WORLD TRADE  
ORGANIZATION   
WT/COMTD/AFT/W/35 
18 July 2012 
 (12-3910) 
Committee on Trade and Development 
Aid for Trade Original:  English 
 
 
 
INTEGRATION AND TRADE SECTOR  
TRADE-RELATED PRIVATE SECTOR ACTIVITIES 
 
Communication from the Inter-A merican Development Bank 
 
  The following communication, dated 11 July 2012, received from the Inter-American Development Bank (IaDB), is being circulat ed to delegations for information.  
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 1. The Integration and Trade Sector (INT) is engaged in supporting Latin American and 
Caribbean (LAC) countries to integrate into the gl obal economy and benefit from liberalized trade.  
IaDB believes that trade is an engine for gr owth and poverty reduction when accompanied with 
appropriate complementary public and private sector policies. In particular, through the Aid-for-Trade 
(AfT) Initiative we seek to help LAC countries to  overcome supply-side constraints that inhibit 
adequate participation in the gl obal economy and weaken capacity to take advantage of market access 
opportunities. In 2009, the IaDB launched the Aid-for-Trade Strategic Thematic Fund, a 
US$12 million instrument committed to enhancing LA C's integration into the global economy. The 
AfT Fund is supported by contributions from th e Governments of Cana da, Switzerland and the 
United Kingdom.   
I. TRADE-RELATED PRIVATE SECTOR ACTIVITIES 
2. Free Trade Agreement Implementation:   Achieving full implementation of Free Trade 
Agreements (FTA) is fundamental, as the opportuniti es trade agreements offer will only be tangible if 
the agreements are fully implemented and administer ed in an effective and timely way. To support 
LAC countries to take full advantage of FTAs, INT has developed an analytical study on the 
experience of various LAC countries that identif ies and examines key challenges and problems LAC 
countries face in implementing and administering FTA s. In addition, the study develops a set of 
policy recommendations that will better position LAC countries to take advantage of new trade opportunities resulting from trade liberalization. Furthermore, INT offers FTA implementation 
workshops for top officials and academics, in whic h participants discuss and exchange views on the 
implementation experiences in different LAC countries.  
Sample of Projects: 
 Peru: Support for the Implementation a nd Administration of Trade Agreements 
(US$500.000);   
 Colombia: Implementation of Free Trade Agreements and Seiz ing of Commercial 
Opportunities (US$500.000); Strengthening Trade Policy (US$500.000);   WT/COMTD/AFT/W/35 
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   Regional: Support to Formulation and Implem entation of Policy Reforms from Trade 
Agreement (US$350.000);  Enhancing LAC countri es' ability to comply with standards and 
technical regulations (US$180.000). 
3. Capacity Building in Trade Facilitation:   Customs administrations play a key role in the 
regional integration and the development of the priv ate sector competitiveness.  With the objective of 
supporting LAC countries to enhance the efficiency  and effectiveness of customs administrations, 
INT, among other activities, organizes Trade Faci litation Workshops for government officials at 
national and regional level to stre ngthen its institutional capacity in new areas of trade facilitation 
such as: cross-border integration, single windows,  environmental standards, consumer protection, 
sanitary and phytosanitary measures, among others.  
Sample of Projects: 
 Regional: Support to strengthening de institutio nal capacity of Foreign Trade Ministries 
(US$500.000); Support to the Border Integration Initiative Costa Rica – Panama (US$350.000); Support to Trade Facilitation Initiatives in Latin America (US$500.000); Caribbean Regional Strategy on Freight Logi stics and Trade Facilitation (US$850.000). 
4. SMEs internationalization initiatives:   Small Medium Enterprises (SMEs) play a significant 
role in the economic and social development of  LAC countries since they represent more than 
90 per cent of the region's companies. Supporting SMEs in their internationalization efforts is one of 
our priorities and therefore our projects include public-private programs to finance and develop 
internationalization plans for SMEs, and capacity bu ilding programs for local suppliers to help them 
enter the supply chain of multinational companies. In addition, INT is organizing a meeting of the Trade and Integration Network of the Regional Poli cy Dialogue for the Mesoamerican countries and 
the Dominican Republic on 12 July 2012 in Antigua, Guatemala with the purpose of discussing 
policies and best practices in support of the intern ationalization of SMEs, as well as the financial and 
non-financial support instruments of the IDB Group.   
Sample of Projects: 
 Peru: Export development of Cusco Region: KAMAQ women artisans (US$300.000);   
 Regional: Incorporating Women Businesses in In ternational Global Chains (US$900.000). 
5. Trade and Investment Business Summits:   We also support regional integration through a 
trade and investment Business Summit at bilateral and regional level with the purpose to expand and 
strengthen the commercial and investment ties with in the region but also between LAC countries and 
other key commercial partners. Top executives and high public officials gather to discuss and 
exchange ideas and experiences on the many existi ng and future opportunities for trade with and 
investment in Latin America. In addition, INT fa cilitates one-on-one business meetings to help SMEs 
expand their business and reach new markets.  
Sample of Projects: 
 CEO Summit of the Americas (Cartagena 2012); Korea-LAC Business Summit (Seoul, 2011);  
Brazil-Colombia Investment Summit (Bogota, 2011);  Outsource2LAC (Montevideo, 2011);  China-LAC Business Summit (Chengdu, 2011); LacFlavors (Cancun 2009; Cartagena 2010;  
Santo Domingo 2011; Antigua 2012). 
6. Export Promotion and Investment Attraction Strategies and Programs:   Developing and 
increasing the export potential and foreign direct investment are key elements to economic  WT/COMTD/AFT/W/35 
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  development. At INT we seek to help LAC count ries to create export promotion and investment 
attraction strategies tailor made to the different  conditions and needs of every country. These 
strategies include: institutional strengthening and capacity building for trade promotion and 
investment attraction agencies, design of country  image and industry image campaigns, organization 
of commercial and investment fairs, design of e xport and investment single windows, simplification 
of export procedures, "investment aftercare" servi ces, and design of variable remuneration plans based 
on trade promotion results and new methodologies in trade promotion management.  
Current Projects financed with the AFT Fund: 
 Regional: Operational Innovation in  Trade and Gender (US$220.000). 
7. Fostering Services Globalization in LAC:   Services Globalization (Offshoring or 
Outsourcing) has emerged as a dynamic global sector in the past two decades and today it accounts 
for approximately US$200 billion in global reve nues. The LAC region has great potential to position 
itself as an important player in the industry. Ho wever, the offshoring industry in the region is still 
relatively underdeveloped and unknown to foreign comp anies. INT has been working during the last 
five years in designing national strategies for promoting service exports in various LAC countries. These strategies focus on business climate, human cap ital development, and internationalization plans 
for local providers, among others.  
Sample of Projects: 
 Regional: Expanding Global Services Expor ts in the Caribbean (US$350.000). 
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