Trade facilitation involves the simplification, standardization and harmonization of procedures and associated information flows required to move goods from seller to buyer and to make payment. As this encompasses both commercial and regulatory processes, it should be approached on a partnership basis between governments and traders in order to ensure that practical and implementable solutions are developed.
A NTFB offers an open forum to identify and address regulatory and procedural bottlenecks in the trade process, to encourage inter-agency coordination, and to provide directives on major trade facilitation issues. There is a range of different types of national advisory or consultative bodies to implement trade facilitation, the most widely known are:
- PRO Committees: as outlined in the UN/CEFACT Recommendation No. 4, these are joint government and business consultation bodies that identify bottlenecks in trade procedures and promote solutions. In most countries the PRO committees were the main drivers for the implementation of UN/EDIFACT.
- National Trade and Transport Facilitation Committees (NTTFC): supported by the UN Regional Commissions, UNCTAD and the World Bank as part of their technical assistance projects, NTTFCs are a variation of the above mentioned PRO Committees and act as consultative inter-institutional bodies to promote facilitation, to study international trade and transport regulations, to prepare recommendations and to create transparency on major trade and transport issues.
- WTO National Trade Facilitation Committees (NTFC): set up under World Trade Organization (WTO) Trade Facilitation Agreement (TFA) to coordinate and to implement the TFA at national level. Upon entry into force, WTO Members are expected to establish or designate an NTFC.
- FAL committees: established under the Convention of Facilitation of International Maritime Traffic (FAL) of the International Maritime Organization (IMO) and aimed at encouraging the adoption and implementation of facilitation measures between government departments and other organizations as well as port authorities and ship-owners.
UN/CEFACT produced two instruments to assist member States in setting up NTFBs:
- Recommendation No. 4 (revised in 2015) integrates Guidelines for establishing an NTFB as well as a model term of reference which countries use or customize based on their national context. It also provides a non-exhaustive list of those stakeholders that should be represented in an NTFB.
- Recommendation No. 40 complements Recommendation No. 4, providing alternative forms and approaches to consultations as well as offering a qualitative methodology to improve the very core of the consultative process.
With the objective to share experiences and information, UNECE has also developed a:
- Repository on national experiences with setting up and sustaining an institutional coordinating mechanism. .
- List of National Trade Facilitation Committees and Bodies
Background documents and useful links:
- Setting up a National Trade Facilitation Body itinerary, available on the Trade Facilitation Implementation Guide
- Recommendation No. 4: National Trade Facilitation Bodies (ECE/TRADE/425), updated in 2015.
- Recommendation No. 40 - Consultation Approaches - Best Practices in Trade and Government Consultation on Trade Facilitation matters.
- UNCTAD repository on trade facilitation bodies around the world.
- National Trade Facilitation Committee: Moving towards implementation, ITC, UNECE and UNCTAD, Geneva, November 2015.
List of National Trade Facilitation Bodies / Committees
Last modified: 1 February 2015
| Austria | AUSTRIAPRO c/o Austrian Federal Economic Chamber Wiedner Hauptstrasse 63 A-1045 VIENNA |
Tel. N°:
Fax N°: |
+43 590 900 4468 |
e-mail:
website: |
[email protected]; [email protected] |
| Contact person(s): Mr. Christian Siefried Boser |
Tel.N°:
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+43 664 502 9397 |
e-mail:
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[email protected] | |
| Azerbaijan |
AZERPRO |
Tel. N°: Fax N+: |
+ 99412 493 3776 + 99412 498 64 26 |
e mail: | [email protected] |
| Bosnia and Herzegovina | SECI BIHPRO Office Branislava Djurdjeva 10 71000 SARAJEVO |
Tel. N°:
Fax N°: |
+387 33 566 170 +387 33 663 635 |
e-mail:
website: |
[email protected] |
| Contact person: Zijad Sinanovic Secretary General |
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| Brazil | SIMPRO-BRAZIL Rua Tonelero, 356/901 RIO DE JANEIRO |
Tel. N°:
Fax N°: |
+55 21 2255 8500 +55 21 2255 8500 |
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| Contact person: Raul Colcher Chairman |
Mobile:
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+55 21 8620 8500 |
e-mail:
