WORLD TRADE  
ORGANIZATION   
WT/COMTD/AFT/W/26 
10 June 2011 
 (11-2890) 
Committee on Trade and Development 
Aid for Trade  
 
 
 
COMPENDIUM OF AID FOR TRADE CASE STORIES 
 
Joint Communication from the OECD and WTO Secretariats1 
 
 
I.  INTRODUCTION .................................................................................................................. .. 2 
II.  OVERVIEW ...................................................................................................................... ........ 2 
III. CASE STORIES ABOUT RESEARCH ................................................................................. 7  
IV.  CASE STORIES ABOUT GLOBAL AI D-FOR-TRADE PROGRAMMES .................... 10  
V.  CASE STORIES ABOUT AFRICA ...................................................................................... 12  
A.  AFRICA -WIDE CASE STORIES  ..................................................................................................... 13  
B.  CENTRAL AFRICA  ....................................................................................................................... 17  
C.  EAST AFRICA  ............................................................................................................................. 21 
D.  SOUTHERN AFRICA  .................................................................................................................... 27  
E.  WEST AFRICA  ............................................................................................................................. 32 
F.  NORTH AFRICA AND MIDDLE EAST  ........................................................................................... 38  
G.  NORTH AFRICA  .......................................................................................................................... 39  
H.  MIDDLE EAST  ............................................................................................................................. 40 
VI.  ASIA AND THE PACIFIC .................................................................................................... 41  
A.  ASIA-PACIFIC WIDE CASE STORIES  ............................................................................................ 43  
B.  CENTRAL AND WEST ASIA  ......................................................................................................... 44  
C.  EAST ASIA  .............................................................................................................................. .... 47 
D.  SOUTH ASIA  .............................................................................................................................. . 48 
E.  SOUTH -EAST ASIA  ...................................................................................................................... 51  
F.  PACIFIC  .............................................................................................................................. ........ 55 
VII. CENTRAL AND EASTERN EUROPE ................................................................................ 57  
VIII. LATIN AMERICAN AND THE CARIBBEAN .................................................................. 59  
A.  LATIN AMERICAN AND CARIBBEAN -WIDE CASE STORIES  ......................................................... 59  
B.  CARIBBEAN  .............................................................................................................................. .. 62 
C.  CENTRAL AMERICA  ................................................................................................................... 69  
D.  SOUTH AMERICA  ........................................................................................................................ 73  
 
 
 
                                                      
1 This document has been prepared under the res ponsibility of the OECD and WTO Secretariats and 
without prejudice to the positions of Members and to their rights and obligations under the OECD or WTO. WT/COMTD/AFT/W/26 
Page 2  
 
  I. INTRODUCTION 
1. On 27 July 2010, the Organisation for Economic  Cooperation and Development (OECD) and 
the World Trade Organization (WTO) issued a joint call for case stories on Aid for Trade (WT/COMTD/AFT/W/22).  The call for case stories was also circulated as part of the Aid-for-Trade 
monitoring and evaluation exercise in mid-October 2010.  The response to the call has exceeded all 
expectations.  Two hundred and sixty-nine case stori es had been received by early June 2011, with 
additional submissions still being made.   
2. The objective behind the call for case stories was to probe deeper into Aid-for-Trade 
objectives, challenges and processes to acquire bette r knowledge about outcomes and impacts of Aid 
for Trade.  Case stories were considered well suite d to this purposes as they offered a large group of 
stakeholders an opportunity to share experiences a bout what was working (or not) at the national and 
regional level, why it was working (or not), and what improvements were needed.  It was also stressed 
that the aim of the case story process was not ju st to draw lessons on good practice from success 
stories, but also to draw the lessons from failures.   Case stories which are the result of collaborations 
between different respondents (e.g. groups of Memb ers, Observers, International Organizations, etc., 
and collaborations between these grou ps) were particularly encouraged.  Respondents were able to 
submit more than one case story and no limitation was placed on how many case stories could be submitted.  No funding was offered for the submission of case stories.  
3. The invitation to submit case stories was an open one.  Case stories were invited (and also 
subsequently received) from WTO Members, Ob servers, international financial institutions, 
multilateral and regional organizations, the private sect or, civil society, academia and other interested 
parties.  Guidance was offered on what falls within the scope of the definition of Aid for Trade given 
by the Aid-for-Trade Task Force (WT/AFT/1) and the time period which case stories should cover; no 
other guidance was provided to respondents on what to submit.  
4. The call for case stories noted that the inform ation received would be used, along with the 
replies to questionnaires, as the basis for the narrative in the 2011 Aid for Trade at a Glance 
publication.  On the basis of the replies recei ved, the following analyses have been prepared: 
 Results Emerging from the Case Stories (chapter 6 of the 2011 Aid for Trade at a Glance 
publication); 
 Aid for Trade and LDCs:  Starting to Show Results; 
 Asia-Pacific Case Stories:  A Snapshot of Aid for Trade on the Ground; 
 Latin American and Caribbean Case Stories:  A Snapshot of Aid for Trade on the Ground; 
 African Case Stories:  A Snapshot of Aid for Trade on the Ground in Africa;  and 
 Compendium of Aid for Trade Case Stories (WT/COMTD/AFT/W/26). 
 
5. The compendium of Aid-for-Trade case stories is being circulated as a Committee document.  
The other analyses can be accessed from the Aid-for-T rade pages of the WTO and OECD websites, as 
well from the joint OECD-WTO Aid-for-Trade website:  www.aid4trade.org   Copies of the individual 
case stories submitted can also be accessed from the jo int website (as can copies of replies to the 
self-assessment questionnaires). 
II. OVERVIEW 
6. This section provides an overview of the case st ories submitted by end May 2011.  Additional 
submissions subsequently received have not been included in the analyses.  Figures quoted in the analyses of case stories are based on a total of 269 case stories.    WT/COMTD/AFT/W/26 
 Page 3 
 
 
  7. Of particular importance to note is that the short descriptions of case stories provided in 
this document are not intended as summaries of the submissions made .  The text has been drafted 
so as to provide readers with an  idea of the content of case stories and to assist them in further 
investigation of the case stories received.   
Who submitted case stories? 
 8. Chart 1 below provides an overview of the case stories received by respondent.  It highlights 
that donor countries were the most active in res ponding to the call for case stories making a total of 
112 submissions.  The voice of partner countries also resonates with a total of 85 case stories being submitted.  Interest in the monitoring exercise was also shown by regiona l organizations - which 
contributed 27 case stories.  Other organizations, including NGOs, also actively participated 
submitting 33 case stories.  
Chart 1:  Case Story Submissions by Category of Respondent 
 
112
85
27
1233
020406080100120
Donor Partner
CountryRegional
organizationsSouth‐South Other 
 
9. Some respondents submitted multiple case stories.   The chart below shows the most prolific 
authors.  The top ten list is made up of donors,  regional development banks, regional communities and 
UN agencies.  The United Kingdom submitted the highest  number of submissions with a total of ten 
case stories and was closely followed by the World Bank (8) and UN-ESCWA (7). 
10. Many partner countries also submitted multiple cas e stories.  For example, Bangladesh, Fiji, 
Jamaica, Indonesia, Malawi and Peru all submitted three case stories.  Among South-South partners 
Argentina and Singapore also submitted three case stories.  WT/COMTD/AFT/W/26 
Page 4  
 
  Chart 2:  Case Story Submissions by Respondent 
 
10
8
7
666
55
444444444
024681012
 
 
Who did respondents write about? 
 11. While partner countries and regional organiza tions wrote about the Aid-for-Trade support 
they received, donors and South-South partners desc ribed the Aid-for-Trade assistance they offered.  
Other organizations typically analysed the Aid for Tr ade offered at global, regi onal or national level.  
The result is that the number of case stories about particular partner countries often greatly exceeds 
the number of their own submissions.  Two exam ples are Benin and Burkina Faso, both of which 
submitted two case stories, but which were cited in a total of 13 case stories - four times as the direct 
beneficiary of assistance, and nine times as part of a larger group of beneficiaries (e.g. in a regional or 
global project or programme).   
12. Out of the 269 submissions, Uganda was cited in the highest number of case stories (17) 
followed by Mali (14), Benin and Burkina Faso (1 3) and Tanzania (12).  Among the top ten most 
cited countries, only Honduras is outside the African region.    WT/COMTD/AFT/W/26 
 Page 5 
 
 
  Chart 3:  Most frequently cited Countries in Case Story Submissions  
 
17
14
13 13
12
10 10 10 10 10
99999
8888888
024681012141618
 
 
13. Of the most cited countries, the top five are all Least-Developed Countries (LDCs).  Chart 4 
shows the number of case stories submitted by LD Cs, the total number of case stories submitted 
specifically about LDCs and the number of times LD Cs are cited in the ca se stories.  Overall, 
approximately 45 per cent of the case stories are about Aid for Trade in LDCs. 
Chart 4:  Case Stories by, about and citing LDCs  
 
33123228
050100150200250
Case stories submitted  by
LDCsCase stories submitted
about LDCsNumber of times
different LDCs are cited in
case stories 
 
14. A regional breakdown of the submissions reveals that the majority of case stories were 
submitted about Aid-for-Trade interventions in  the African region (114), followed by the 
Latin American and Caribbean region (67), and As ia and Pacific region (57).  The Central and 
Eastern European region was the least covered with three case stories.  WT/COMTD/AFT/W/26 
Page 6  
 
  Chart 5:  Case Story Submissions by Region 
 
114
1757
367
22
020406080100120
Africa Arab  & Middle East Asia  & Pacific Central  & Eastern
EuropeLatin America & The
CaribbeanGlobal 
Note : Algeria, Egypt, Libya, Morocco, Sudan, Tunisia, Djibouti appear in both Africa and North Africa and 
the Middle East regions, hence the total is higher than 269.  
15. In the same way that partner countries are the subj ect of multiple case stories, the same is also 
true of donors.  The table below shows the top ten donors cited in the case stories.2  T h e  
European Union is cited as a donor in the highest  number of case stories (59), followed by the World 
Bank (33), the United Kingdom (28), and th e International Trade Centre (26).3  
                                                      
2 A case story citation does not necessarily imply that  assistance provided by the cited donor is the 
subject of the case story.  For example, some case stor ies, notably those of partner countries, cite multiple 
donors when referring to national processes.  
3 The high number of references to the International Trade Centre (ITC) is in part attributable to the 
joint ITC-WTO Expert Roundtable on the Gender Dimension of Aid for Trade held on 25 October 2010.  Sixteen case stories presented at the October 2010 even t were also submitted in response to the call for case 
stories.   WT/COMTD/AFT/W/26 
 Page 7 
 
 
  Chart 6:  Donors cited in Case Stories  
 
59
33
2826
2019
16 1615
1211 119998
010203040506070
 
 
16. The rest of this document provides an overview of the case stories under various headings, 
mostly regional.  In some instances, case stories are repeated under more than one heading.  Where 
case stories have been repeated, footnotes alert the reader to the section in which the case story is 
repeated. 
III. CASE STORIES ABOUT RESEARCH 
17. Fifteen case stories were submitted about research  on Aid for Trade and its effectiveness at 
global, regional and national level.  
18. The Commonwealth Secretariat  presented the findings of a series of studies it sponsored to 
gather quantitative and empirical evidence of the e ffectiveness of Aid for Trade.  The case story 
provided a summary of key findings, with a specifi c focus on small and vulnerable economies (SVEs) 
and Sub-Saharan countries.  The case story highlighted  certain areas where Aid-for-Trade flows have 
had significant positive effects for recipient countries, not ably the effects of aid to trade facilitation in 
reducing trading costs.  The studies found that a 100 per cent increase in aid to trade facilitation had 
been associated with a fall in the cost of importing by  5 per cent.  Furthermore, there is also evidence 
of a significant impact of Aid for Trade on export  performance, where each additional 100 per cent of 
Aid for Trade is associated on average with a 3. 5 per cent increase in merchandise exports, driven 
mainly by aid to economic infrastructure.  Case Story (CS) Ref. no. 34.  
19. The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) partnered with the USAID 
West Africa Trade Hub to jointly present the r esults of a gap analysis conducted on the ECOWAS 
Trade Liberalization Scheme (ETLS).  The case  story describes the methodology used for the 
analysis, the problems encountered and the main conclusions.  The study found that, while the visa-waiver programme for the free movement of pe rsons is being implemente d, tariff and non-tariff 
barriers remain which inhibit the free movement of goods in the region.
4  CS Ref. no. 42. 
20. The German Development Institute's  (DIE) case story discussed the conclusions of a study 
on the European Union's Joint Aid-for-Trade Strategy,  focusing in particular on the case of Zambia 
and COMESA.  The DIE's analysis of national a nd regional aid coordination, both by donors and 
partners at national and regional level, shows the difficulties and challenges faced by all actors and 
stakeholders in reconciling national and regional priorities in the design of their strategies.  The study 
                                                      
4 Repeated in the section on case stories about West Africa. WT/COMTD/AFT/W/26 
Page 8  
 
  concludes with a series of recommendations incl uding: the establishment of an Aid-for-Trade 
coordinator to facilitate communication, awareness- raising and coordination across all sectors;  the 
mainstreaming of trade and regional integration in  the institutional set-up of European development 
policies;  greater efforts to ensure ownership and alignment of programmes;  and the coordination of 
monitoring and reporting instruments between donors,  partner countries and re gions to improve the 
qualitative aspect of Aid for Trade.
5  CS Ref. no. 106. 
21. The International Trade Centre  (ITC) presented the results of a survey conducted amongst 
trade associations and enterprises in Uganda, in part nership with the Uganda Export Promotion Board.  
The survey helped identify the problems that th e private sector faced in its export activities, the 
quality of trade support services and the perceived e ffectiveness of the Aid-fo r-Trade initiatives.  The 
survey found that although obstacles to trade still re main, the private sector perceived a substantial 
improvement in factors such as economic and physical infrastructure and information and 
communications technology (ICT) over the last five years.  Positive performance was also registered 
for the services sectors, where export values and the capacity of Ugandan exporters have improved.  
The case story concludes that impact of Aid-for-Tra de initiatives in Uganda can be further improved 
through the dissemination of information across the business sector and greater dialogue between 
development agencies and the private sector on Aid-for-Trade strategies.6  CS Ref. no. 77. 
22. The United States  reported on an evaluation study of the US Agency for International 
Development's (USAID) trade capacity building assist ance.  The study, entitled "From Aid to Trade: 
Delivering Results: a cross-country evaluation of USAID trade capacity building", looked at USAID's 
trade capacity building projects since 2002 and f ound that they have had a positive impact on 
developing countries' ability to export.  A regressi on analysis of the impact of USAID TCB indicated 
that each additional US$1 invested by USAID was associated with a US$42 in crease in the value of 
developing country exports two years later.  A direct positive link was also found with economic 
growth indicators such as employment, house hold incomes and private sector revenues. 
CS Ref. no. 201. 
23. The Standards and Trade Development Facility  (STDF) submitted a case story on its work 
to establish the role of multi-stakeholder partners hips in promoting compliance with international 
SPS.  The case story summarizes the main findings and conclusion of this work that included research 
and a workshop organized in cooperation with the Du tch Ministry of Agriculture, Nature and Food 
Quality (LNV) and the World Bank.  It concludes that establishing multi-stakeholder partnerships to 
address sanitary and phytosanitary (SPS) capacity cons traints and compliance is an effective approach 
that could be developed further in the context of  the Aid-for-Trade Initiative.  CS Ref. no. 162. 
24. A further case story produced by the Standards and Trade Development Facility  (STDF) 
focused on the ongoing STDF/OECD work to iden tify indicators to measure the performance of 
national SPS systems.  The case story highlights preliminary conclusions and the potential for establishing indicators for result-based management frameworks as policy tools to estimate impacts 
and support SPS decision-making.  CS Ref. no. 250. 
25. Additionally, the Standards and Trade Development Facility  (STDF) submitted a case 
story on the use of economic analysis methodologi es to inform SPS decision-making. The STDF has 
been working to develop a decision-support tool through the application of multi-criteria decision 
analysis (MCDA) to enhance the quality and e ffectiveness of decision-making on the allocation of 
resources for SPS capacity building in developing coun tries. The MCDA will be also accompanied by 
a training package to equip experts in developing c ountries with the knowledge and skills to apply this 
tool.  CS Ref. no. 268. 
                                                      
5 Repeated in the sections on case stories abou t Africa-wide, East Africa and Southern Africa. 
6 Repeated in the section on case stories about East Africa.  WT/COMTD/AFT/W/26 
 Page 9 
 
