TRADE LOGISTICS FACILITATION : KEY TO COMPETITIVENESS

AN OVERVIEW OF THE WORLD BANK TRADE LOGISTICS AND FACILITATION PORTFOLIO

Our work aims to reduce the cost of trading throughout the supply chain by:
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Trade Facilitation is pivotal to development. It enhances countries’ competitiveness by allowing them to trade goods and services on a timely basis with lower transaction costs. Conversely, inefficient logistics, procedures and infrastructure can pose a significant obstacle to trade, by making it difficult for countries to tap new market opportunities or improve their overall competitiveness in the trading system.

Enhancing transport and logistics services; Improving border management and enhancing customs capacity; and Supporting efficient movement of goods through trade corridors.

The concept of Trade Facilitation involves improving all aspects in the operations of global, regional and local supply chains. It involves reforms in border and behind-the-border operations, including the reliability and efficiency of transportation infrastructure, logistics operations, and customs and border management regulations and procedures. Reducing these barriers is crucial for developing countries, especially landlocked and post-conflict low-income countries.

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Focusing efforts on Trade Facilitation reform is key to competitiveness. Such measures are more complicated and costly to implement than other types of trade reforms such as tariff reductions. They often involve multiple stakeholders, including both private and public sector entities, an array of government agencies and sometimes several countries that share a common border. But as the first generation of trade reforms have been—or are being—implemented, the successful integration of developing countries into the world economy will largely depend on the implementation of complex measures that fall under the heading of trade facilitation.

Our team of experts promotes awareness, information-exchange and best In Fiscal Year 2012, the World Bank practices in trade logistics and facilitation activities. provided US$1.1 billion for trade facilThe World Bank attaches great importance to trade facilitation, evidenced by its portfolio of existing trade facilitation projects, which in recent years has constituted the World Bank’s largest share of trade-related work. In Fiscal Year 2012 alone, World Bank funding in the trade facilitation and market access area accounted for nearly 60 percent of the $1.9 billion value of World Bank trade-related projects. In addition to lending for trade facilitation projects, the World Bank also provides technical assistance, advice, and training in trade facilitation. For our client countries, we organize and help deliver training in key areas of transport systems regulation, organization and management. Within the World Bank, we promote awareness, provide expertise and conduct training for staff to familiarize them with the latest issues on the trade facilitation agenda. itation projects. These projects focused on:
- Customs and Border Management - Streamlining Documentary Requirements - Trade Infrastructure Investment - Port Efficiency - Transport Security - Logistics and Transport Services - Regional trade facilitation and trade corridors - Transit and Multimodal Transport - Indicators - Action Plans

Our Work
Our work on Trade Facilitation encompasses a range of knowledge products, data and diagnostic tools, and implementation toolkits that aim to help developing countries improve their transportation and supply chain performance, thereby enhancing their overall competitiveness in trade.
KNOWLEDGE PRODUCTS:
 CONNECTING LANDLOCKED DEVELOPING COUNTRIES TO MARKETS: Provides  LOGISTICS IN LAGGING REGIONS: OVERCOMING LOCAL BARRIERS TO GLOBAL
CONNECTIVITY:

new knowledge and approaches to dealing with this critically important area of transit.

Identifies strategies to reduce logistics costs for small scale