seek to ensure that global supply chains remain efficient, adaptable, and responsive to evolving patterns of trade. New OECD Trade Facilitation Indicators (TFIs) data highlight that border bottlenecks and red tape were reduced on average by 3%-7% across regions: Asia – Pacific (4.4%), Europe and Central Asia (3.1%), The Americas (4.4%), Middle East and North Africa (4.7%), and Sub-Saharan Africa (6.5%).
- Domestic and cross-border agency co-operation are the top areas of progress, yet remain the hardest to further improve. Domestic border agency co-operation, shaped by a combination of institutional and regulatory reforms, not only enhanced efficiency within national borders but also served as a catalyst for stronger cross-border agency co-operation. Already the leading area of reform in 2022, domestic border agency co-operation laid the groundwork for increased coordination with trading partners, reinforcing integrated trade facilitation efforts. However, border agency co-operation began from a relatively limited baseline and holds the largest potential for further improvement.
- Comprehensive and accessible trade-related information is increasingly available online. Many economies worldwide have been enriching the information available online on advance rulings, fees and charges applied, penalty provisions, applicable trade-related legislation, as well as automated duties and fees databases, dedicated interactive webpages for companies and user manuals for new systems. Updating and enriching this information remains key to reduce administrative burdens and to help businesses anticipate and adapt to new policies.
- Further efforts are needed to close the gaps between establishing regulatory frameworks for trade facilitation and their implementation in practice, particularly when automating documents and processes. Certified trader programmes, post-clearance audits, and measures for perishable goods are at the forefront of streamlining border procedures. Better operational practices are needed, however, to capitalise on these improvements and to making trade documents and procedures more automated, faster, and easier.
- Increasing efficiencies through simplified and streamlined border processes remains a critical issue for promoting competitiveness and economic growth through trade costs reductions. As a result of more efficient border processes, trade costs are estimated to have declined by up to 5% over the last decade. The implementation of ambitious reforms could deliver up to 12 percentage points more in trade costs reductions. This also matters for sectors that are key for the digital and the green economy.
This note provides an overview of the efforts made to expedite the movement, release, and clearance of goods at the border in 163 economies. The OECD Trade Facilitation Indicators (TFIs) refer to a specific set of measures that streamline and simplify the technical and legal procedures for intermediate or final products to be traded internationally. The TFIs follow closely the structure of the WTO Trade Facilitation Agreement (TFA), providing a means to monitor progress in the implementation of the WTO TFA. In addition to tracking progress in the regulatory frameworks that support the implementation of the WTO TFA, the indicators can pinpoint progress and challenges in operational practices for trade facilitation.
Such policies proved to be essential during the COVID-19 pandemic and many other recent supply chain disruptions, with trade facilitation measures taken at the border making it possible for supply chains to continue delivering goods where they were needed.
The role of customs authorities and other border agencies is constantly evolving, as are the challenges and opportunities they face. The dynamic regulatory environment for trade, the growing parcel trade, and the increasing product safety and security concerns are setting new challenges for enforcement, co-operation with other agencies, and trade facilitation more broadly. Moreover, while digitalisation provides opportunities to address many of these challenges, its benefits are not automatic and will depend on border agencies’ capabilities and the wider policy environment for digital trade.
Against this backdrop, the monitoring of trade facilitation reforms remains key. The OECD has been monitoring the state of play of the trade facilitation policy environment since 2013 and updates its Trade Facilitation Indicators (TFIs) biennially. This note sets out the key findings from the latest update of the TFIs, covering the period 2022-24.
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Source – OECD