 
  26. The United Nations Economic Commission for Africa  (UNECA) presented the results of 
an econometric study on the effects of Aid-for-Trade flows to Africa on the region's most binding trade constraints.  The analysis demonstrates empiri cally that increases in Aid for Trade have helped 
address Africa's most binding trade constraints. It was found that a 1 per cent increase in Aid for 
Trade improved Africa's diversification index (whi ch ranges between 1 and 0) by 0.04 per cent, a 
result that was attributed to investments in econo mic infrastructure and productive capacity building. 
Additionally, Aid-for-Trade flows were f ound to have a positive impact on the region's 
competitiveness.  The econometric study suggests th at a one per cent increase in Aid for Trade 
reduced the cost of exporting a 20-foot container by 0.11 per cent.
7  CS Ref. no. 104. 
27. The World Bank  submitted a case story on the progress ma de in the WTO on reducing tariffs 
on Environmental Goods and Services (EGS).  The case  story shows that in the five years following 
the Doha Round, 102 countries, including India and China, have substantially reduced tariffs on EGS 
with positive impacts on import growth.  It is estimated that the size of import increase following a tariff-reduction event, i.e. one where a tariff is reduced by at least 5 per cent, was on average 
78.9 per cent.  This result has great significance for creating business opportunities and boosting 
technology transfer.  The case story also notes th at WTO Members have encountered some problems 
in defining and selecting EGS for negotiations of fu rther tariff reduction.  Nonetheless, the degree of 
tariff reduction achieved so far has allowed some of the objectives of the environmental tariff 
reduction scheme to be met.  CS Ref. no. 167. 
28. The World Trade Organization  (WTO) presented a case story on the mainstreaming of Aid 
for Trade into the Trade Policy Re view Mechanism.  The case story examines the experience gained 
from six pilot trade policy reviews (TPRs):  China,  the United States, Beli ze, Honduras, Malawi, and 
the joint TPR of Benin, Burkina Faso and Mali.  Given the successful experience with the pilot TPRs, 
Aid-for-Trade analysis in the TPR process has b een expanded beyond these pilots.  This process has 
proven especially useful for middle-income devel oping countries and LDCs, which have used the 
TPR process to enhance internal coordination on Aid-for-Trade priorities, develop national 
Aid-for-Trade strategies and collaborate with regi onal institutions to take forward recommendations 
made during the TPR process.  CS Ref. no. 205. 
29. The Overseas Development Institute  (ODI) submitted a case story on how to blend financial 
resources for infrastructure development.  The case story looks at the conclusions of three ODI-led 
studies.  The first on the econometric study on loans and grants concludes that grants can significantly 
affect bilateral trade.  A gravity model on bilate ral exports looks at aid and trade flows between 
15 OECD donor countries and 74 recipient countries.  The second study looks at the European Union 
funding schemes and finds that aid grants are likely to  leverage substantial am ounts of other finance.  
The third study analyses the use of  subsidies by development finance institutions, which can help 
mobilize additional capital, including private invest ment in infrastructure.  The case story concludes 
that if developing countries want to attract significan t Aid for Trade to meet their infrastructure needs, 
they need to consider how grants can levera ge other resources that could be blended into 
infrastructure development.  CS Ref. no. 85. 
30. The Overseas Development Institute (ODI) addressed the way that donors respond to trade 
priorities identified at national and regional levels and how their activities are monitored and evaluated.  The case story relates to the provision of Aid for Trade linked to the negotiation of the 
Economic Partnership Agreements  (EPAs) in Western Africa and the short- to long-term 
trade-adjustment needs of the regi on.  It analyses the total Aid-fo r-Trade commitments allocated for 
                                                      
7 Repeated in the section abou t Africa-wide case stories. WT/COMTD/AFT/W/26 
Page 10  
 
  trade-related adjustments and it identifies lim itations to how Aid-for-Trade commitments and 
disbursements are allocated and monitored.
8  CS Ref. no. 147. 
31. Aid-for-Trade resources and trade-related adjust ments in the context of climate change was 
the subject of another case story submitted by the Overseas Development Institute  (ODI).  The case 
story identifies the scope for Aid for Trade and new fo rms of climate change finance to work together 
and be mutually supportive.  But it also indicat es the challenges for ensuring compatibility between 
trade and climate change priorities in the form of governance issues.  CS Ref. no. 165. 
32. Consultant  Marilyn Carr presented a case story on building capacities for linking women 
with export markets.  The case story highlights th e approaches adopted and the results achieved in 
initiatives for assisting women take advantage of global trade.  It looks at ten case studies 
commissioned by the Commonwealth Secretaria t and supported by the United Kingdom's DFID, 
which addressed various types of organizing struct ures ranging from small women's groups to large-
scale private companies, targeted all types of ma rkets and have received assistance or support from 
government, non-governmental organi zations and donor/international ag encies.  Its conclusions show 
how support for innovative marketing strategies ca n generate benefits at country, enterprise and 
workers level, while improving women's livelihoods and bargaining power and environmental impact.  
CS Ref. no. 48. 
IV. CASE STORIES ABOUT GLOBAL AID-FOR-TRADE PROGRAMMES 
33. Thirteen case stories were submitted about globa l Aid-for-Trade programmes.  Case stories 
were categorized global if there was no defined bene ficiary or if beneficiaries came from more than 
one region.  
34. The Trade Development Centre of the Belgian Development Agency  (BTC) produced a case 
story on its Producer Support Programme, a financ ial support programme for producer organizations 
wishing to improve market access for their member s.  The case story discusses the results achieved in 
two specific BTC-funded projects:  the case of the Bolivian COPATA, which was certified as the 
world's first Fairtrade/Fairmined mining cooperativ e, and the case of rice producer unions in Benin 
for the improvement of the production process and compliance with European Union quality 
standards for Fairtrade rice.  CS Ref. no. 218. 
35. The Commonwealth Secretariat  submitted a case story on a capacity-building project in 
gender and trade designed by the Secretariat a nd co-funded by the United Kingdom's DFID.  The 
project worked systematically at national and regional level and produced , inter alia , a compendium 
of gender and trade resources for use by policy ma kers.  The case story underlines that the project 
benefitted from strong ownership by the Ministry of  Trade and the strategic cooperation between the 
donor, the government and civil society organizations (CSOs).  CS Ref. no. 50. 
36. The International Trade Centre  (ITC) submitted a case story on the development of trade 
analysis tools and their link to capacity building for LDCs and developing countries.  The case story 
describes the ITC's experience in large-scale dissemina tion of trade information through the launch of 
two comprehensive, accessible and user-friendly t ools: Trade Map and Market Access Map. The ITC 
experimented with both a user-pay approach and free dissemination and concluded that the latter is 
superior, although it might pose some long-term  financing problems.  CS Ref. no. 73. 
37. Training programmes developed by the International Trade Centre  (ITC) are addressed in 
the ITC's case story on the Modular Learning System – Supply Chain Management (MLS-SCM), 
which since 2007 is funded by the Swiss State Secr etariat for Economic Affairs (SECO).  The case 
                                                      
8 Repeated in the section on case stories about West Africa.  WT/COMTD/AFT/W/26 
 Page 11 
 
 
  story describes the design and implementation of the programme that promotes enterprise 
competitiveness through targeted training to busin ess executives for the development of supply chain 
management knowledge and skills.  The programme is  delivered by local training providers who sign 
licences with ITC.  More than 25,000 people have  been trained with significant revenues for the 
institutional network and demonstr ated benefits at the enterprise levels.  CS Ref. no. 193. 
38. The Netherlands  submitted a case story on the implementation of the Dutch Sustainable 
Trade Initiative (IDH), which has put a strong empha sis on forging coalitions between governments, 
companies, trade unions and civil society organizati ons to ensure social and ecological sustainability 
of the commodity supplies from emerging economies.  The roles carried out by IDH are that of 
guidance for the design and implementation of  programmes, guaranteeing the up-scaling of 
programmes and providing capacity building for all st akeholders in the coalitions.  CS Ref. no. 256. 
39. The Singapore Cooperation Programme (SCP) is the subject of a case story by Singapore .  
The programme uses Singapore's experiences in tr ade and investment programmes to support human 
resource capacity building in other developing coun tries.  The SCP has trained more than 70,000 
government officials from 169 developing countries in the Asia-Pacific, Africa, the Middle East, 
Eastern Europe, Western Europe, and Latin America and the Caribbean.9  CS Ref. no. 263. 
40. Spain  submitted a case story on its capacity bu ilding and training activities carried out in 
support to the Enhanced Integrated Framework (EIF ).  The training course trained participants who 
will act as focal points in the development progra mmes supported by the EIF.  CS Ref. no. 191. 
41. The United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) submitted a case 
story on the organizational changes undergone by the Organization to align its technical assistance 
towards an enhanced focus on the creation of supply-side capacities.  The case story illustrates the 
phases of UNIDO's changes in its approach to tr ade capacity building.  UNIDO complemented its 
initial focus on quality infrastructure, initially, with  the pursuit of international recognition for the 
performance of quality infrastructure and, ultimately,  with a stronger emphasis on the development of 
productive supply-side capacities.  The new enhanced approach has been formalized with the launch 
of a 3C approach, Compete, Conform, Connect, which figures prominently in UNIDO's provision of 
technical assistance.  CS Ref. no. 111. 
42. In the context of building awareness of private standards, the United Nations Industrial 
Development Organization (UNIDO) submitted a case story on the publication of a guidebook on 
private standards and good practices required by intern ational buyers in some manufacturing sectors.  
The publication, entitled "Making Private Standards Wo rk for You:  A guide to private standards in 
the garments, footwear and furniture sectors", wa s jointly supported by UNIDO, CBI (Netherlands) 
and Norad (Norway).  CS Ref. no. 112. 
43. The publication of the second edition of the TCB Inter-Agency Resource Guide was the 
subject of the third submission by the United Nations Industrial Development Organization 
(UNIDO).  The publication focuses on the Aid-for-T rade Initiative and provides information on what 
assistance is already available.  The case story explains how the Gu ide has facilitated collaboration 
and coherence amongst agencies and how it has also helped identify areas wher e more assistance is 
needed.  CS Ref. no. 113.  
44. The International Centre for Trade and Sustainable Development (ICTSD) shared its 
experience in undertaking intellectual property need s assessments in LDCs.  The case story presents 
the project as a successful example of trade -related technical assistance resulting in positive 
engagement by LDCs in the multilateral trading system.  The project was successful in assisting 
                                                      
9 Repeated in the section on As ia Pacific-wide case stories. WT/COMTD/AFT/W/26 
Page 12  
 
  countries in presenting submissions to the TRIPS C ouncil.  However, the case story notes that the 
mobilization of resources to fulfil the identified needs will require more sustained and systematic 
efforts.  CS Ref. no. 249. 
45. Plan International , a children's development organizati on, submitted a case story on the 
need to empower women through access to ICT.  The case story showcases the analysis and findings 
of the 2009 and 2010 State of the World's Girls Report.  It also shows how investment in young 
women's IT skills would increase their opportunities to enter global value chains, acquire economic 
independence and ensure better liv ing conditions for them and their families.  CS Ref. no. 52. 
46. Pricewaterhousecoopers  submitted a case story on Export Credit Agencies as an engine for 
growth and development.  The case story examines five phases for setting up an Export Credit 
Agency and identifies financial challenges and lack of expertise as the main obstacles to developing 
countries in setting up this kind of institution.  CS Ref. no. 146. 
V. CASE STORIES ABOUT AFRICA 
47. A total of 114 case stories were submitted about Aid for Trade in Africa.  Fifty-one case 
stories were submitted by donors and 37 by partne r countries (of which 26 came from LDCs).  Eleven 
case stories were presented by regional economic communities.  Brazil's submission was the only 
South-South case story submitted about Africa.  A tota l of 14 other organizations also presented case 
stories about Africa.  
Chart 7:  Case Stories about Africa by Category of Respondent 
 
51
37
11
114
0102030405060
Donor Partner
CountryRegional
organizationsSouth‐South Other 
 
48. The region most profiled in the case stories was East Africa.  Case stories dealing with 
Africa-wide case stories were the second most popular category, followed by case stories about West and Southern Africa.    WT/COMTD/AFT/W/26 
 Page 13 
 
 
  Chart 8:  Case Stories about Africa by Region10 
 
929
23 23
624
05101520253035
Central
AfricaEast Africa Southern
AfricaWest Africa North  Africa Africa  wide 
 
A. AFRICA -WIDE CASE STORIES11 
49. The Brazilian Cooperation Agency  of the Brazilian Ministry of External Relations presented 
a case story on its Cotton-4 project.  The case story focuses on how Brazil is helping to increase the profitability of the cotton supply chain in the C-4 countries (Benin, Burkina Faso, Chad and Mali).  
The success of the project can be assessed against the requests for inclusion of Other 
Countries - namely, Ghana and Uganda - and the pe rspective of expanding its scope to other areas 
related to the cotton supply chain.
12  CS Ref. no. 30. 
50. Canada  submitted a case story on the Programme for Building African Capacity to Trade 
(PACT), jointly implemented by the Internationa l Trade Centre (ITC) and the Trade Facilitation 
Office Canada (TOFC).  The programme aimed at  expanding and diversifying exports in seven 
Sub-Saharan countries: Ethiopia, Ghana, Mali, Mo zambique, Senegal, South Africa and Tanzania.  
By offering training, business mentoring and access to  exposure missions to small and medium-sized 
enterprises (SMEs), the programme was able to address countries' trade development priorities, 
enhance the export capacity of many SMEs and stre ngthen the institutional infrastructure that supports 
export-led development.  The results achieved be nefited directly African businesses.  For example, 
600 small farmers in Ghana exported 210 tonnes of fr esh fruit and vegetables a week to customers in 
Europe;  two South African cosmetics companies (Ikhala and Molo) exported their products to Canada, the Design Africa brand was successfully in troduced in the area of home furnishing products, 
and Design Africa events facilitated significant export commitments to the European Union, 
United States, and Canadian markets.  CS Ref. no. 119. 
51. The Community of Sahel-Saharan State's  CEN-SAD case story analyses the process 
underpinning the creation of a Free Trade Agreemen t (FTA) amongst its Members.  The process aims 
                                                      
10 The Africa-wide category includes some case stories which are also counted in  the category of North 
Africa and the Middle East.  These refer to case stories referencing Algeria, Djibouti, Egypt, Libya, Mauritania, 
Morocco, Sudan and Tunisia. 
11 Case stories which examine countries in more than  one region are also nomin ated Africa-wide for the 
purpose of this analysis. 
12 Repeated in the sections about West and Central Africa.  This case story has been counted in the total 
for Africa-wide for the purpose of Chart 8.  WT/COMTD/AFT/W/26 
Page 14  
 
  at eliminating obstacles through measures that woul d guarantee the free movement of individuals and 
capital, freedom of residence, ownership and economic activity, as well as the free movement of 
national goods, merchandise and services.  The CEN-SAD Secretariat examines the possibility of 
concluding an FTA with Union du Maghreb Ar ab (UMA) and the Economic Community of West 
African Sates (ECOWAS).  CS Ref. no. 224. 
52. The German Development Institute's  (DIE) case story discussed the conclusions of a study 
on the European Union's Joint Aid-for-Trade Strategy,  focusing in particular on the case of Zambia 
and COMESA.  The DIE's analysis of national a nd regional aid coordination, both by donors and 
partners at national and regional level, shows the difficulties and challenges faced by all actors and 
stakeholders in reconciling national and regional priorities in the design of their strategies.  The study 
concludes with a series of recommendations.13  CS Ref. no. 106. 
53. The International Development Law Organization (IDLO) submitted a case story on the 
training and technical-assistance programmes for Ethiopia, Mozambique, Namibia and Zambia in 
support of Finland's Aid-for-Trade Action Plan 2008-2011.  The case story highlights the activities 
carried out by IDLO on four components of the programme, namely Intellectual Property (IP), 
Investment, Economic Partnershi p Agreements and Agriculture.  In addition to training and 
technical-assistance activities, IDLO also offered its expertise in the development of Zambia's 
National IP Policy, provided recommendations fo r the implementation of Zambia's new National 
Investment Policy and created a web-based knowledge -sharing network platform to provide enhanced 
dialogue between IP professionals.  While the project was successful, there rema ins a need for further 
development assistance to ensure implementation of appropriate legal a nd regulatory frameworks.14  
CS Ref. no. 69. 
54. The International Trade Centre (ITC) submitted a case story on the African Cotton 
Development Initiative, which aims at making Africa  a stronger competitor in the international cotton 
trade.  The case story illustrates ITC's approach to boosting competitiveness and establishing stronger 
links with cotton importers.  The strategy includ es activities aimed at capacity building in trade and 
marketing, capacity building of farmers' and ginn ers' associations, South-South cooperation and 
African cotton promotion.  The producers have also  benefitted from sharing of expertise with cotton 
experts from China, India and Turkey.  In additi on, direct sales of African cotton to Asia have 
increased, with orders of up to US$10 million recorded.  CS Ref. no. 210. 
55. The Secretariat of the Northern Corridor Transit Tran sport Coordination Authority  
(NCTTCA) submitted a case story on the institutiona l support provided by the African Development 
Bank (AfDB) to improve the trading environm ent through the customs union protocol and the 
strengthening of transport and logistics services along the North Corridor.  The case story analyses the starting phase of the programme and the involvement of private and regional stakeholders, including 
regional economic organizations, with  NCTTCA.  This cooperation will be important to facilitate the 
effective harmonization of customs procedures across the region and the effective design and 
implementation of trade facilitation and transport programmes.
15  CS Ref. no. 265. 
56. The Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (Sida) produced a case story 
on the institutional cooperation project between East ern and Southern Africa Management Institute 
(ESAMI) and Lund University.  This partnership led to the establishment of a recognized African 
                                                      
