A new UNECE Recommendation (No. 40) on consultation approaches in trade facilitation matters was approved on 16 February by the UN/CEFACT Plenary at its 21th session.
Consultations will help governments and organizations prioritize agendas and communicate results which will build trust between the parties and increase transparency in the process. Stakeholders will, as a result, find that each party will have the time needed to prepare for new rules or regulations. The Recommendation encourages the subdivision of consultation approaches between traders and border agencies into three layers: strategic, operational and technical.
This is an important step forward in supporting the WTO Trade Facilitation Agreement. Along these lines UN/CEFACT is also working to revise UNECE Recommendation 4 on National Trade Facilitation Bodies that enable relevant stakeholders from the public and private sectors to discuss and coordinate trade facilitation measures at the national level.
Recommendation 40 adds to the 35 trade facilitation recommendations and standards developed by UN/CEFACT that support the implementation of trade facilitation measures at the national, regional and global levels.
The Plenary also elected Lance Thompson (United States of America) as the new Chair of UN/CEFACT for the period 2015-2018.
The next UN/CEFACT event will be the Spring Forum which will take place in Geneva on 20-24 April 2015.