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.
International business investors can embed sustainability in each step of their operations. This guide describes the social, environmental and economic practices that international firms must understand when entering a new market.
The design of governance structure of social and environmental sustainability standards determines how accessible they are to producers in developing countries.The increase in consumer demand for sustainable trade has given rise to a growing array of social and environmental standards. This joint...
African tech hubs play an important role in building fledgling entrepreneurial ecosystems and helping start-ups, but they struggle to earn revenue and become financially sustainable. This second edition has expanded its coverage, adding insights from East African hubs. The report, based on...
A comparison of sustainability schemes, as well as an overview of the trends in the markets for specialty and sustainable coffees. Coffee niche markets provide opportunities for producers in developing countries to increase their incomes. This paper, drawn from ITC’s new book on the coffee trade,...
Coffee is the world's most important agricultural crop in terms of trade volumes; it is exported by 60 countries and is one of the few major commodities grown predominantly by smallholder farmers. This report: presents an overview of the market trends for coffee certified as ‘sustainable’ over...
The global pandemic has hit small farmers with disruptions in health, food security, transport, finance and demand. It has also increased the cost of doing business. Smallholder farmers, already dealing with the effects of a climate and price crisis, are taking emergency measures for resilience. At...
Many climate-smart technologies exist in Pakistan to help farmers adapt to climate change. These include commercially available technologies and those developed locally. Various factors hinder their uptake, limiting climate resilience.
Understanding the global demand for environmental goods and services can unlock new export opportunities for developing country SMEs. This study provides a market overview of this complex sector, which reached an estimated US$ 866 billion in 2011, and is expected to rise to US$ 1.9 trillion by 2020...
Cross-border e-commerce can help least developed countries (LDCs) to become more competitive and diversify their exports – and this is especially true for Asia-Pacific, the most dynamic region in global e-commerce. To capture that potential, small businesses in these countries need more market...
This report encourages artificial intelligence (AI) literacy for small businesses and trade institutions, especially in developing countries, through the lens of publishing. It shows that AI tools empower everyone in the workplace to be publishers – and that leaders can navigate the promises and...
The rhinoceros faces the risk of extinction in the wild if current poaching rates continue. Viet Nam, a main market, uses horn as an ingredient in Traditional Asian Medicine (TAM). An ITC survey of 1000 consumers of TAM, including 239 rhino horn users, found they preferred rhino horn that is...
A blueprint for small and medium-sized enterprises Advanced economies have developed highly competitive and innovative e-commerce services, making it simple for small enterprises to set up online stores, transport their goods and receive payments. Although entrepreneurs in developing countries...