13 Repeated in the section on case stories about res earch, East Africa and South Africa.  This case story 
has been counted as Africa-wide for the purpose of Chart 8. 
14 Repeated in the section about East and Southern Af rica.  This case story has been counted in the total 
for Africa-wide for the purpose of Chart 8. 
15 Repeated in sections about East and Central Africa.  This case story has been counted in the total for 
Africa-wide and for the purpose of Chart 8.  WT/COMTD/AFT/W/26 
 Page 15 
 
 
  Trade Policy Training Centre (Trapca) that be nefitted from ESAMI's strong and recognized presence 
in the region and the academic accreditation and intern ational visibility provided by Lund University.  
The case story discusses the benefits to be draw n from the creation of a high-quality academic 
programme focussing on capacity building for LDCs in areas of trade policy, trade law, negotiations 
and development.  It also addresses the challeng es of sustainable financing for the programme once 
grant support from Sida is phased out.  CS Ref. no. 95. 
57. The Swiss State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (SECO) supported the development of 
the competitiveness of the cotton sector in C-4 count ries (Benin, Burkina Faso , Chad and Mali).  The 
case story illustrates the comprehensive sector ap proach undertaken by SECO, which consists of 
supporting a trade policy initiative, the Cotton In itiative, and a programme targeted to cotton 
producers' productive capacity and their participation in niche markets for organic and fairtrade 
cotton.  The integrated implementation of the two processes seeks to promote the empowerment of 
cotton producing countries in international negotia ting fora and of cotton producers throughout the 
whole value chain.  Since the start of the Or ganic Cotton Program, production has exceeded the 
program's initial target.  In Switzerland, organi c cotton has attained a 5 per cent market share.16  
CS Ref. no. 37. 
58. The United Kingdom  submitted a case story on the COMESA-EAC-SADC Tripartite 
process to establish a Free Trade Agreement (FTA ), with technical and financial support from 
TradeMark Southern Africa.  The Tripartite FTA is  intended to address incons istencies and challenges 
arising from the overlapping of membership in COMESA-ECA-SADC between the 26 countries involved.  The process includes negotiations on tariff liberalization and the locking-in of the level of 
tariff liberalization achieved in each regional economic community (REC). The Tripartite FTA is 
expected to result in the simplification and harmoni zation of regulatory and policy frameworks in the 
region and the reduction of implementation costs.  CS Ref. no. 49. 
59. The United Kingdom  submitted a case story on a regional non-tariff barrier (NTB) reporting 
and monitoring mechanism to be implemented jointly by COMESA, EAC and SADC with technical 
and financial support from TradeMark Southern A frica.  In line with the 2008 decision of the 
Tripartite Summit of COMESA, EAC and SADC , the mechanism will address the need for 
elimination of NTBs in the establishment of the tripartite FTA.  CS Ref. no. 142. 
60. The United Kingdom  provided a case story that analyses the status of the railway system in 
Eastern and Southern Africa and the possibilities to re vamp this system so that it can play a greater 
role in inter-regional and international trade through  a reduction in the costs of cross-border trade and 
the improvement of transport safety.  The case st ory concludes that desp ite the high level of 
investment needed and the many challenges faced,  there are significant gains to be achieved from 
revitalizing the eastern and southern African  railway systems.  CS Ref. no. 144. 
61. The United Kingdom  submitted a case story on the Comprehensive Tripartite Trade and 
Transport Facilitation Programme (CTTTFP) implem ented by the COMESA-EAC-SADC Tripartite.  
The case story analyses the objectiv es pursued by the programme, wh ich is still at the design and 
early implementation stage, and the potential for increasing intra-regional trade and promoting economic growth.  The CTTTFP includes amongst its  objectives the harmonization of customs, 
immigration and transport proce dures throughout the region and the creation of a Joint Competition 
Authority on Air Transport Liberalization.  CS Ref. no. 145. 
62. The United Kingdom  presented a case story on the establishment of its regional 
Aid-for-Trade programme, TradeMark Southern A frica, which supports the regional integration 
                                                      
16 Repeated in sections about West and Central Africa.  This case story has been counted as 
Africa-wide for the purpose of Chart 8. WT/COMTD/AFT/W/26 
Page 16  
 
  efforts by the COMESA-EAC-SADC Tripartite to cr eate an inter-regional free trade area and expand 
the region's capacity to trade.  The case story focuses on the lessons learnt by the establishment and 
implementation of TradeMark SA and on the importa nce of delivering Aid for Trade at the regional 
and inter-regional level.  CS Ref. no. 148. 
63. The United Kingdom  submitted a case story on the North-South Corridor programme, a 
flagship programme of the COMESA-EAC-SADC  Tripartite supported by TradeMark Southern 
Africa. The regional programme aims at assessing th e needs for rehabilitation and maintenance of the 
North South Corridor road network.  CS Ref. no. 149. 
64. The African Trade Policy Centre (ATPC) of the United Nations Economic Commission for 
Africa (UNECA) submitted a case story which examines the most common areas of gender 
inequalities and highlights the importance of address ing the links between gender and Aid for Trade 
as a measure of aid effectiveness.  Supported by the Canadian International Development Agency 
(CIDA), the ATPC is striving to become a centre of excellence for mainstreaming gender into trade 
policies.  Amongst the ATPC's successes are the cr eation of a Pan-African Alliance for Electronic 
Commerce and the creation of a trade and gender network.  CS Ref. no. 47. 
65. The United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA) submitted a case story on 
the establishment of the African Trade Policy Centre  (ATPC) in Ethiopia.  The Centre is funded by 
CIDA and it aims at strengthening the capacity of  African governments to formulate, analyse and 
implement sound trade policies and to participate in  international trade negotiations.  The case story 
analyses the internal and external factors that ha ve contributed to the activities of ATPC and the 
constraining factors that will require additional suppor t.  The Centre has demonstrated an effective 
delivery of its services lines and, overall, it has been able to respond to the capacity constraints of 
African trade negotiators.  CS Ref. no. 97. 
66. The United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA) presented the results of 
an econometric study on the effects of Aid-for-Trade flows to Africa on the region's most binding trade constraints.  The analysis was able to de monstrate empirically that increases in Aid for Trade 
have in fact helped address Africa's most binding trade constraints.  It was found that a 1 per cent 
increase in Aid for Trade would improve Africa's diversification index (which ranges between 1 and 
0) by 0.04 per cent, a result that was attribut ed to investments in economic infrastructure and 
productive capacity building.  Additionally, Aid-for-T rade flows were found to  have a positive impact 
on the region's competitiveness.  The econometric ev idence suggests that a one per cent increase in 
Aid for Trade reduces the cost of exporting a 20-foot container by 0.11 per cent.
17 CS Ref. no. 104. 
67. The United Nations Development Fund for Women (UNIFEM) submitted the results and 
the recommendations of UNIFEM in relation to the b aseline study carried out under the programme to 
address the challenges faced by women informal cross-border traders (WICBT).  The study has 
highlighted that women's trading activities contri bute to poverty reduction, employment and wealth 
creation in Africa, but WICBT suffer from various physical and verbal abuses, lack of access to 
adequate services and their needs are not suffici ently captured by mainstream trade policies. 
CS Ref. no. 63. 
68. The United States  submitted a case story on USAID's Aid-for-Trade Programming on 
supporting regional trade facilitation.  The case story examines the delivery of USAID's regional programming through its African Trade Hubs with  a focus on improving the business and regulatory 
environment.  It highlights examples of how the Hubs have applied targeted assistance to improve 
customs procedures.  Through a flexible and resp onsive demand-driven approach, the Trade Hubs 
have become delivery mechanisms for technical assistance on regional trade facilitation and customs 
                                                      
17 Repeated from the section on  case stories about research.  WT/COMTD/AFT/W/26 
 Page 17 
 
 
  procedures.  Some of the results achieved in clude the speeding up of customs clearances in 
Mozambique using time release studies, improving customs procedures in Southern Africa, improving connectivity between Tanzania and Malawi with  improved technology, and supporting the regional 
economic communities  (RECs) in implementing various aspects of the fundamental REC trade 
protocols.  Overall, there has been a general tre nd in trade expansion in Africa that can be partly 
attributed to USAID's assistance. Between 2008 and 2009, the East Africa Hub reported a 
US$11 million increase in trade under African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA), the Southern Africa Hub tallied a total of US$40 million additiona l AGOA exports, and the West Africa Trade Hub 
cites an additional US$20 million in AGOA exports.  CS Ref. no. 175. 
69. The Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research  (CGIAR) presented its 
Gender and Diversity Programme and its flagship  project AWARD (African Women in Agricultural 
Research and Development), which promotes the in clusion of more African women scientists in 
research and development (R&D) institutions.  The case story reports mixed progress.  While the total 
number of women employed increased significantly, women only hold 16 per cent of management positions and women from developing countries only hold a 6 per cent share. CS Ref. no. 51. 
70. Consultant Lisa Fancott, Gender and Trade expert, presented a case story on the 
CIDA-funded Access Programme for Women Entrep reneurs.  The programme, implemented in 
partnership with COMESA, ECOW AS and ECCAS, consists of a modular training programme, a 
business counselling programme, a ma rket access component and a trade information web portal.  
These activities are meant to provide women expor ters with the skills, the networks and the 
confidence to take on new markets.  The programme  also interacts with e xport promotion agencies, 
Chambers of Commerce and Women's Business Asso ciations as Focal Points institutions in the 
countries of operation. In view of the positive r esults achieved, several countries are taking Access! 
on board without external funding support.  CS Ref. no. 46. 
B. CENTRAL AFRICA18 
71. A total of nine case stories were submitted a bout Central Africa with most submissions being 
made by partner countries.  Case stories about Ce ntral Africa accounted for 8 per cent of all case 
stories about Africa. 
                                                      
18 Central Africa: Angola, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Democratic Republic of Congo, 
Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Republic of Congo, and Sao Tome and Principe. WT/COMTD/AFT/W/26 
Page 18  
 
  Chart 9:  Case Stories about Central Africa by Category of Respondent  
 
3
111111
01234
Cameroon Congo Angola Congo  DR Gabon Central
African
RepublicChad 
 
72. Two submissions were made by donors, both about Cameroon.  Case stories about Cameroon 
accounted for one-third of the case stories about Central Africa.  
Chart 10:  Case Stories about Central Africa by Country of Focus  
 
7
2
012345678
Partner Country Donor 
 
73. The ongoing European Union-funded TrainforTrade project was the subject of a case story 
presented by Angola .  The project, implemented by UNCTAD, provides technical assistance and 
training to develop the necessary human and institutio nal capacity that will allow the country to better  WT/COMTD/AFT/W/26 
 Page 19 
 
 
  participate in international trade.  The case stor y highlights the need for trade-related technical 
assistance (TRTA) to strengthen Angola's trade institutions.  CS Ref. no. 132. 
74. The Brazilian Cooperation Agency  of the Brazilian Ministry of External Relations presented 
a case story on its Cotton-4 project.  The case story focuses on how Brazil is helping to increase the profitability of the cotton supply chain in the C-4 countries (Benin, Burkina Faso, Chad and Mali).  
The success of the project can be assessed against the requests for inclusion of Other 
Countries - namely, Ghana and Uganda - and the pe rspective of expanding its scope to other areas 
related to the cotton supply chain.
 19  CS Ref. no. 30. 
75. The Ministry of Trade of Cameroon  submitted a case story on the development of the banana 
and cassava sectors as drivers of growth for the country.  With the objective of doubling the 
production in the two sectors by 20 15, Cameroon joined the Joint In tegrated Technical Assistance 
Programme (JITAP).  The International Trade Centre (ITC) provided assistance on the development of training activities for the main stakeholders and the drafting of two strategies that were 
subsequently incorporated in the Programme National de Développement des Racines et des 
Tubercules (PNDRT) and the Programme de Reconversi on de la filière Banane Plantain (PREBAP).  
However, as a result of a lack of adequate funding , the implementation activities did not take off.  
Presently, the two strategies have been updated and their implementation is being supported by the 
EU-funded All ACP Agricultural Commodities Programme.  CS Ref. no. 19. 
76. The Ministry of Industry and Trade of the Central African Republic  submitted a case story 
on an Integrated Framework (IF) project aiming at  strengthening production capacity in the sesame 
sector and exploring related export opportunities.  Im plementation of the project led to the provision 
of training to the sector's stakeholders, increase in the production of sesame, and the opening of new 
trading opportunities. CS Ref. no. 21. 
77. The Integrated Framework (IF) was the subject of a case story by the Ministry of Trade and 
Industry of Chad  on the promotion of the leather industry.  The case story illustrated how the country 
was able to relaunch its leather industry thr ough capacity-building activities targeted to all 
stakeholders in the industry, with the final objec tive of creating the basic conditions to enhance the 
sector's competitiveness.  The project led to:  the dr afting of a study on the leather value chain in 
Chad;  training activities for the main actors in the sector;  provision and knowledge of tools and skills for higher value-added production;  and the use of internet technology for the promotion of Chadian 
products.  Finally, Chad is in the process of concludi ng partnership agreements with Italy's Institute of 
Foreign Trade (ICE) and with the Centre for the De velopment of Enterprise (CDE), an EU/ACP joint 
institution.  Further support will be needed to  ensure sustainability. CS Ref. no. 225. 
78. The Democratic Republic of Congo  presented a case story on the implementation of the 
Enhanced Integrated Framework (EIF).  The case st ory shows the steps taken in the implementation 
of the recommendation and action matrix contained in the DTIS validated in July 2010.  The 
Government is confident that the EIF programme  will have positive results in terms of export 
promotion, competitiveness and market opening, with positive spill-over effects on wealth creation 
and poverty reduction. CS Ref. no. 36. 
79. The Republic of the Congo  submitted a case story on the Eur opean Union-funded project to 
enhance trade and entrepreneurial capacity of Con golese small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs).  
The case story highlights intermediary results of the project which delivered on training for 
institutional capacity building and a methodology for the drafting of an Aid-for-Trade programme.  
                                                      
19 Repeated in sections about Africa-wide and West  Africa.  This case story has been counted as 
Africa-wide for the purpose of Chart 8. WT/COMTD/AFT/W/26 
Page 20  
 
