Search the Resource Guide

Global Advocacy

The global advocacy category covers services that are designed to promote the use of trade as a development tool and to encourage sup­port for developing countries’ efforts to improve their trade capacity building. This includes analysis and dissemination of trade-related information, promoting understanding of the relationship between trade and development, and supporting policies. Some agencies pro­vide information on and support for the interactions between their more specialized interests and trade.

ilo

International Labour Organization(ilo)

Summary of activities included in this category
Global Advocacy
unido

United Nations Industrial Development Organization(unido)

Summary of activities included in this category
Cost-benefit analysis for conformity assessment infrastructure and services
Quality infrastructure needs assessments
Trade Standards Compliance Analysis
Industrial Development Reports

Legal and Regulatory Framework

Assistance under this category includes helping countries to bring their own regulations into conformity with international rules, more general help to improve their legal institutions, and training officials to deal with such rules. A number of the agencies specialise in par­ticular areas, rather than trying to provide expertise on the legal rules in all sectors. For several, the aim is to balance trade-related obli­gations with other national (or international) interests.

ilo

International Labour Organization(ilo)

Summary of activities included in this category
Technical cooperation on labour laws
imo

International Maritime Organization(imo)

Summary of activities included in this category
Legal and Regulatory Framework
unido

United Nations Industrial Development Organization(unido)

Summary of activities included in this category
Strengthening the legal and regulatory framework for conformity

Supply Capacity

In line with the trade focus of this Guide, support activities to develop supply capacity are considered to be those that aim to increase the availability of goods and services for export. There is no easy distinction between this and building more general capacity to pro­duce, and this distinction is becoming less pertinent as borders open and competition in local markets from imports increases. Some agencies do not make this distinction in their projects.

ilo

International Labour Organization(ilo)

Summary of activities included in this category
Supply Capacity
unido

United Nations Industrial Development Organization(unido)

Summary of activities included in this category
Advisory services on enterprise management systems
Advisory services on traceability
Food hygiene management
Techno-economic assessments
Product and process design and development
Development of sectoral technology centres
AGRO processing
Innovative technologies - Montreal Protocol
Cleaner energy for industry - Phase-Out Programmes in Latin America and the Caribbean
Renewable energy for industry
Renewable energy standards
Industrial energy efficiency
Energy management systems standards
Greening existing industries
Creation of new green industries
Export consortia
Cluster development
Subcontracting and Partnership Exchange (SPX) Programme
Investment Promotion: Targeting and attracting quality FDI for development impact
Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR)
Business Partnership Programme
Industrial Upgrading and Modernization Programme (IUMP)

Compliance support infrastructure and services

Assistance in this category is closely related to that under the Legal and Regulatory Framework, but places more emphasis on building the institutions in developing countries to implement such legal frameworks, and less on the details of compliance. It is an area where the specialised agencies again have the main role

unido

United Nations Industrial Development Organization(unido)

Summary of activities included in this category
Quality Infrastructure
Development of competent authorities for fish and horticulture exports
Global Food Safety Initiative (GFSI): Global Markets Capacity Building Programme
Labnetwork
Quality infrastructure role in adopting energy efficiency measures

Trade Policy Development

Agencies’ assistance to trade policy development is generally provided in four areas: design and implementation of trade policy; specific developing country issues in trade (such as commodity exports and preferences); support in trade negotiations; and assistance in man­aging the interactions between trade and other policies.

ilo

International Labour Organization(ilo)

Summary of activities included in this category
Assessing and Addressing the Effects of Trade on Employment (ETE)
unido

United Nations Industrial Development Organization(unido)

Summary of activities included in this category
Development of national quality policy and strategy
Sectoral trade development studies
Industrial policy studies
Industrial statistics

Market and Trade Information

Market information and trade information services are different in their focus and methods. Market information is about sub-sectors and products, while trade information focuses on the aggregate level, including data on trade flows, policies affecting trade, and trends in these. Market information is usually targeted at traders. Trade information is, broadly speaking, intended to be used by policy-makers.

unido

United Nations Industrial Development Organization(unido)

Summary of activities included in this category
Information and Business Development Services
Statistics
Global Competitive Industrial Production Index

Trade Facilitation

This category covers the development, harmonization, and implementation of the rules and procedures which govern how goods cross borders.

imo

International Maritime Organization(imo)

Summary of activities included in this category
Trade Facilitation