Description
The project aims at increasing transparency and understanding about Non-Tariff Measures (NTMs). For exporters and importers, trade support institutions and policy makers, transparent information about NTMs that affect their products is critical for decision making whether related to exporting directly, to assisting exporters, or to policy formulation and negotiations. To satisfy this demand, the project will collect, classify and disseminate relevant information on NTMs in a way that will support better decision making by all these groups. The relevant information includes access to the non-tariff regulations that need to be complied with as well as a better understanding about the related obstacles to trade, companies face when complying with these measures. At the country-level, two major activities will be implemented in collaboration with local partners: A) Collection and classification of national NTM regulations. In addition, ITC will collect and classify the NTM regulations for a number of major importing countries. The classified regulations will be disseminated through a new, integrated web application currently under development as part of an independent joint project by ITC, UNCTAD and the World Bank. B) Representative survey of the business sector about their daily experiences with NTMs. Project partners will conduct face-to-face interviews with exporters and importers to provide a picture of what the business sector in the country currently considers to be the greatest impediments to their exports and imports when complying with the official regulations. The survey will be based on a pre-defined methodology that has been tested and refined through pilot projects in seven countries through 2008 and early 2009. The survey data will be analysed by ITC; a survey report will be shared with local stakeholders.