  Some duplication was found with projects develope d by other donors; one conclusion was the need 
for enhanced donor coordination. CS Ref. no. 26. 
80. Within the framework of the EU-funded All ACP Agricultural Commodities Programme, the 
European Union  presented the project for the development of the coffee sector in Cameroon.  The 
case story illustrates how the multi-agency approach  of the programme has allowed Cameroon to 
benefit from the expertise of different internati onal organizations in a coherent and coordinated 
manner.  While there are no quantifiable results as of yet, it is possible to identify the potential for 
sustainable economic growth generated by the ecological pulping and processing technology made available in the small washing stations. CS Ref. no. 209. 
81. The Ministry of Economy, Trade, Industry and Commerce of Gabon  illustrated the 
government's on-going processes on Aid for Trade.  The case story analyses the economic situation of 
Gabon and the reform process that the Government h as initiated to mainstream trade in its national 
development plan and to suppor t economic diversification, private sector's competitiveness and 
improved institutional governance.  The implemen tation of the new strategies will require the 
increased support of Gabon's international partne rs, accompanied by improved aid management and 
effectiveness, and increased country  ownership. CS Ref. no. 110. 
82. The Secretariat of the Northern Corridor Transit Tran sport Coordination Authority  
(NCTTCA) submitted a case story on the institutiona l support provided by the African Development 
Bank (AfDB) to improve the trading environm ent through the customs union protocol and the 
strengthening of transport and logistics services along the North Corridor.  The case story analyses the starting phase of the programme and the involvement of private and regional stakeholders, including 
regional economic organizations, with  NCTTCA.  This cooperation will be important to facilitate the 
effective harmonization of customs procedures across the region and the effective design and 
implementation of trade facilitation and transport programmes.
20 CS Ref. no. 265. 
83. The Swiss State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (SECO) supported the development of 
the competitiveness of the cotton sector in C-4 count ries (Benin, Burkina Faso , Chad and Mali).  The 
case story illustrates the comprehensive sector ap proach undertaken by SECO, which consists of 
supporting a trade policy initiative, the Cotton In itiative, and a programme targeted to cotton 
producers' productive capacity and their participation in niche markets for organic and fairtrade cotton.  The integrated implementation of the two processes seeks to promote the empowerment of 
cotton producing countries in international negotia ting fora and of cotton producers throughout the 
whole value chain.  Since the start of the Or ganic Cotton Program, production has exceeded the 
programme's initial target.  In Switzerland, organi c cotton has attained a 5 per cent market share.
21  
CS Ref. no. 37. 
84. The World Customs Organization (WCO) submitted a case story on the project supported 
by the World Bank, French Customs and the Worl d Customs Organization to modernize and improve 
the performance of Cameroon Customs.  The launch of a new IT customs system in 2007 led to the 
progressive introduction of performan ce measurement to fight corruption and bad practices.  Results 
have been achieved in terms of banning bad practices, time gains and increased revenue collection.  
For example, estimated gains in terms of time ar e 10 to 14 hours with reduced variance of time-period 
for customs assessment since April 2010 and more pr edictability for traders.  Additionally, it is 
estimated that the revenue collection added by the project was 4 per cent of the annual Customs 
                                                      
20 Repeated in the sections about A frica-wide and East African case stor ies.  This case story has been 
counted as Africa-wide for the purpose of Chart 8. 
21 Repeated in the sections about Africa-wide and We st African case stories.  This case story has been 
counted as Africa-wide for the purpose of Chart 8.  WT/COMTD/AFT/W/26 
 Page 21 
 
 
  revenue targets for 2010.  Started as an experime nt, Cameroon's performance measurement policy has 
now been extended to two new bureaus.  CS Ref. no. 164. 
C. EAST AFRICA22 
85. A total of 29 case stories were submitted about E ast Africa.  Most case stories were submitted 
by donors.  East Africa was the subject of nearly  25 per cent of case stories submitted about Africa.  
Chart 11:  Case Stories about East Africa by Country23 
 
9
8
4
222
11
012345678910
East
AfricaUganda Tanzania Rwanda Burundi Ethiopia Kenya Comoros 
 
Chart 12:  Case Stories about East Africa by Category of Respondent 
 
18
6
5
02468101214161820
Donor Partner  country Other 
                                                      
22 East Africa: Burundi, Comoros, Djibouti, Eritrea,  Ethiopia, Kenya, Rwanda, Seychelles, Somalia, 
Tanzania, and Uganda. 
23 Totals in Chart 3 and Chart 11 differ.  Figures in Chart 11 refer to where a country is the main 
subject of a case story.  Figures in Ch art 3 refer to country citations in the case stories.  Hence, while Uganda 
was the direct subject of eight case stories, it  is cited in an additional nine case stories. WT/COMTD/AFT/W/26 
Page 22  
 
  86. Members of the East African Community (Bur undi, Kenya, Rwanda, Tanzania and Uganda) 
were the most profiled totalling 17.  
87. Burundi  illustrated the development of its essential o ils industry, patchouli and sweet lime, to 
meet its export diversification priority.  The case story analyses the process of creating a 
non-traditional industry with the involvement of na tional and international institutions, the private 
sector, non-governmental organizations  and South-South cooperation.  The delivery of solid results 
has been hindered by implementation delays, the la ck of a sectoral strategy and the poor engagement 
of one of the actors involved.  Longer-term suppor t from the Enhanced Integrated Framework (EIF) 
may be required to reach the expected outcomes.  CS Ref. no. 18. 
88. The case story submitted by the Ministry of Trade and Industry of Comoros  focused on an 
Enhanced Integrated Framework-funded project for the strengthening of trade and investment support 
services and the improvement of the business environmen t.  It includes an analysis of the results 
achieved in the areas of instituti onal capacity building, the developm ent of the tourism sector and the 
improvement of customs procedures.  The WTO accession process is also seen as an important step for Comoros to achieve economic growth and development.  CS Ref. no. 28. 
89. Denmark described the functioning of its Business- to-Business project in Uganda.  The case 
story analyses the impact of the three-year part nership between Ugandan African Organic and the 
Danish company Solhjulet.  The partnership has allowed the provision of training and exchange of 
information.  As a result of this partnership,  African Organic's production has increased and the 
company now exports at least 2 tonnes of fruit and vegetables to Denmark every week.  Some transport issues still need to be addressed to ensure adequate shipping of fr esh fruits and vegetables. 
CS Ref. no. 214. 
90. The Ministry of Trade of Ethiopia  addressed the difficulties th at the country faces in 
administering, implementing and monitoring deve lopment assistance so as to benefit from the 
Aid-for-Trade Initiative.  The case story notes that the Aid-for-Trade programme has not been fully 
implemented in Ethiopia.  Despite a DTIS conduct ed in 2004, few results have been achieved.  
CS Ref. no. 190. 
91. The European Union  submitted a case story on the programme for the support of the 
agricultural sector in Rwanda.  The analysis illustra tes how the programme contributed to stimulating 
market-oriented agriculture and local initiatives a nd how it accompanied the privatization process to 
ensure added-value exports, especially of coffee, tea and pyrethrum.  The programme made use of 
different kinds of assistance including technical assistance, infrastructure and capacity building.  
Despite a difficult start due to lack of strategi c planning and weak monitoring by the implementing 
institutions, the pace of the programme's implementa tion picked up thanks to the better involvement 
of different institutional bodies.  CS Ref. no. 194. 
92. The German Development Cooperation (GIZ) presented a case story on the project 
Establishment of a Regional Quality Infrastruct ure (QI) in the East African Community.  The 
nine-year project aims at improving the regional QI system which is essential for the free movement 
of goods within the region and for trade with in ternational partners.  The case story analyses the 
progress made on implementation and shows ho w harmonized quality assurance procedures and 
increased cooperation between the relevant QI ins titutions facilitate exports and increase intra-EAC 
trade.  Despite the good results achie ved, much remains to be done to raise awareness of the benefits 
of regional harmonization, increase private sector involvement in QI and ensure that regional 
decisions are steadily implemented at national level.  CS Ref. no. 66. 
93. The German Development Institute's  (DIE) case story discussed the conclusions of a study 
on the European Union's Joint Aid-for-Trade Strategy,  focusing in particular on the case of Zambia  WT/COMTD/AFT/W/26 
 Page 23 
 
 
  and COMESA.  The DIE's analysis of national a nd regional aid coordination, both by donors and 
partners at national and regional level, shows the difficulties and challenges faced by all actors and 
stakeholders in reconciling national and regional priorities in the design of their strategies.  The study 
concludes with a series of recommendations.24  CS Ref. no. 106. 
94. The Global Mechanism of the United Nations Conference on Desertification (UNCCD) 
submitted a case story on the need to work toward s a common agenda for trade and agriculture to 
achieve sustainable land management, a measure that  requires the coordinati on of different policies 
and processes.  The case story reports the experien ce of Uganda in harmonizing its trade priorities 
across sectors in order to build more coherent policy frameworks and coordinate investment in 
agriculture in order to promote sustainable la nd management, address supply-side capacity and 
facilitate the matching of suppl y and demand of agricultural products.  CS Ref. no. 100. 
95. The International Development Law Organization (IDLO) submitted a case story on the 
training and technical-assistance programmes for Ethiopia, Mozambique, Namibia and Zambia in 
support of Finland's Aid-for-Trade Action Plan 2008-2011.  The case story highlights the activities 
carried out by IDLO on four components of the programme, namely Intellectual Property (IP), 
Investment, Economic Partnershi p Agreements and Agriculture.  In addition to training and 
technical-assistance activities, IDLO also offered its expertise in the development of Zambia's 
National IP Policy, provided recommendations fo r the implementation of Zambia's new National 
Investment Policy and created a web-based knowledge -sharing network platform to provide enhanced 
dialogue between IP professionals.  While the project was successful, there rema ins a need for further 
development assistance to ensure implementation of appropriate legal a nd regulatory frameworks.25 
CS Ref. no. 69. 
96. The International Trade Centre (ITC) submitted three case stories on projects carried out in 
Eastern Africa.  One focuses on the Ethiopian Coff ee Quality Improvement project and describes the 
factors that allowed the project to establish seven  coffee quality-testing laboratories in rural Ethiopia 
to improve the provision of quality control services and training to farmers and traders.  Strong 
political support at national level, the involvement  of international buyers and the complementary 
activities of donors were identified as crucial factors in the successful implementation of the project.  
CS Ref. no. 75. 
97. A second case story by the International Trade Centre (ITC) describes the implementation 
of the Ethical Fashion Programme  in Kenya and Uganda.  It illustrates how the programme 
promotes trade of sustainable fashion products be tween international companies and micro producers 
in marginalized communities in LDCs.  The pr ogramme was able to offer micro producers – 
especially women – in Kenya and Uganda access to in ternational value chains and the opportunity to 
improve their living conditions.  CS Ref. no. 76. 
98. A case story by the International Trade Centre (ITC) presents the results of a survey 
conducted amongst trade associations and enterprises  in Uganda, in partnership with the Uganda 
Export Promotion Board.  The survey helped identif y the problems that the private sector faced in its 
export activities, the quality of trade support ser vices and the perceived effectiveness of the 
Aid-for-Trade initiatives.  The survey found that a lthough obstacles to trade still remained, the private 
sector perceived a substantial improvement in fact ors such as economic and physical infrastructure 
and ICT over the last five years. Positive perform ance was also registered for the services sectors, 
where export values and the capacities of Ugandan expor ters have registered an increase.  The case 
                                                      
24 Repeated from the section on case stories about re search, Africa-wide and South Africa.  This case 
story has been counted as Africa-wide for the purpose of Chart 8. 
25 Repeated in section about Africa- wide and Southern Africa.  This case story has been counted as 
Africa wide for the purpose of Chart 8. WT/COMTD/AFT/W/26 
Page 24  
 
  story concludes that impact of Aid-for-Trade in itiatives in Uganda can be further improved through 
the dissemination of information across the business sector and greater dialogue between development agencies and the private sector on Aid-for-Trade strategies.
26  CS Ref. no. 77. 
99. The Government of Kenya  submitted a case story on the ongoing Business Regulatory 
Reform Unit that aims to improve the business and investment climate in Kenya and transform the 
country into a competitive investment destination,  thus achieving broader economic development.  
The case story illustrates the activities of the reform programme initiated in 20 05, its progress and the 
problems encountered.  The ongoing reform process is delivering on its objectives through the 
simplification of business licences and permits, the creation of an e-registry, the systematic involvement of the private sector, cooperation on the World Bank's Doing Business Report and a 
continued exercise of monitoring and evaluation.  CS Ref. no. 17. 
100. The creation of the Centre of Phytosanitary Excellence (COPE) was the subject of a case 
story submitted by the COPE Secretariat, Kenya .  The Centre aims to enhance the capacity of 
national phytosanitary systems to increase the ability of African countries to compete in international 
markets by meeting international phytosanitary st andards while protecting national agriculture and 
natural resources.  The centre is a model for achieving coordinated and effective phytosanitary 
capacity development at regional level.  CS Ref. no. 92. 
101. The Norwegian Agency for Development Cooperation (NORAD) submitted a case story on 
the Strengthening Women Entrepreneurs in Uganda  project (SWEP) implemented by Enterprise 
Uganda (EUg) and financed by the Government of Norway.  The case story is a detailed end review 
of the project and it details the project implemen tation, its effectiveness and sustainability.  The 
conclusions drawn indicate that while almost all ta rgets have been exceeded, the project did not fully 
achieve the objective of linking women entrepreneurs to markets and finance, thus compromising the 
project sustainability.  CS Ref. no. 116. 
102. Norway  also presented two ongoing projects in Tanzania.  The Tanga-Pemba submarine 
cable connecting the electricity grid on the island of Pemba to the mainland is expected to secure 
stable and reliable power supply and will stimulat e business and development.  CS Ref. no. 135. 
103. The second case story submitted by Norway about Tanzania is the Southern Agricultural 
Growth Corridor of Tanzania (SAGCOT II) project th at aims at boosting agriculture productivity and 
competitiveness, with positive repercussion on value chain development and re gional integration.  
CS Ref. no. 174. 
104. The Swiss State Secretariat for Economic Affairs  (SECO) also presented the impacts of 
certification for sustainable production and the results of the application of a harmonized 
methodology for impact analysis to coffee produ cers in Tanzania.  The case story presents the 
evaluation system and the preliminary results of a fi rst series of field visits in the Tanzanian coffee 
sector.  It was observed that compliance with priv ate voluntary standards by certified coffee producers 
in Tanzania has brought about positive impacts on th eir social and economic situation.  The project 
found that certified farms had 3 per cent more yiel ds, 15 per cent higher prices and received average 
revenues that were 17 per cent higher than conventional farms.  In add ition, social conditions, such as 
access to food, education and training, also improved for producers involved in certification 
initiatives.  CS Ref. no. 212. 
105. The Ministry of Industry and Trade of Tanzania  submitted a case story on the third phase of 
the Denmark-funded Business Sector Programme S upport.  The case story addresses the objectives of 
                                                      
26 Repeated from the section on  case stories about research.  WT/COMTD/AFT/W/26 
 Page 25 
 
 
  the programme for the period 2000-2013 and it emphasi zes the need for further Aid for Trade for 
Tanzania to address supply-side c onstraints.  CS Ref. no. 248. 
106. The Secretariat of the Northern Corridor Transit Tran sport Coordination Authority  
(NCTTCA) submitted a case story on the institutiona l support provided by the African Development 
Bank (AfDB) to improve the trading environm ent through the customs union protocol and the 
strengthening of transport and logistics services along the North Corridor.  The case story analyses the 
starting phase of the programme and the involvement of private and regional stakeholders, including 
regional economic organizations, with  NCTTCA.  This cooperation will be important to facilitate the 
effective harmonization of customs procedures across the region and the effective design and 
implementation of trade facilitation and transport programmes.27  CS Ref. no. 265. 
107. The United Kingdom  addressed the issue of improving revenue collection and border 
management in Burundi.  The case story shows how Burundi was able to benefit from the support of 
international and regional actors for training st aff, improve customs administration, and the 
implementation of information technology systems.  The project has produced results in terms of 
increased revenues for the year 2009-2010 – revenu es which exceeded the total five-year project 
investment.  CS Ref. no. 211. 
108. The United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) submitted a case 
story on the implementation of the Biotrade In itiative Programme in Uganda.  The case story 
illustrates the growth potential for Uganda of tr ade in biodiversity-based products and services.  
Through a value chain approach, the initiative has supported small- and medium-sized enterprises 
(SMEs) to reach international markets, while prom oting and investing in the development of their 
suppliers in the rural communities.  The case stor y shows that more sustainable results can be 
achieved through a more comprehensive government-s upported, private-sector-oriented project that 
would consolidate the results achieved for bio-producers.  CS Ref. no. 103. 
109. A further submission by the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development 
(UNCTAD) addresses UNCTAD-UNEP cooperation to support the production and trade of organic 
agricultural products in East Africa.  The case stor y illustrates the activities carried out in close 
cooperation with national, regional a nd international partners and the development of an East African 
Organic Products Standard (EAOPS).  The efforts of national and international partners, joined in the 
African Organic Team, have helped the East Afri can organic sector to grow significantly during the 
project period (2004-2010) and African organic e xports to increase rapidly.  CS Ref. no. 102. 
110. The United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) offered a further analysis of the 
adoption of the East African Organic Products Standa rd (EAOPS) as the official standard for organic 
agricultural products in the region.  The case story describes the rationale and the process that led to 
the adoption of the EAOPS.  The development and a doption of the standard has assisted in promoting 
organic production in East Africa and it has served as a model for the development of other regional 
standards.  CS Ref. no. 61. 
111. The World Customs Organization (WCO)  offered assistance to two countries in Eastern 
Africa.  WCO's two case stories focus on Ethiopia a nd Uganda.  In Ethiopia, WCO received a request 
from Ethiopia's Ministry of Revenue to review the es tablishment of the Ethiopian Customs Authority.  
The case story describes the two phases of WCO su pport: a first phase on needs assessment;  and a 
second phase on implementation of the Customs Re form Programme.  With the creation of the 
Ethiopian Revenue and Customs Agency, reforms were  gradually implemented and higher levels of 
efficiency and effectiveness were reached.  CS Ref. no. 166. 
                                                      