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[email protected] | |
| Bulgaria | BULPRO c/o Bulgarian Chamber of Commerce and Industry 2 Iskar Str., 1058 SOFIA, Contact Person: Mr. Krasimir Dachev BULPRO Chairman |
Tel. N°:
Fax N°: |
+359 2 811 7489 +359 2 811 7465 +359 2 987 3209 |
e-mail:
website: |
[email protected] |
| China, Taiwan Province of |
TRADE-VAN INFORMATION SERVICE CO. 19-13, Sanchung Road, 6Fl. R. O. C. (Nankang Software Park) TAIPEI |
Tel. N°:
Fax N°: |
+886 2 3789 5556 +886 2 3789 5688 |
e-mail:
website: |
[email protected] |
| Contact person: Alicia Say Manager, Business Development and Marketing Department |
Tel. N°:
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+886 2 3789 5762 |
e-mail:
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[email protected] | |
| Croatia | CROATIAPRO Croatian Chamber of Economy Rooseveltov Trg 2 HR-10000 ZAGREB |
Tel. N°:
Fax N°: |
+385 1 4561 555 +385 1 4561 572 +385 1 4561 540 |
e-mail:
website: |
[email protected] |
| Contact person: Saša Subotic President CroatiaPRO |
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| Czech Republic | FITPRO Economic Chamber of the Czech Republic Freyova 27 CZ-190 00 PRAHA 9 Contact person: Marie Najmanova |
Tel. N°:
Fax N°: |
+420 266 721377 +420 266 721694 |
e-mail:
website: |
[email protected] |
| Denmark | Danish Standards Foundation Kollegievej 6 DK-2920 CHARLOTTENLUND |
Tel. N°:
Fax N°: |
+45 39 966 101 +45 39 966 102 |
e-mail:
website: |
[email protected]s.dk |
| Finland | FINSIPRO Finnish Committee for Simplification of Trade Procedures Salomonkatu 17 A, 10th floor 00100 HELSINKI Contact person: Jari Salo |
Tel. N°:
Fax N°: |
+358 9 4763 0303 +358 9 4763 0399 |
e-mail:
website: |
[email protected] http://www.tieke.fi/in_english /_ebusiness/finsipro_workgroup/ |
| France | ODASCE (Office de Développement par l'Automatisation et la Simplication du Commerce Extérieur) 79 Rue du Faubourg Poissonnière 75009 PARIS Contact Person(s): Michèle Petitgenet Evelyne Irigaray |
Tel. N°:
Fax N°: |
+33 1 55 34 7682 +33 1 55 34 3820 |
e-mail:
website: |
[email protected] http://www.odasce.asso.fr/ |
| Hungary | HUNPRO c/o Hungarian Chamber of Commerce and Industry Kossuth L. tér 6-8 1055 BUDAPEST |
Tel. N°:
Fax N°: |
+36 1 474 5100 +36 1 474 5105 |
e-mail:
website: |
[email protected] / [email protected] http://www.mkik.hu |
| Contact person(s) Mr. Péter Dunai Secretary General Mrs. Mária Tényiné Stark Director for International Affairs |
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| Iceland | ICEPRO Borgartun 35 105 Reykjavik |
Tel. N°:
Fax N°: |
+354 510 7100 +354 893 7102 |
e-mail:
website: |
[email protected] http://www.icepro.is |
| India | INDPRO Indian Institute of Foreign Trade, B-21 Qutab Institutional Area 110016 NEW DELHI Contact Person: Dr. L.D. Mago Registrar |
Tel. N°:
Fax N°: |
+91 11 2685 7908 +91 11 2685 3956 |
e-mail:
website: |
[email protected] www.iift.edu |
| Iran, Republic of |
President of Iran Center for e-Commerce Development (ICeCD), 5th floor, Building N°. 1 of Ministry of Industry, Mines and Trade, Next to Hojat Doost Alley, Naderi, Keshavarz BLVD, Valiaser Square, Tehran Contact Person: |
Tel. N°:
Fax N°: |
+98 21 8896 7159 +98 21 8896 4114 |
e-mail:
website: |
[email protected] [email protected] www.eCommerce.gov.ir |
| Contact person: Mr. Jafar Mahmoodi President - Iran Centre for eCommerce Development |
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| Italy |
SEMPROITALIA Directorate-General for Internationalization Policies and Trade Promotion - Unit 2 Viale Boston 25 Mr. Graziano SEVERINI |
Tel. N°:
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+39 6 5993 2467 |
e-mail:
website:
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| Japan | JASTPRO Japan Association for Simplification of International Trade Procedures Yaesu N°. 5 Nagaoka Bldg., 2-29-11 Hatchobori Chuoku TOKYO 104-0032 |
Tel. N°:
Fax N°: |
+81 3 3555 6031 +81 3 3555 6032 |
website:
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http://www.jastpro.org |
| Contact person: Kanenori Kedoin Director, JASTPRO
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Tel. N°:
Fax N°: |
e-mail:
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[email protected] | ||
| Jordan | Executive Secretariat for Trade and Transport Facilitation Ministry of Transport Contact person: Emad alFugaha |
Tel. N°: Mob. N°: |
+ 0655 27 233 079777 15 42 |
e-mail: website: |
[email protected] www.mot.gov.jo |
| Korea, Republic of | National IT Industry Promotion Agency (NIPA) NIPA Bldg., 79-2, Garakbon-dong Songpa-gu SEOUL, 138-711 |
Tel. N°:
Fax N°: |
+82 2 2141 5437 +82 2 2141 5439 |
e-mail:
website: |
[email protected] http://www.nipa.kr |
| Contact Person: Seongjin Kim Manager, Green IT Team |
Tel. N°:
Fax N°: |
