ITC publications bring the business voice to sustainable trade, with a focus on developing countries. We offer guidance for trade policymakers, business support organizations and small firms. Our reports offer insights to make trade more inclusive, green, digital and competitive.
BRICS countries (Brazil, the Russian Federation, India, China and South Africa) have a fast-growing share in global services markets. Improving services regulations and reducing trade costs will help them tap into their potential, especially for high value-added services and digital trade. ...
Streamlining government procedures, improving transport maintenance and IT infrastructure, and better dissemination of trade-related information are cited as keys to improving Kenya’s export performance, in a new ITC country study on non-tariff measures. Two-thirds of companies surveyed in...
More than a third of Tanzanian companies have fully or partially resolved trade obstacles in the last six years. Government-led initiatives and regulatory reforms have helped ease exporters’ difficulties.
Many trade obstacles can be dealt with at home, this report finds, regarding business concerns about non-tariff measures in Malawi. This ITC survey of exporters and importers in Malawi reveals that their main challenges to access markets abroad are twofold in relation to non-tariff...
Rwandan exporters face onerous standards imposed by private clients in addition to government requirements, an ITC survey reveals. Fair Trade certificates demanded by clients in the European Union, especially for coffee and tea, are bringing costs and delays that seriously hinder Rwandan exporters,...
The issue of climate change has grown in importance as seen through the implementation of the Kyoto Protocol and issues such as “food miles”. ‘Food miles’ is a relatively recent issue which has arisen in the United Kingdom, Germany and other countries over food transportation. This...
The goal of Kenya’s Textile and Clothing (T&C) Value Chain Roadmap is to set the sector on the course of strategic development by addressing constraints in a comprehensive manner and defining concrete opportunities that can be realized through the specific steps detailed in its Plan of Action...
Upgrading quality infrastructure and enforcing quality compliance are key to Pakistan’s export development. A survey of almost 1,200 companies on non-tariff measures found that more than half of Pakistani exporters face regulatory or procedural trade-related obstacles. The report recommends...
Mauritian exporters claim to be less affected by trade barriers than many other countries that have participated in the ITC business surveys on non-tariff measures. Among the 400 Mauritian firms surveyed, 27% of exporters were adversely affected by non-tariff measures; 36% of importing firms...
This report on the ITC World Export Development Forum on Consumers, Ethics and Environment (October 2008), reflects on what ethical trade means, the growth in the global fair trade and ethical markets, how entrepreneurs in developing countries can break into these markets, and what trade support...
While standards play an increasingly important role in international trade and global value chains, little is known about their actual impacts in these chains. By applying a systematic literature approach, The Impacts of Private Standards on Global Value Chains aims to apply the key research...
Few studies examine information technology and business process management in Africa. This report, based on research and interviews, analyses the tech sectors of 11 African countries and examines enabling factors such as information and communication technology infrastructure, government incentives...