27 Repeated in sections about Africa-wide and Cent ral Africa.  This case story has been counted as 
Africa-wide for the purpose of Chart 8. WT/COMTD/AFT/W/26 
Page 26  
 
  112. In Uganda, the World Customs Organization (WCO) supported the country in the use of the 
WCO Time Release Study (TRS) to measure border performance.  The case story describes how the 
TRS was able to identify the constraints to smoot h customs procedures and give recommendations to 
enhance efficiency at Uganda's borders.  The availab ility of further data would be useful to provide a 
more detailed analysis.  CS Ref. no. 239. 
113. The regional dimension of aid initiatives was introduced by the World Bank  with a case 
story on the East Africa Trade and Transport Facilitation Project, which aims at improving the movement of cargo along the Northern Transpor t Corridor linking Kenya to Uganda and other 
landlocked developing countries in the region.  The project – supported also by other complementary 
projects from the European Union, African De velopment Bank (AfDB), Japan International 
Cooperation Agency (JICA) and the United Kingdom's DFID – has resulted in shortened transit times 
at borders with a consequent increase of trade volum es.  Northern Transport Corridor transit times at 
the border have now been reduced from three days to three hours.  Additionally, dwell time at the port 
of Mombasa has also been reduced from 19 to 13 days, and transit time along the 
Mombasa-Nairobi-Kampala section of the route has dropped from 15 to five days.  This overall drop 
in transit times, eases the movement of cargo al ong the route, reduces transport costs and increases 
competitiveness.  CS Ref. no. 129. 
114. The Collaborative Centre for Gender and Development  (CCGD) Kenya, a 
non-governmental organization that cooperates w ith the East African Community (EAC) gender 
department, submitted a case story that illustrate s how gender issues can be addressed in the EAC 
integration process.  The project's activities include d the analysis of the EAC customs protocol to 
determine its responsiveness to the needs of informal women cross-border traders, two surveys on the 
situation of informal cross-border women trad ers on the Tanzania-Kenya, Uganda-Kenya and 
Rwanda-Burundi Borders, and sens itization and advocacy activities on the findings of the studies, as 
well as measures to enhance women's participa tion in trade.  The case story discusses possible 
indicators to measure and evaluate the integration of women into customs protocol for the short, 
medium and long term.  CS Ref. no. 54. 
115. Centre for Socio-Eco-Nomic Development (CSEND) carried out a study of transport 
infrastructure and trade facilitation in Uganda, Rwanda  and Tanzania to evaluate the effectiveness of 
aid projects funded under the Aid-for-Trade Initiativ e.  The case story analyses issues of project 
implementation and sustainability, trade mainstreaming and regional integration.  It finds that while 
projects under Aid for Trade and the Enhanced In tegrated Framework (EIF) have achieved positive 
results at national levels, progress has not always been  translated at the regional level into a network 
of integrated infrastructure or sufficient impact on trade facilitation, especially for landlocked LDCs 
like Uganda and Rwanda.  The study concludes that the next evolution for Aid for Trade should look at engaging meaningfully with regions and foster  donor coordination, rather than focusing on 
individual countries and bilateral aid.  CS Ref. no. 229. 
116. Ms Rosemary Mutyabule of Enterprise Uganda  submitted a case story on the integration of 
gender in the National Export Strategy (NES) of Uganda, supported by the Uganda Export Promotion 
Board (UEPB) in cooperation with the International Trade Centre (ITC).  The case story illustrates the 
objectives and the key gender elements of Uganda's  NES, as well as the results of the NES which 
have encouraged donors to implement a number of projects and programmes targeting women.  
CS Ref. no. 60. 
117. Ms Oda Gasinzigwa of the Gender Monitoring Office of Rwanda  presented a case story 
which describes the actions taken by the Governme nt of Rwanda within its economic growth and 
poverty reduction strategy to ensu re more gender equality for women in market access and trade 
opportunities through macro-policies that address bot h wider socio-economic issues as well as more 
specific trade-related constraints.  CS Ref. no. 57.  WT/COMTD/AFT/W/26 
 Page 27 
 
 
  118. The case story by consultant Ms Dorothy M. Tuma  highlights the importance for donors to 
involve local partners in designing gender-focused  programmes.  The case story presents three 
programmes for women empowerment where the Uga nda Women Entrepreneurs Association Limited 
(UWEAL) was involved either directly or indirectly: the CIDA-funded "Access to International Markets for African Businesswomen";  UWEAL' s Women Investment Club (WIC);  and DFCU 
Bank's Women in Business (WiB).  The main factor  for success was identified in the ability of the 
donors to engage with the local community and pa rtners, and show the necessary flexibility in the 
implementation phase to accommodate unforeseen n eeds and priorities.  CS Ref. no. 62. 
D. SOUTHERN AFRICA28 
119. A total of 23 case stories were received about Southern Africa.  From Chart 13, it is clear that 
most case stories were submitted about regional processes (i.e. category of Southern Africa).  
 
Chart 13:  Case Stories about Southern Africa by Country or Region 
 
7
33
2222
11
012345678
 
 
                                                      
28 Southern Africa:  Botswana, Lesotho, Madaga scar, Malawi, Mauritius, Mozambique, Namibia, 
South Africa, Swaziland, Zambia and Zimbabwe. WT/COMTD/AFT/W/26 
Page 28  
 
  Chart 14:  Case stories about Southern Africa by Category of Respondent 
 
211
8
2
024681012
Regional
OrganizationsPartner Country Donor Other 
 
120. Botswana  submitted a case story on the United Kingdom-funded Trade and Poverty 
Programme for the enhancement of trade policy form ulation, negotiations a nd implementation, which 
aimed at building Botswana's capacity for trad e policy formulation and implementation and trade 
negotiations. Whilst the programme has put emphasi s on policy formulation and trade negotiations, 
further technical assistance is needed for tr ade policy implementation, addressing supply-side 
bottlenecks and boosting productive capacity.  CS Ref. no. 219. 
121. The German Development Institute's  (DIE) case story discussed the conclusions of a study 
on the European Union's Joint Aid-for-Trade Strategy,  focusing in particular on the case of Zambia 
and COMESA.  The DIE's analysis of national a nd regional aid coordination, both by donors and 
partners at national and regional level, shows the difficulties and challenges faced by all actors and 
stakeholders in reconciling national and regional priorities in the design of their strategies.  The study 
concludes with a series of recommendations.29  CS Ref. no. 106. 
122. The International Development Law Organization (IDLO) submitted a case story on the 
training and technical-assistance programmes for Ethiopia, Mozambique, Namibia and Zambia in 
support of Finland's Aid-for-Trade Action Plan 2008-2011.  The case story highlights the activities 
carried out by IDLO on four components of the programme, namely Intellectual Property (IP), 
Investment, Economic Partnershi p Agreements and Agriculture.  In addition to training and 
technical-assistance activities, IDLO also offered its expertise in the development of Zambia's 
National IP Policy, provided recommendations fo r the implementation of Zambia's new National 
Investment Policy and created a web-based knowledge -sharing network platform to provide enhanced 
dialogue between IP professionals.  While the project was successful, there rema ins a need for further 
development assistance to ensure implementation of appropriate legal a nd regulatory frameworks.30 
CS Ref. no. 69. 
123. The Government of Lesotho  examined the impact of Aid for Trade and the challenges met in 
the process.  The case story examines Official De velopment Assistance (ODA) flows to Lesotho and 
                                                      
29 Repeated in the section on case stories about re search, Africa-wide and East  Africa. This case story 
has been counted as Africa-wide for the purpose of Chart 8. 
30 Repeated in sections about Africa-wide and East  Africa.  This case story has been counted as 
Africa-wide for the purpose of Chart 8.  WT/COMTD/AFT/W/26 
 Page 29 
 
 
  compares them to Aid-for-Trade flows, while look ing at aid received at both national and regional 
level.  In view of the relative less emphasis on trade and trade capacity building of overall aid 
assistance and of the high vulnerability of Lesotho's economy, support from the Enhanced Integrated Framework (EIF) is crucial to mainstream trade into the national development strategy and to 
mobilize further Aid-for-Trade support particular ly in the area of building productive capacity.  
CS Ref. no. 150. 
124. The national coordinator for the Integrated Framework (IF) of Madagascar  submitted two 
case stories on the implementation of two Window II projects addressing the enhancement of trade 
capacity and export development.  Both project s received the support of the World Bank as donor 
facilitator and the UNDP as fund manager.  The project for export development aimed at enhancing 
the sustainable export growth, especially towards regional markets.  The provision of training 
activities and training materials is expected to st rengthen export capacity of Malagasy small and 
medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and generate sust ainable export growth for the country's economic 
actors.  CS Ref. no. 254. 
125. The second case story by Madagascar  focused on strengthening the negotiating capacity of 
Malagasy officials.  The project resulted in a mo re comprehensive trade policy that better reflects 
Madagascar's interests.  Despite  initial difficulties in taking ownership of the Enhanced Integrated 
Framework (EIF) process, Madagascar, with the suppor t of the EIF, has prepared a multi-year Tier 1 
project to support the National Implementation Arrangements.  CS Ref. no. 255. 
126. Malawi  submitted three case stories analysing the e ffectiveness of Aid for Trade.  The first 
case story addresses the problems faced in the implementation of the National Development and 
Trade Policy Forum (NDTPF) project as part of the roadmap for the EPA negotiations with the 
European Union.  Unpredictable, inadequate a nd delayed disbursement of funding, compiled with 
poor administration and delays in recruitment of project  staff, led to a disburse ment rate of 34 per cent 
rendering the project ineffective.  CS Ref. no. 4. 
127. Malawi 's second case story reported the progress made on the Business Environment 
Strengthening Technical Assistance Project (BESTAP)  and the challenges encountered.  While there 
had been some managerial and fund disbursement de lay issues, the project so far has contributed to 
enact new legislation to reduce the cost of doing  business, establish a court to settle commercial 
disputes and take steps to digitize business activ ities and establish an automated business registry 
database.  CS Ref. no. 160. 
128. Finally,  Malawi 's third case story addressed the implementation of two Window II projects 
under the Enhanced Integrated Framework (EIF):  Trade Policy Advisory Services and Capacity 
Building for Trade Integration, and Standardizati on, Quality Assurance and Management (SQAM).  
The case story addressed some ownership issues and the importance of a timely delivery of resources. With a utilization rate of 99 per cent, the In tegrated Framework (IF) performance was found 
satisfactory and was deemed a positive example of Aid for Trade.  CS Ref. no. 161. 
129. The case story submitted by the Government of Mauritius  addresses the accessibility of 
Aid-for-Trade resources and the scope of Aid for Tr ade itself.  The Government laments an excessive 
focus on trade policy issues away from a wider de velopment agenda and calls for Aid-for-Trade 
resources to be dedicated and a dditional.  CS Ref. no. 81. 
130. The development of Mozambique's oil and g as sector was the subject of a case story by 
Norway .  The case story explains how Norwegian assist ance has helped in the development of the 
Pande gas field, and the construction of a pipelin e from Pande to Temane are expected to have 
positive repercussions on the development of Mozam bique's oil and gas sector.  CS Ref. no. 59. WT/COMTD/AFT/W/26 
Page 30  
 
  131. The Southern African Confederation of Agricultural Unions  (SACAU), an organization of 
national farmers unions and regional commodities or ganizations in Southern Africa, showcased its 
participation in the ComMark's Regional Standards Programme as a delivery agency for one of the 
programme's components: developing countries' partic ipation in the work of international standards 
setting bodies.  The case story shows the positive impact that SACAU's activities have had in 
strengthening the institutional environment for improved SADC participa tion in international 
standards setting bodies, focusing on the example of SADC members participating in the annual 
Commission on Phytosanitary Measures (CPM) of the International Plant Protection Convention 
(IPPC).  CS Ref. no. 204. 
132. The Southern African Development Community (SADC) submitted a case story on the 
Customs Modernization and Trade Facilitation towa rds a SADC Customs Union project, a regional 
trade-related technical assistance project supported by the European Union.  The project aimed at 
supporting SADC integration into the world econo my and to prepare SADC Members to undergo a 
smooth transition to a SADC Customs Union by 2010.  The case story addresses the problems encountered in the implementation phase and some ow nership issues that compromised the efficacy of 
the project.  CS Ref. no. 15. 
133. Another subject addressed by the Southern African Development Community (SADC) was 
the implementation of its Gender Programme which aims at mainstreaming gender in the economic 
integration agenda for the region.  The case story highlights the results achieved by SADC in the 
establishment of institutional facilities for gender ma instreaming, the development and adoption of 
sub-regional policy instruments and guidelines, re search studies, the creation of a SADC Gender 
Mainstreaming Toolkit and the training and capacity building of trade experts.  The case story 
highlights the importance of political will in transl ating the legal and institutional instruments into 
concrete actions that benefit wome n's participation in trade and econom ic activities.  CS Ref. no. 55. 
134. The Swiss State Secretariat for Economic Affairs  (SECO) brought an example of the 
cashew nut value chain project in Mozambique to illustrate SECO's approach to strengthening the 
competitiveness of export-oriented agro-value ch ains.  With the overall goal of enhancing 
employment and income for cashew nuts prod ucers and processing industry, SECO conducted 
activities directed at the creation of value addition through processing.  It also pursued improvements 
of market access through compliance with internationa l standards.  Thanks to the introduction of a 
quality management system and improved manageme nt structures and processing methods, exports of 
processed cashew nuts increased by 36 per cent between 2002 and 2008, generating a profit of 
US$1.3 million, and creating 5,000 new jobs, allowing  around one million house holds in rural regions 
to increase their incomes by selling cashew nuts.  CS Ref. no. 184. 
135. The United Kingdom  submitted a case story about the Beitbridge border post between 
South Africa and Zimbabwe, an important border on the North-South Corridor.  With support from TradeMark Southern Africa, a Beitbridge Efficiency Management System (BBEMS) work 
programme was designed to alleviate congestion at  the border post.  Despite the preparation of 
institutional structures, a draft memorandum of understanding and a work programme, progress in implementing the BBEMS has been slow and the problems of congestion, clearance delays and 
inefficient service delivery persist at Beitbridge  border post, with knock-on effects on the whole 
North-South Corridor.   CS Ref. no. 140. 
136. Mozambique was the subject of a case story from the United Kingdom  on Mozambique's 
fisheries sector and its compliance with European Union standards for quality and food safety.  The 
case story describes the improvements made to the fish eries sector in terms of food safety regulations 
enforcement and improved laboratory capacity, follow ing the critical report of an European Union 
inspection carried out in 2006.  The suppor t received by two consecutive United Kingdom  WT/COMTD/AFT/W/26 
 Page 31 
 