+82 2 2141 5437 +82 2 2141 5439 |
e-mail:
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[email protected] | |
| Malta | Malta Enterprise Enterprise Centre, Industrial Estate SAN GWANN SGN 3000 Contact Person: Executive Chairman |
Tel. N°:
Fax N°: |
+356 2542 0000 +356 2542 3401 |
e-mail:
website: |
[email protected] http://www.maltaenterprise.com |
| Mongolia | Mongolian National Chamber of Commerce and Industry (MONPRO) Room 402, MNCCI Building, Mahatma Gandhi Str.,, Khan-Uul District, ULAANBAATAR |
Tel. N°:
Fax N°: |
+976 11 327 176 +976 11 324 620 |
e-mail:
website: |
[email protected] www.mongolchamber.mn |
| Contact Person: Ms. Tsevelsaikhan Senior Officer of Barcode and Logistics Division |
Tel. N°:
Mobile N°: |
+976 11 313 411 +976 9901 9141 |
e-mail
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[email protected] | |
| Netherlands | ECP Overgoo 13 P.O. Box 262 NL-2260 AG LEIDSCHENDAM |
Tel. N°:
Fax N°: |
+31 70 419 0309 +31 70 419 0650 |
e-mail:
website: |
[email protected] http://www.ecp-epn.nl |
| Nigeria | Nigeria Trade Facilitation Task Force/National Trade Facilitation Committee Federal Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment, Abuja Nigeria, |
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| Contact person: Mr. Adamu Mohd Abdulhamid Asst Director, WTO |
Tel. N°: |
+234 8034525445 |
e-mail: | [email protected] | |
| Norway | NorStella Foundation for e-Business and Trade Procedures Ibsenkvartalet Genseverien 92, OSLO Contact Person: Arild Haraldsen CEO Norstella |
Tel. N°:
Fax N°: |
+47 900 76530 +47 22 99 60 10 |
e-mail:
website: |
[email protected] http://www.norstella.no |
| Pakistan | National Trade and Transport Facilitation Committee (NTTFC) First Floor, Azeem Avenue 2c Lane 13, Bukhari Commercial Area Khayaban-e-Shujaat, Phase VI, DHA KARACHI 75500 |
Tel. N°:
Fax N°: |
+92 21 3524 25689 +92 21 3524 2570 |
e-mail:
website: |
[email protected] www.nttfc.org/ |
| Contact Person: Javaid Mansoor Executive Secretary, NTTFC |
Tel / Fax N°:
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+92 21 35242570 |
e-mail:
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[email protected] | |
| Philippines | Bureau of Export Trade Promotion Department of Trade and Industry DTI Building, 357 Gil Puyat Avenue MAKATI CITY, 1200 |
Tel. N°:
Fax N°: |
+632 840 4660 +632 890 4721 |
e-mail:
website: |
[email protected] tradelinephi.dti.gov.ph www.itrc.dti.gov.ph |
| Contact Person(s): Michael Dodjie R. Fabian Wilhelmina DP. Lopez |
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e-mail:
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[email protected] | ||
| Republic of Moldova | MOLDPRO and TFC (Moldovan Chamber of Commerce and Industry) Stephan cel Mare Blvd., 151 CHISINAU |
Tel. N°:
Fax N°: |
+373 22 245 148 +373 22 234 425 |
e-mail:
website: |
[email protected] http://www.chamber.md |
| Contact person(s): Cucu Gheorghe President, MOLDPRO Harea Sergiu Executive Director, MOLDPRO |
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| Serbia | SERBPro Committee / TTFSE Serbian Chamber of Commerce Resavska 13-15 street 11000 BELGRADE |
Tel. N°:
Fax N°: |
+381 11 3300 938 +381 11 3248 109 +381 11 3248 060 |
website:
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http://www.pks.rs |
| Contact Person(s): Dusan Mladenovic, President Marica Vidanovic, General Secretary Jelena Jovanovic, TTFSE Web Coordinator |
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e-mail:
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[email protected] [email protected] [email protected] |
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| Spain | CEOE - SIMPROESPAÑA Calle Diego de Leon 50 E-28006 MADRID |
Tel.N°: |
+34 91 566 3403 |
e-mail:
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[email protected] [email protected] |
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Contact Person: Mr. Manuel Pereira Ramos, UN/CEFACT-Head of Delegation, Confederation of Employers and Industries of Spain (CEOE) |
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| Sweden | SWEPRO Swedish Trade Procedures Council Kommerskollegium P.O. Box 6803 S-113 86 STOCKHOLM |
Tel. N°:
Fax N°: |
+46 8 690 48 00 +46 8 690 48 50 |
e-mail:
website: |
[email protected] www.swepro.org www.kommers.se |
| Vietnam | VnECPRO VietNam Center for Trade Facilitation and E-business 19/41 Truong Chinh Street HANOI Contact Person: Le Thi Nhu Xuan |
Tel. N°:
Fax N°: |
+84 904 153 190 +84 43 869 3824 |
e-mail:
website: |
[email protected] www.vnecpro.net |
| VnPRO VietNam Center for trade facilitation and E-business 8 Hoang Quoc Viet Street HANOI |
Tel. N°:
Fax N°: |
+84 43 943 8058 +84 43 943 9733 |
e-mail:
website: |
[email protected] [email protected] http://www.vnecpro.org.vn |