The UK has allocated GBP 250k in funds to implement the World Trade Organization’s trade facilitation agreement (TFA) in Egypt, according to a UNCTAD statement. increasing Egypt’s trading capacity and trade revenues. The program focuses on fostering capacity-building by improving the country’s capability to respond to future trade-related crises, and boosting digitalization of trade procedures through the implementation of UNCTAD’s reform tracker. The reform tracker is a web-based project management and monitoring tool used to measure trade facilitation reforms.

What’s the TFA? Talks between WTO members had culminated in the TFA in Bali in 2013, which outlines provisions to help member countries reduce red tape and streamline trade and customs procedures.

A boon for Egypt’s trade reform plans: Egypt had ratified the agreement in 2019 and has implemented 23% of the provisions as of last month, according to data from the WTO TFA database. It aims to fully implement the provisions of the agreement by 2025.

What they said: “This project comes at a very timely juncture,” Iman Refaat, undersecretary of the Egyptian Ministry of Trade and Industry, said. “We are confident that these [trade facilitation] reforms will revolutionize our trade landscape, fostering efficiency, transparency and prosperity, with UNCTAD’s expertise steering our agenda.”

OTHER TRADE FINANCE NEWS-

Afreximbank has dedicated USD 1 bn to a new system for managing cross-border trade in Africa, during the Intra-African Trade Exhibition in Cairo, Egypt, according to a statement. An additional USD 30k will be allocated towards supporting innovations targeted at enhancing trade and facilitating the movement of goods on the African continent.

The details: The bank joined the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA) in 2021 to facilitate the establishment of the cross-border system, which includes the issuance of bonds that can transform the continent into an integrated market.

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