 
  DFID-funded programmes allowed the country to retain its right to export to the European Union and, 
in addition, to satisfy South African requireme nts for shrimp exports.  CS Ref. no. 141. 
137. Within the framework of United Kingdom's DF ID's programme, TradeMark Southern Africa, 
the United Kingdom submitted a case story on the one-stop border post at Chirundu  between Zambia 
and Zimbabwe.  The case story describes the pr ocess that led to the upgrading of Chirundu as a 
one-stop border post and the benefits in terms of significant time and cost-saving.  For example, 
waiting times for commercial traffic ha ve been reduced from about four to five days to a maximum of 
two days and often to a few hours, and clearance times for passengers on buses (76-seater) have been 
reduced from about six hours to less than two hour s.  What is required now is to streamline 
cross-border procedures along the whole North-South Corridor to realize widespread cost saving.  
CS Ref. no. 267. 
138. The World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) presented a case story on the 
commercialization of marula oil produced in Namibia.   The case story explains how the marketing of 
higher-quality marula oil has brought new oppor tunities for commercialization and access to new 
markets to the benefit of rural communities and a relevant number of women in the sector.  With the 
support of PhytoTrade Africa, a research and de velopment project further explored the market 
potential of marula oil and developed it as an e nvironmentally friendly botanical ingredient for 
cosmetics.  With the development of intellectua l property protection of Maruline, the sector has 
become even more relevant for local communities.  CS Ref. no. 134. 
139. The World Bank submitted a case story on one of the initiatives carried out in Lesotho under 
the Private Sector Competitiveness and Economic Diversification Project.  The programme aimed at 
increasing the skill levels of the workforce in Leso tho through the establishment of worker training 
centres to achieve increased competitiveness and high er productivity.  So far, the centre has trained 
625 workers of which a high percentage were women.  CS Ref. no. 127. 
140. The World Bank  submitted a case story on the loan programme implemented in Mauritius 
which enabled the country to implement a reform programme to improve its trade competitiveness, 
investment climate, fiscal performance and public sect or efficiency.  Positive developments were also 
registered in foreign direct investment (FDI) and gross domestic product (GDP) growth.  The World 
Bank reports that FDI rose five-fold from about 2 billion Mauritius rupees in 2004 to more than 
11 billion Mauritius rupees by 2007, and IMF figures show that GDP growth rose from 1.5 per cent in 
2005 to 5.4 per cent in 2007 and 5.0 per cent in 2008 before dropping to 2.5 per cent in 2009 as a consequence of the global economic crisis.  CS Ref. no. 131. 
141. Zambia  submitted two case stories.  The first case story on the Integrated Framework 
(IF)/Enhanced Integrated Framework (EIF) process in Zambia, illustrates how the EIF has established itself as the main mechanism thr ough which Zambia obtains acces s to additional Aid-for-Trade 
resources.  With EIF assistance, Zambia has mainst reamed trade into its national development plans 
and has integrated the IF/EIF into its Private S ector Development programme.  A number of activities 
are contributing to the advancement of the implemen tation of Zambia's trade agenda, including, for 
example, the development of trade-related inte llectual property legislation, development and 
diversification of the export sector, and upgrading of  private sector capacities.  The case story notes 
the importance of involving key stakeholders at  the start of the programme, having a clear 
understanding of the roles of different players, gove rnment ownership, the need to build on existing 
frameworks, and of putting in place clear guide lines and building capacity to fast-track EIF 
implementation.  Despite achievement s made thus far, it is noted that  further work is required to 
engage a wider range of particip ation in the EIF process, particularly by the private sector.  
CS Ref. no. 154. WT/COMTD/AFT/W/26 
Page 32  
 
  142. The second case story by Zambia  examines the Chirundu One Stop Border Post (OSBP) and 
was presented jointly with the Ministry for Foreign Affairs of Finland. It describes the programme to 
improve the efficiency of border management opera tions between Zambia and Zimbabwe.  The case 
story illustrates how government ownership of, and commitment to the programme, has ensured 
technical and financial support from all stakeholde rs, including cooperating partners at bilateral, 
regional and international levels , and private business (transporters, importers and agents, civil 
society).  The case story explains how challenges such as sequencing of activities, coordination at 
both intra- and inter-country levels, as well as delays  in the implementation of the Zambia One-Stop 
Border Post Control Act, were overcome and how the OSBP has resulted in improved traffic 
circulation and flow, improved border infrastructur e, improved efficiency and capacity to handle 
larger volumes of traffic, increased revenues and re duced costs of doing bu siness in the region.  
However, despite progress made, human capacity and in frastructure constraints continue to hinder full 
implementation of the OSBP concept.  CS Ref. no. 171. 
143. Another case story on the Chirundu One Stop Border Post (OSBP) was submitted by 
Zimbabwe .  The DFID-JICA-World Bank funded progr amme to improve efficiency of and 
streamline Zimbabwe's border management operations  resulted in an important achievement in the 
region as far as harmonization of border procedures a nd reduction of processing times are concerned.  
Regional support, from COMESA and SADC also c ontributed to the success of the programme.  The 
case story illustrates the importance of commitm ent from all stakeholders, including national 
governments as well as public and private sectors,  and notes that one of the major challenges in 
establishing the OBSP was erratic bureaucratic disburse ments of funds for the project.  The case story 
also notes that the region needs to mobilize resour ces under the Aid-for-Trade Initiative to facilitate 
the establishment of OSBPs planned for other borders.  CS Ref. no. 107. 
144. CUTS  submitted a case story on the pilot project, supported by the Finnish Embassy, 
"Enhanced Integrated Framework for Poverty Redu ction" which aims at promoting an inclusive 
approach to productive capacity building in Za mbia.  The case story addresses the question of the 
status and effectiveness of engage ment of various stakeholders in the Enhanced Integrated Framework 
(EIF) process.  Through workshops, round table meet ings and awareness-raising activities, the project 
contributed to inform state and non-state actors in th e regions on the EIF and the role that trade can 
play in national development.  CS Ref. no. 180. 
E. WEST AFRICA31 
145. A total of 23 case stories were submitted about West Africa.  Submissions by partner 
countries and regional organizations accounted fo r nearly 74 per cent of case stories about 
West Africa.   
                                                      
31 West Africa: Benin, Burkina Faso, Cape Ve rde, Côte d'Ivoire, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, 
Guinea-Bissau, Liberia, Mali, Mauritania, Níger, Nigeria, Senegal, Sierra Leone and Togo.  WT/COMTD/AFT/W/26 
 Page 33 
 
 
  Chart 15:  Case Stories about West Africa by Country or Region32 
 
 
7
3
22
111111111
012345678
 
 
 
Chart 16:  Case Stories about West Africa Category of Respondent 33 
 
12
55
1
02468101214
Partner Country Regional
OrganizationsDonor Other 
 
 
 
                                                      
32 Totals in Chart 3 and Chart 15 differ.  Figures in Chart 15 refer to where a country is the main 
subject of a case story.  Figures in Ch art 3 refer to country citations in the case stories.  Hence, while Benin and 
Burkina Faso are the subject of two case stories they subm itted, both countries are cited in an additional 11 case 
stories. 
33 The case stories submitted by Brazil and Switzer land on cotton are counted as Africa-wide or 
multi-region projects and appear in Ch art 8.  However, descriptions of bo th case stories are repeated in this 
section for ease of reference.  Hence, although 23 case stor ies are referenced here, 25 case story descriptions are 
included. WT/COMTD/AFT/W/26 
Page 34  
 
  146. The Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock and Fisheries of Benin  presented a case story on the 
African Development Bank (AfDB)-funded project  on the commercialization of NERICA (New Rice 
for Africa) rice variety in seven West African countries.  The case story reports positive impacts on 
yields, grain quality and commercia lization with positive spill-over effects on incomes in rural areas.  
These positive achievements have spurred Benin and th e other countries involved to ask the AfDB for 
an extension of the project to a second phase.  CS Ref. no. 13. 
147. The second case story by Benin  was submitted by the Ministry of Trade and addressed the 
project to support the fishery sector on lake Ah eme.  The case story analyses how productive and 
export capacity were strengthened and how the c ountry upgraded its harvesting and packaging 
procedures to the European Union requirements in  response to the 2002 export ban.  The project has 
achieved important results for the development of the fishery sector through infrastructural 
improvements, private and public training and instituti onal strengthening.  However, it fell short of 
addressing some aspects related to export credit and export risk coverage.  CS Ref. no. 14. 
148. The African Development Bank (AfDB) showcased the potential of the NEPA-CEB 
Interconnection Project aimed at fostering growth  and regional integra tion though facilitating 
cross-border energy flows.  The case story show s how new economic opportun ities can be created by 
the regional integration of energy grids.  The AfDB's  project delivered benefits to Benin, Nigeria and 
Togo in terms of energy infrastructure, energy supply and private sector development.  The 
interconnection between the three countries provided in creased energy availability, a steady source of 
income for Nigeria through energy export, and ne w employment opportunities in Benin as hotels and 
other business were able to count on more reliable sources of energy.  In addition, Nigeria benefitted 
from the inclusion in the West African Power P ool and further benefits accrued to the wider 
West African region.  CS Ref. no. 1. 
149. The Brazilian Cooperation Agency  of the Brazilian Ministry of External Relations presented 
a case story on its Cotton-4 project.  The case story focuses on how Brazil is helping to increase the profitability of the cotton supply chain in the C-4 countries (Benin, Burkina Faso, Chad and Mali).  
The success of the project can be assessed against the requests for inclusion of other 
countries - namely, Ghana and Uganda - and the pe rspective of expanding its  scope to other areas 
related to the cotton supply chain.
 34  CS Ref. no. 30. 
150. The first case story submitted by the Ministry of Commerce, Enterprise promotion and Craft 
industry of Burkina Faso  addressed the outcomes of the Hub & Spokes project for capacity building 
in trade policy formulation, negotiation and implem entation.  The case story describes the objectives 
and the design of the project, which allows Africa  Caribbean Pacific (ACP) countries to make use of 
the technical assistance provided by the WTO,  UNCTAD and ITC to tackle the challenges 
encountered in their integration into the multilateral trading system.  With the financial support of the 
Organisation Internationale de la Francophonie (OIF) and the European Union, Burkina Faso was able 
to achieve better awareness of trade issues amongst country officials and other stakeholders and to 
improve its capacity to understand WTO commitments.  CS Ref. no. 220. 
151. The Ministry of Commerce, Enterprise Promotion and Craft industry of Burkina Faso  
presented a case story on the World Bank-funded Co mpetitiveness & Enterprise Development Project, 
which aims at supporting private sector development through the improvement of the business climate and the provision of business development services and microfinance.  The project led to the creation 
of a Fund to provide financial support to local firms.  Since 2004, the Fund has allowed numerous 
firms to become competitive internationally, with positive impacts on employment opportunities.  
CS Ref. no.  21. 
                                                      
34 Repeated in sections about Africa-wide and Cent ral Africa.  This case story has been counted as 
Africa-wide for the purpose of Chart 8.   WT/COMTD/AFT/W/26 
 Page 35 
 
 
  152. Cape Verde  submitted a case story on its graduation from LDC status.  The case story 
illustrates how a resource-poor Small Island Developi ng State was able to make significant progress 
on social and economic indicators, leveraging onl y on good governance, sound economic policies and 
external support. Cape Verde's experience represen ts a lesson for other Sm all Islands Developing 
States.  Its economic transformation has highly benefitted from assistance in Aid for Trade and related 
sectors.  The WTO accession process was also a driver  for economic reforms and helped the country 
become more competitive and achieve stable  economic stability.  CS Ref. no. 222. 
153. Denmark  addressed the improvement of quality standards of palm oil export from Ghana  
under the Private Sector Development Strategy (PSDS I).  Through training activities, awareness 
campaigns and knowledge transfer of modern analyt ical techniques, it has been possible to raise 
Ghana's exports of palm oil to meet international standards.  CS Ref. no. 215. 
154. The Commission of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) 
addressed the drafting process of the EPA develo pment programme between the Western Africa 
region and the European Union.  The case story id entifies the objectives and the challenges faced at 
national and regional level.  The process so far h as been successful in invol ving all major actors at 
national, regional and Eur opean Union level.  The next step would be implementation accompanied 
by the allocation of adequate funding for Aid for Trade in the region.  CS Ref. no. 40. 
155. The Commission of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) also 
presented the results of the ExPECT initiative, whic h was created to consolidate and sustain the 
impact of the Canada-funded PACT II project.  Th e submission shows the outputs generated by the 
initiative in 2010 and gives an outline for the scaling-up of the project for the period 2011-2013.  The 
main output has been the formulation of a region- based strategy for export value chain development 
that is expected to contribute significantly to rein forcing the competitiveness of  value chains of lead 
products with high export potential for the region,  and empower small and medium-sized enterprises 
(SMEs) operating in those value chains.  CS Ref. no. 41. 
156. The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) partnered with the USAID 
West Africa Trade Hub to jointly present the r esults of a gap analysis conducted on the ECOWAS 
Trade Liberalization Scheme (ETLS).  The case  story describes the methodology used for the 
analysis, the problems encountered and the main conclusions.  The study found that, while the visa-waiver programme for the free movement of pe rsons is being implemente d, tariff and non-tariff 
barriers remain which inhibit the free movement of goods in the region.
35  CS Ref. no. 42. 
157. The Gambia submitted a case story on the European Union-funded West Africa Quality 
Programme (WAQP).  The programme, implemented by UNIDO, aims at achieving compliance with 
international trade rules and, in particular, with  the WTO Agreements on Technical Barriers to Trade 
(TBT) and Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measure s (SPS).  The case story assesses the preliminary 
operational results of the project and its effectivenes s.  So far, progress has been made in two of the 
six areas identified, namely testing and standardi zation.  Government involvement in the project 
design, private sector participation and transpar ent procedures to access donor funds were identified 
as areas for improvement.  CS Ref. no. 45. 
158. The German Development Cooperation (GIZ), acting on behalf of the German Federal 
Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Developmen t (BMZ), submitted a case story on the project 
"Market-oriented Promotion of Certified Sustaina ble Cocoa Production in Côte d'Ivoire" (PPDC).  
The project was implemented as a public-private pa rtnership (PPP) between Kraft Foods, the cocoa 
trader Armajaro, USAID and GIZ.  The project successf ully allowed cocoa farmers in Côte d'Ivoire to 
increase their production and create links with cocoa traders and exporters with positive impacts on 
                                                      
35 Repeated from the section on case stories about research. WT/COMTD/AFT/W/26 
Page 36  
 
  their livelihoods and improvements in the manageme nt of natural resources.  GIZ noted that the 
project sustainability could be improved if it wa s linked to a wider rural development programme, 
dealing not only with agricultural production, but al so with education, hea lth, and natural resources 
management.  CS Ref. no. 187. 
159. The Ministry of Trade and Industry of Ghana  presented the country's national medium-term 
Private Sector Development Strategy (PSDS) that aimed at creating a policy framework to stimulate 
private sector-led growth.  The strategy received the support of the United Kingdom's DFID, the World Bank and Denmark through DANIDA that agreed to establish a single pooled fund managed by the Ghanaian Government.  The process described  how the mainstreaming of Aid for Trade into 
the country's growth agenda made monitoring and coordination less burdensome.  This allowed for 
the policies and reforms undertaken under the PSDS to record marked achievements in creating 
opportunities for the private sector to contribute to  policy and legislative processes.  This led the 
Government to design a successor programme, PSDS-II,  to build on these achievements and correct 
some of the shortcomings of PSDS-I.  CS Ref. no. 65. 
160. The Global Mechanism of the UNCCD  addressed the issue of sustainable land management 
in Mali in a case story that stresses the importance of cross-sectoral coordination to achieve 
development objectives.  The case story describes th e process of harmonization between the priorities 
identified in the Action Matrix of the DTIS and the national priorities contained in Mali's strategy for 
growth and poverty reduction framework for investme nt to address growing concerns of sustainable 
land management.  The main purpose is to harmonize policies and fundi ng in those sectors that have 
an impact on sustainable land management and foster sustainable agricultural production.  This 
harmonization process would help identify develo pment needs and coordi nated channelling of 
Aid-for-Trade funds.  In this effort, the Enhanced Integrated Framework (EIF) can play an important 
role in supporting the process and sensitizing do nors on the importance of creating links across 
sectors.  CS Ref. no. 80. 
161. Guinea  presented the outcomes of a project for trade capacity building funded by France.  
The first phase of the project was able to incr ease the production of potatoes from 6,000 tonnes before 
the implementation of the project to 18,000 tonnes in 2010, thanks to the improvement of production techniques.  More than 60 per cent of production is now exported to countries in the sub-region, a fact 
that has called for further support to develop the transport infrastructure both nationally and regionally.  The implementation of the second phase of the project will continue to build trade 
capacity in Guinea, but it will also focus on building Guinean capacity to engage in trade negotiations 
and implement effective trade policies.  CS Ref. no. 27. 
162. The Ministry of Trade and Industry of Niger  submitted a case story analysing the 
effectiveness of Aid-for-Trade projects in promo ting trade integration of LDCs.  The case story 
analyses a number of projects implemented in Niger since 2001 in the areas of export promotion, trade capacity building and gender empowerment.  The country's participation in the Enhanced 
Integrated Framework (EIF) is also addressed.  Th e case story concludes by noting that despite the 
numerous initiatives carried out in Niger, the exp ected results have not always been achieved.  
CS Ref. no. 83. 
163. The Ministry of Commerce and Industry of Nigeria  illustrated the main components of the 
national Trade Facilitation Action Plan 2010-2013.  The case story analyses the setting up of the programme and the establishment of a Trade Fac ilitation Task Force composed of ministries, 
departments, agencies and private sector organizati ons, which interacts with development partners.  
This has allowed Nigeria to secure donors' tr ust and promote better understanding of national 
priorities.  CS Ref. no. 7.  WT/COMTD/AFT/W/26 
 Page 37 
 
 
  164. The Ministry of Trade of Senegal  submitted a case story on the implementation of the project 
funded by France to support the competitiveness and th e sustainability of the agricultural sector.  The 
activities included:  the launch of the Senegalese ag ency for export promotion; the improvement of 
the quality of the Senegalese agro-industry and comp liance to international standards; financial 
support for enterprise participation to numerous trade fairs and market access missions; and 
institutional support in trade negotiations.  With  an export increase of 79 per cent between 2005 and 
2009 and the installation of 85 new companies devoted  to horticulture, the project is considered a 
positive example of Aid for Trade.  CS Ref. no. 87. 
165. Support to the agricultural sector is the subject of a case story by the Ministry of Trade and 
Industry of Sierra Leone  on the European Union-funded project Support to Cash Crop 
(Cocoa/Coffee) Production in the District of Kenema, Kailahun and Kono, in support of the 
Sierra Leone Agenda for Cha nge 2008-2012.  The case story addresses the process adopted for the 
development of a strategic plan to build the country's productive capacity and the successful use of Aid-for-Trade resources to achieve important de velopment objectives and enhance competitiveness.  
The ongoing project has already brought improvements in the quality of produce through better 
processing.  The case story also notes that improved tree crops management, agro-forestry practices 
for out-planting and organizational development of  the cooperatives require a longer time-frame to 
show sustainable impact.  CS Ref. no. 88. 
166. The Swiss State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (SECO) supported the development of 
the competitiveness of the cotton sector in C-4 count ries (Benin, Burkina Faso , Chad and Mali).  The 
case story illustrates the comprehensive sector ap proach undertaken by SECO, which consists of 
supporting a trade policy initiative, the Cotton In itiative, and a programme targeted to cotton 
producers' productive capacity and their participation in niche markets for organic and fairtrade cotton.  The integrated implementation of the two processes seeks to promote the empowerment of 
cotton producing countries in international negotia ting fora and of cotton producers throughout the 
whole value chain.  Since the start of the Organic Cotton Program, production of cotton has increased 
above the programme's initial target. For Switzerland, in only a few years organic cotton reached 
5 per cent market share.
36  CS Ref. no. 37. 
167. The Commission of the West African Economic and Monetary Union (WAEMU) 
submitted two case stories.  The first one illustrate d a case story on a European Union-funded trade 
capacity-building project, Hub and Spokes aimed at strengthening WAEMU member states' capacity in trade policy formulation, negotiations and implem entation.  As a result of the project, the WAEMU 
Commission has established a Regional Advisory  Committee for Trade Negotiations which has 
formalized policy issues and trade negotiations at  the regional and national levels.  Further 
involvement of the private sector is needed.  The WAEMU Commission has included funding in its 2011 budget to allow for the continuation and furthe r development of the project.  CS Ref. no. 33. 
168. The second case story by the Commission of the West African Economic and Monetary 
Union (WAEMU) addresses its adoption of a regional strategy for the implementation of an 
Aid-for-Trade programme with the objective of promoting trade and regional integration between its 
member states.  The case story gives an overview of  the policies implemented to facilitate regional 
and international trade relations.  A first evalua tion in 2006 of the common trade policy of WAEMU 
showed an increase of both intra-re gional and extra-regional trade for the Union, with intra-regional 
exports growing faster than extra-regional ones.  For example, between 1996 and 2004, the average 
intra-regional export growth reached 4.80 per cen t against an average 2.42 per cent growth for 
international exports. The case story also gives an  outline of the capacity-building programmes 
implemented at national level in the countries of the region.  CS Ref. no. 266. 
                                                      
36 Repeated in sections about Africa-wide and Cent ral Africa.  This case story has been counted as 
Africa-wide for the purpose of Chart 8. WT/COMTD/AFT/W/26 
Page 38  
 
  169. The World Bank  submitted a case story on the revitalization of Ghana's Free Zone.  The case 
story illustrates the World Bank's support to the Gh ana Free Zone Board to modify and improve the 
original free-zone programme through the developm ent of a cluster-based approach.  The zone has 
proven effective in attracting FDI, creating em ployment and facilitating competitiveness and it now 
accounts for almost 45 per cent of Ghana's exports.  The World Bank assessed that, from June 2008 to 
June 2009, the free-zone companies in the Tema zone accounted for 2,085 jobs and US$281 million 
in exports.  CS Ref. no. 128. 
170. The Overseas Development Institute (ODI) addressed the way that donors respond to trade 
priorities identified at national and regional levels and how their activities are monitored and evaluated.  The case story relates to the provision of Aid for Trade linked to the negotiation of the 
EPAs in Western Africa and the short- to long-term tr ade-adjustment needs of th e region.  It analyses 
the total Aid-for-Trade commitments allocated for trade-related adjustments and it identifies 
limitations to how Aid-for-Trade commitments and disbursements are allocated and monitored.
37  
CS Ref. no. 147. 
F. NORTH AFRICA AND MIDDLE EAST  
171. In total, 14 case stories were submitted about the Middle East (8) and North Africa (6).  Most 
case stories were submitted by UNESCWA (7).  Moro cco was the subject of three of the case stories 
submitted. 
Chart 17:  Case Stories about North Africa and the Middle East by Country  
 
7
3
1111
012345678
North Africa
and the
Middle EastMorocco Sudan Egypt Tunisia Jordan 
 
 
 
                                                      
37 Repeated from the section on  case stories about research.  WT/COMTD/AFT/W/26 
 Page 39 
 
 
  Chart 18:  Case Stories about North Africa and the Middle East by Category of Respondent  
 
57
11
012345678
Donor Regional
organizationsPartner Country Other 
 
G. NORTH AFRICA38 
172. Spain  submitted a case story on a project to support Technical Industrial Centres of the 
industrial complex of Sidi Maarouf in Morocco.  The project included two stages.  The first stage offered support to the competitiveness of small- and medium-sized enterp rises (SMEs) through the 
diffusion of standardization measures, quality certific ation of laboratories and the development of new 
business services.  The second stage was requested by the Moroccan Ministry to strengthen centres in 
other sectors which had not been included in the pr evious phase.  The envisaged activities for this 
second stage include training courses, advice, technical assistance, equipment and sectorial partnership meetings.  CS Ref. no. 179. 
173. The Government of Sudan  presented a case story on the European Union-funded Sudan EPA 
Negotiation and Implementation Support (SENIS) fo r the development of Sudan's trade negotiating 
capacity.  The case story discusses the implementa tion issues, the successes achieved and the 
elements that would ensure a sustainable impact.  Although there was inconsistency between the EPA 
negotiations and the provision of technical assistance , it was concluded that the project's effectiveness 
could be measured in the context of a wider cap acity-building process.  Its sustainability would 
depend on the willingness of the Government and Mi nistry to make use of the tools and skills 
developed.  CS Ref. no. 93. 
174. The United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) submitted a case 
story on the establishment of export consortia in Moro cco as an example of the impact that small- and 
medium-sized enterprise (SME) networks can  have on enhancing SMEs' competitiveness in 
developing countries.  The case story illustrates how in the case of Morocco, a solid private-public 
partnership was crucial in ensuring that export consortia deliver their promise for market access.  The 
strong commitment shown by the public and private players in Morocco will ensure the project's 
sustainability after UNIDO's completion of the project.  CS Ref. no. 105. 
175. A second case story by the United Nations Industrial Development Organization 
(UNIDO) addressed the development of traceability sy stems of agro-industrial products in Egypt for 
the European market.  The case st ory analyses the assistance provided to farmers, food producers and 
                                                      
38  North Africa:  Algeria, Egypt, Libya, Morocco, Sudan and Tunisia. WT/COMTD/AFT/W/26 
Page 40  
 
  packing houses under the Traceability of Agro-Industri al Products for the European Market project, 
supported by UNIDO, the Egyptian Ministry of Trad e and Industry and the Italian Cooperation.  The 
four-year project trained over 1,500 people for the implementation of traceability schemes to conform 
to international food quality and safety sta ndards.  The Egyptian Traceability Centre for 
Agro-Industrial Exports (ETRACE) was also est ablished as a centre of excellence on traceability, 
supply chain management and supplier developmen t.  The Centre had a positive impact on the 
development of the agro-industrial sector and cont inues to attract FDI and foreign funds for the 
expansion of its activities.  CS Ref. no. 159. 
176. The World Bank  presented a case story on the implementation of an export development 
project in Tunisia.  The case story describes the main components of the project which aims at 
removing important obstacles to Tunisia's export cap acity.  The three main components are an export 
market fund to help Tunisian firms increase their competitiveness, an export finance guarantee facility 
to encourage financial institutions to provide pre-sh ipment financing and an e ffort to improve customs 
efficiency.  The implementation of these components has already generated significant export increases by more than US$400 million from 2005 to 2009 and by US$319 million as at the end of 
May 2010.  Additionally, the project has recorded reduced time for cross-border procedures bringing 
the average stay for cargo down by two-thirds – from about 10.1 days in 2003-2004 to 3.3 days in April 2010.  Further efforts will be directed to st rengthening Tunisia's National Institute of standards 
and intellectual property and automation of customs procedures.  CS Ref. no. 130. 
177. Professor Ghoufrane, WTO Academic Chair  at the Mohammed V-Soussi University in 
Rabat submitted a case story on Morocco's nationa l programme for the development of transport 
infrastructure in rural areas.  The case story examines the mobilization of resources from the African 
Development Bank (AfDB), Agence Française de Développement (AFD), the Arab Fund for 
Economic and Social Development, the European Investment Bank, Japan Bank for International 
Cooperation, the World Bank and the Kuwait Fund for Arab Economic Development to support the 
realization of rural roads.  Despite some problems due to unforeseen costs and institutional 
coordination, works have proceeded smoothly, allowi ng the project to benefit a larger share of the 
local population than initially forecast.  CS Ref. no. 82. 
H. MIDDLE EAST39 
178. The United Nations Economic and Soci al Commission for Western Asia (UNESCWA) 
submitted a case story on a project to strengthen the capacities of ESCWA Members to negotiate 
bilateral investment treaties (BITs).40  The case story looks at the current situation and how the ability 
to negotiate more favourable BITs can br ing economic growth.  CS Ref. no. 234. 
179. A case story by the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia 
(UNESCWA) discusses a project to develop experti se on foreign direct investment (FDI) for ESCWA 
Member countries.  The case story describes the activities aimed at establishing a database for FDI 
statistics in ESCWA countries through the developm ent of specific software.  This activity was 
complemented by training events to enhance the capacity of government agencies to compile, 
disseminate and analyse the data.  CS Ref. no. 235. 
180. A case story by the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia 
(UNESCWA) concerns the United Nations Developm ent Account's project for improving global road 
safety.  The project was implemented at regiona l level through the UN regional commissions.  The 
                                                      
39 Middle East:  Bahrain, Iran, Iraq, Israel, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Mauritania, Palestine, Oman, 
Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Syria, Un ited Arab Emirates, and Yemen. 
40 ESCWA members are Bahrain, Egyp t, Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Oman, Palestine, Qatar, Saudi 
Arabia, Sudan, Syrian Arab Republic, United Arab Emirates, and Yemen.  WT/COMTD/AFT/W/26 
 Page 41 
 
 
  case story shows how the support provided by UNESCWA to its members represented a positive 
incentive for considering road safety policies a nd disseminating good practices.  CS Ref. no. 236. 
181. A case story submitted by the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for 
Western Asia (UNESCWA) reports on various meeti ng held by UNESCWA on trade and WTO 
issues.  The first is a report on the 6th session of the technical committee on liberalization of foreign 
trade, economic globalization and financing for de velopment in the countries of the ESCWA region. 
The report includes recommendations issued by the Committee referring in particular to the efforts 
directed to trade liberalization and financing for de velopment, and data exchange on trade legislation 
of the countries in the region.  CS Ref. no. 237. 
182. The United Nations Economic and So cial Commission for Western Asia (UNESCWA) 
also submitted the reports of the 10th and 11th session of the Committee on transport as case stories.  
The discussions focused on the harmonization of in stitutional frameworks and legislation in the 
transport sector.  CS Ref. no. 238. 
183. The United Nations Economic and Soci al Commission for Western Asia (UNESCWA) 
also presented the report of the expert group meeti ng on transport and trade facilitation in the ESCWA 
region.  Recommendations include d on the development and activa tion of the role of national 
committees for transport and trade facilitation,  and other recommendations related to the 
implementation of the Integrated Transport System in the Arab Mashreq.  CS Ref. no. 241. 
184. Finally, the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia 
(UNESCWA) submitted the report on the preparation of the member countries for the 7th Ministerial 
Conference of the WTO.  CS Ref. no. 242. 
185. The World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) submitted a case story on Jordan's 
new IP system .  The case story describes how the strengthening of the IP system has stimulated 
investments and innovation in Jordan's pharma ceutical industry, which took advantage of the 
country's increased level of IP protection.   CS Ref. no. 173. 
VI. ASIA AND THE PACIFIC 
186. In total, 57 case stories were submitted about Aid for Trade in the Asia-Pacific region 
(21 per cent of all case stories received).  Most case stories were submitted about South-East Asia (19) followed by South Asia (10).   WT/COMTD/AFT/W/26 
Page 42  
 
  Chart 19:  Case Stories about Asia and the Pacific by Region  
 
9
31019
9
7
02468101214161820
Central and
West AsiaEast Asia South  Asia South  East
AsiaPacific Asia  and
Pacific wide 
 
187. Donors submitted most case stories about Asia a nd the Pacific (51 per cent).  Submissions of 
partner country case stories came mainly from the South-East Asia (4), South Asia (5) and the 
Pacific (5).  No submissions were made by regi onal organizations from Asia and the Pacific.  
Chart 20:  Case Stories about Asia and the Pacific by Category of Respondent  
 
29
17
56
05101520253035
Donor Partner  Country South ‐South Other
 
  WT/COMTD/AFT/W/26 
 Page 43 
 
 
  A. ASIA-PACIFIC WIDE CASE STORIES  
188. Australia  submitted a case story on the Australia Fumigation Accreditation Scheme which 
discussed the assistance provided to India, Indon esia, Malaysia, Papua New Guinea, the Philippines 
and Thailand in addressing quarantine risks at source.   Viet Nam and China are in the final stages of 
implementation of the project and implementation is  pending in Sri Lanka, Peru and New Zealand.  
The project led to a significant reduction in failed fumigations and facilitated cost reduction through 
increased surety of border clearance.  It estimates th at US$4.6 million has been saved in re-treatment 
costs.  CS Ref. no. 151. 
189. Singapore 's three submissions focused on training an d capacity-building activities to increase 
developing countries' participation in the multilatera l trading system.  The first submission describes 
the activities of the International  Monetary Fund-Singapore Regional Training  Institute which is a 
joint venture that provides training to official s in the region on macroeconomic and financial 
management and related legal and sta tistical issues.  It aims to build the capacity of policy makers in 
developing countries and since its establishmen t in 1998 has conducted over 200 courses for more 
than 8000 officials from the Asia-Pacific region.  CS Ref. no. 261. 
190. Singapore 's second case story describes its Regional Trade Policy Courses, carried out in 
collaboration with the WTO.  The courses aim to equip developing countries with the skills to 
participate effectively in the multilateral trading sy stem.  They have provided training to more than 
100 participants from over 25 countries and led to the creation of a network of officials with skills and 
knowledge on WTO-related matters.  CS Ref. no. 262. 
191. The Singapore Cooperation Programme (SCP) is the subject of the third case story by 
Singapore .  The programme uses Singapore's experiences in trade and investment programmes to 
support human resource capacity building in other developing countries.  The SCP has trained more than 70,000 government officials from 169 developi ng countries in the Asia-Pacific, Africa, the 
Middle East, Eastern Europe, Western Europe, and Latin America and the Caribbean.
41  
CS Ref. no. 263. 
192. The Asian Development Bank's  (AsDB) Private Sector Operations Department submitted a 
case story on the AsDB's Trade Finance Programme (TFP).  The TFP operates in 14 countries with 
200 participating banks and addresses the lack of access to trade finance of developing countries.  It 
provides loans and guarantees to commercial bank pa rtners to support trade by providing reliable 
access to trade finance, provision of liquidity and reducing risks to importers and exporters.  From 
January 2008 to October 2010, the TFP supporte d US$4.3 billion in trade and 1,517 separate 
transactions.  In 2010, the TFP supported US$2.8 bill ion in trade and 783 transactions, of which 270 
were by small and medium-sized enterprise (SME s). Of these transactions, 440 support intra-regional 
trade and 386 support trade between developing count ries members.  Approximately 50 per cent of 
the TFP's portfolio supports intra-regional trade.  CS Ref. no. 8. 
193. The second region-wide case story by the Asian Development Bank  (AsDB) addresses the 
AsDB's Technical  Assistance to Build Trade Policy Capac ity. Its objective is to strengthen the 
technical and analytical skills of officials from Asia -Pacific developing countries to design, negotiate 
and implement effective trade agreements.  Training  consists of four com ponents:  information and 
transparency; capacity building; research; and advocacy.  Although over 600 officials have been trained, the case story recognises the challenge in measuring the actual impact of the technical-assistance interventions given that the quan tification and attribution of the direct impact of 
training courses on performance of trade officials is difficult to monitor and measure.  CS Ref. no. 11. 
                                                      
41 Repeated in the sectio n on global programmes. WT/COMTD/AFT/W/26 
Page 44  
 
  194. The United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) submitted a case 
story on its project in Sri Lanka and Pakistan on How Laboratory Business and Exports can grow 
Hand in Hand – Easing trade through trusted local  Conformity Assessment.  The Norway-funded 
project seeks to support testing laboratories attain international accreditation.  The accreditation of the 
laboratories in Sri Lanka and Pakistan led to an  increase in testing services, higher revenues for the 
laboratories and higher number of potential exporters  through reducing costs and time for testing.  In 
Sri Lanka, between 2002 and 2008, there was a 79 per cent increase in customers using the 
laboratories with 325 new customers satisfying global  requirements.  The quantity of exports to the 
European Union increased from 13,532 metric tonnes in  2002 to 20,594 metric tonnes in 2008.  In 
Pakistan, the services provided to exporters incr eased by 185 per cent from 2002 to 2008 and fishery 
exports to the European Union increased from 84,693 metric tonnes in 2002 to  135,000 metric tonnes 
in 2008.
42  CS Ref. no. 115. 
B. CENTRAL AND WEST ASIA43 
195. A total of nine case stories were submitted about  Central and West Asia.  Two-thirds of the 
case story submissions were made by donors.  Among partner countries, Az erbaijan, Kazakhstan and 
Pakistan replied.  
Chart 21:  Case Stories about Central And West Asia by Country  
 
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Central and West
AsiaAzerbaijan Kazakhstan Pakistan 
 
 
 
                                                      
42 Repeated in sections about Central and West Asia and South Asia.  This case story is counted as 
Asia-Pacific wide only for the purpose of Chart 19. 
43 Central and West Asia:  Afghani stan, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgi a, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyz Republic, 
Pakistan, Tajikistan, Turk menistan, and Uzbekistan. 
  WT/COMTD/AFT/W/26 
 Page 45 
 
 
  Chart 22:  Case Stories about Central And West Asia by Category of Respondent  
 
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Donor Partner  Country 
 
196. The Asian Development Bank  (AsDB) submitted a case story on the "Almaty-Bishkek 
Regional Road Rehabilitation Project" in Kyrgyz Re public and Kazakhstan.  The project aims to 
improve the efficiency of the Almaty-Bishkek Road through structural rehabilitation, improvement of 
customs facilities and technical assistance to implem ent the Cross Border Agreement.  The project 
contributed to improved physical connectivity, whic h is vital to trade-led growth in the region, 
through forging a key transport link between the two commercial centres.  The project resulted in 
increased exports of 38 per cent annually from 2002- 2007, increased traffic volumes of 25 per cent 
and an increase in exports from Kyrgyz Republic to Kazakhstan by 165 per cen t.  CS Ref. no. 10. 
197. Azerbaijan 's case story addressed the need to increase awareness of exporters on the 
opportunities available to them under the European Union Generalized System of Preferences (GSP) scheme.  Through training activities and workshops, the project led to 2,154 certificates of origin 
being issued on goods exported within the first quart er of 2010, including 233 for products included in 
European Union's GSP scheme.  CS Ref. no. 12. 
198. The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) submitted a case story 
on the "EBRD Business Advisory Services Programme " which provides technical assistance to help 
micro and small- and medium-sized enterprises (M SMEs) build knowledge and capacity in the areas 
of market performance and branding, management effectiveness, cost reduction, quality management 
and environmental management.  Since 2008, 20 pe r cent of the 995 companies benefiting from the 
programme reported improvement in  exports.  CS Ref. no. 38. 
199. The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development  (EBRD) presented the results of 
the survey of the banks participating in the E BRD Trade Facilitation Programme (TFP).  The TFP 
provides credit facilities to banks in partner countri es to facilitate access to finance for import/export, 
especially for small and medium-sized enterprises (SME s).  The results of the survey showed that the 
TFP had been an effective facilitator of trade in th e region with its main im pact being felt through 
technical assistance and training of staff of pa rtner banks, enabling part ner banks to develop 
specialized trade finance progra mmes and allowing them to levera ge additional funds on the EBRD 
investment.  By 2008, the TFP was active in 18 countries, an increase from six countries in 1999; the number of participating banks increased from ten to 56; confirming banks increased from 18 to 119 
and business volume increased from €51 million to €900 million.  CS Ref. no. 39. 
200. Germany  submitted a case story on three -party South-South coope ration which illustrated 
how expertise from Senegal had been used to im plement a single window system in Central Asian WT/COMTD/AFT/W/26 
Page 46  
 
  countries.  This system led to a reduction in the number of forms for export in some countries by 
60 per cent, and between 2008 and 2011 the Kyrgyz Republic improved its rating in the World Bank's 
Doing Business by 25 places in the Foreign Trade category, becoming one of the top ten reforming 
countries.  The case story illustrates that for landlocked countries, improvements in trade logistics performance depends on parallel trade facilitation me asures in neighbouring countries.  Based on the 
success of the project, the Central Asian Regional Economic Cooperation (CAREC) is considering the 
concept of a regional network of single windows in Central Asia.  El Salva dor and Afghanistan have 
also expressed an interest in benefiting from the e xpertise gained in Senegal and in the Central Asian 
region.  CS Ref. no. 186. 
201. One of two case stories by the  Islamic Development Bank  (IsDB) dealt with the "Silk  Road 
Project"  in Azerbaijan which sought to provide a dir ect land transport service by rehabilitating and 
reconstructing the Silk Road section of the Tr ansport Corridor Europe-Caucasus-Asia Programme 
(TRACECA).  Improving the regional transportation infrastructure aimed to facilitating movement of 
people and goods.  CS Ref. no. 74. 
202. A second case story was submitted by the  Islamic Development Bank's (IsDB)  International 
Islamic Trade Finance Corporation (ITFC) and a ddressed the Aid-for-Trade Roadmap for the United 
Nations Special Programme for the Economies of Central Asia (SPECA).  The case story discusses 
support for the development of a regional Aid-for-T rade strategy for SPECA.  CS Ref. no. 192. 
203. The Republic of Kazakhstan  submitted a case story on the implementation of the 
Aid-for-Trade Initiative "Road Map for the SPECA countries".  The case story focused on how the 
development of an Aid-for-Trade roadmap could assist the regional integr ation initiatives of the 
countries through improving competitiveness and diversification.  CS Ref. no. 206. 
204. A case story received from Pakistan  described the design and implementation of the 
"Community Empowerment through Livestoc k Development and Credit Project" (CELDAC)  which 
focused on the value added of the Public-Private Pa rtnership model in the development of the dairy 
sector in Pakistan.  The project linked the privat e sector to a community development programme, 
ensuring integration of the local community in the dairy value chain.  This resulted in improved 
employment and income of rural women in the da iry sector and enhanced linkages to markets for 
farmers.  CS Ref. no. 158. 
205. The United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) submitted a case 
story on its project in Sri Lanka and Pakistan on How Laboratory Business and Exports can grow 
Hand in Hand – Easing trade through trusted local  Conformity Assessment.  The Norway-funded 
project seeks to support testing laboratories attain international accreditation.  The accreditation of the 
laboratories in Sri Lanka and Pakistan led to an  increase in testing services, higher revenues for the 
laboratories and higher number of potential exporters  through reducing costs and time for testing.  In 
Sri Lanka, between 2002 and 2008, there was a 79 per cent increase in customers using the 
laboratories with 325 new customers satisfying global  requirements.  The quantity of exports to the 
European Union increased from 13,532 metric tonnes in  2002 to 20,594 metric tonnes in 2008.  In 
Pakistan, the services provided to exporters incr eased by 185 per cent from 2002 to 2008 and fishery 
exports to the European Union increased from 84,693 metric tonnes in 2002 to  135,000 metric tonnes 
in 2008.44  CS Ref. no. 115. 
                                                      
44 Repeated in sections about Asia-Pacific and South Asia.  This case story is counted as Asia-Pacific 
wide only for the purpose of Chart 19.  WT/COMTD/AFT/W/26 
 Page 47 
 
 
  C. EAST ASIA45 
206. A total of three case stories were submitted about  East Asia, two of which were on Mongolia.   
Chart 23:  Case Stories about East Asia by Country  
 
12
0123
China Mongolia 
 
Chart 24:  Case Stories about East Asia by Category of Respondent 
 
12
0123
Donor Other 
 
207. The Asian Development Bank  (AsDB) submitted a case story on "Mongolia Customs 
Modernization Project" which sought to address out-dated data processing systems, inadequate 
customs procedures, and poor governance.  The focus was on increasing and facilitating trade flows, 
enhancing duty and tax revenue collection, lowering the inciden ce of corruption, reducing trade 
barriers, improving the investment environment, a nd providing an ICT platform.  The project resulted 
in an increase and upgrading of supply-side capacity in  hard and soft infrastructure, modernization of 
customs procedures and implementation of an ICT platform allowing 100 per cent online submissions 
                                                      
45 E a s t  A s i a :   C h i n a ;   H o n g  K o n g ,   C h i n a ;   J a p a n ;   K o r e a ;   K o r e a  D P R ;   M o n g o l i a ;   a n d  C h i n e s e  
Taipei. 
 WT/COMTD/AFT/W/26 
Page 48  
 
  for export and import clearance.  There was a dramatic decrease in import clearance time from 
3 hours 6 minutes to 23 minutes, in export clearance from 2 hours 20 minutes to 13 minutes and a reduction in administrative offices by 3 per cent.  CS Ref. no. 260. 
208. Trade facilitation was also the subject of a case story by the Chamber of Commerce and 
Industry of Mongolia  on How to Facilitate Trade Facilitation.  The case story profiled the efforts of 
the private sector to identify, promote and lobby for the development of more business-friendly trade 
facilitation procedures.  CS Ref. no. 6. 
209. The Shanghai Institute of Foreign Trade  presented a case story on China-Canada Small 
Farmers in Global Markets.  The project aimed to a ssist small farmers adapt to new market conditions 
and focuses on relieving infrastructure constraints,  supporting trade reforms and promoting exports 
and mobilizing the private sector.  By the end of 2007, 20,000 farmers were trained, there was better 
understanding and greater conformity with the WT O SPS Agreement, an increase in the development 
of local agricultural product supply chains, and increased farmers' income and promotion of 
exportation by first time exporting farmers.  CS Ref. no. 89. 
D. SOUTH ASIA46 
210. A total of ten case stories were submitted about South Asia, with half of the submissions 
coming from partner countries.  Bangladesh was res ponsible for three of the five partner country 
submissions.    
Chart 25:  Case Stories about South Asia by Country  
 
4
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111
012345
Bangladesh India Maldives Nepal Sri  Lanka 
 
 
                                                      
46 South Asia:  Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, and Sri Lanka. 
  WT/COMTD/AFT/W/26 
 Page 49 
 
 
  Chart 26:  Case Stories about South Asia by Category of Respondent  
 
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Partner Country Donor Other 
 
211. A case story submitted by  Bangladesh  discussed support offered through the Bangladesh 
Trade Support Programme (BTSP) to support the read ymade garment sector to transition the end of 
the Multi-Fibre Agreement.  The Programme, supporte d by the European Union, assisted Bangladesh 
pursue a trade and economic reform  agenda consistent with WTO agreements and to create an 
enabling economic environment.  Strengthening hum an resources and the institutional capacity of 
government agencies and private sector to introduce reforms and remove technical barriers to trade 
was a primary aim of the Programme.  The Progr amme delivered training and twinning programmes 
for 600 persons, the establishment of a Bangladesh Fo reign Trade Institute website, translation of 
laws into Bangla, completion of studies on vari ous issues including on bilateral FTAs and value 
chains, and the development of anti-dumping software.  CS Ref. no. 202. 
212. The need to diversify away from the readymad e garment sector was the subject of a further 
case story by Bangladesh .  The case story describes the implementation of the Quality Support 
Export Diversification Programme funded by the Eu ropean Union, which aimed to increase awareness 
of exporters, especially small and medium-siz ed enterprises (SMEs), on opportunities for 
diversification away from dependence on Readymade Garments.  It included increasing awareness on standards and conformity assessments for expor t markets in line with the WTO SPS and TBT 
Agreements, assistance with packing requirements, us e of the value chain approach to develop sector 
strategies for diversification and export market knowledge on the horticulture sector.  The programme 
resulted in training, the formation of a Packaging Working Group, the identification of five priority sectors, and development of sector strategy papers.  CS Ref. no. 208. 
213. Bangladesh  also submitted a case story on the proj ect to develop Bangladesh's readymade 
garment sector.  The project aimed to promote expor ts through product and market diversification, 
improve competitiveness and promote private-public pa rtnerships.  It sought  to develop knowledge 
and skill transfer, strengthen facilities for testing and quality control and create facilities for developing fabrics and fashion design.  CS Ref. no. 216. 
214. A case story from the  Maldives addressed assistance offered by the Integrated Framework 
(IF) to improve business support services by automati ng the system used by the Government to 
register business entities.  The aim of the project w as to reduce the transaction costs of doing business.  WT/COMTD/AFT/W/26 
Page 50  
 
  It was a component of the Government's aim to  provide 24/7 business support services by 2012.  
CS Ref. no. 240. 
215. Nepal's  case story on "EIF and Trade Mainst reaming in Nepal" focused on how trade 
mainstreaming had led to increased national coordina tion, including with the private sector and with 
external donors.  The role of the Enhanced In tegrated Framework (EIF) in supporting this 
mainstreaming was emphasized as was the importance of  inter- and intra-agency cooperation.  Better 
mainstreaming led to greater ownership, the prioritization of areas for export focus and the identification of potential export markets.  CS Ref. no. 269. 
216. Sweden  submitted a case story on Quality Infrastructure Development in Sri Lanka, a project 
aimed at aligning the regulatory and quality infrastructure in Sri Lanka with WTO and 
European Union requirements.  Thanks to clo se collaboration with the Swedish International 
Development Cooperation Agency (Sida), the Sr i Lanka Accreditation Board for Conformity 
Assessment (SLAB) gained inte rnational recognition for its accr editation schemes, and accreditation 
processes of a number of local laboratories were improved.  This assisted the Government in reviewing its National Quality Policy.  CS Ref. no. 91. 
217. The United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), submitted a case 
story on the project "Strategies and Preparedness fo r Trade and Globalization in India".  This joint 
UNCTAD and United Kingdom's DFID  project sought to enhance the understanding and participation 
of negotiators in bilateral and multilateral trade negotiations, includi ng supporting submissions to the 
WTO Doha Development Agenda negotiations.  It also sought to strengthen stakeholders' 
understanding of trade and globalization through supporting institutional dialogue and stakeholder 
inputs to trade policy.  The project helped to build productive capacity and increase competitiveness 
in the areas of intellectual property, agriculture, services, fisheries and manufacturing.  Outcomes and 
impacts included increased intellectual property registration, market knowledge and training.  
CS Ref. no. 53. 
218. A further case story by the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development 
(UNCTAD) examined the Gender Sensitisation of Trad e Policy in India, one part of the larger the 
project "Strategies and Preparedness for Trade and Globalization in India" (CS Ref. no.53).  The project sought to promote gender sensitive trade policy by identifying gender sensitive 
export-oriented sectors, and estimating the impact of trade on gender.  CS Ref. no. 56. 
219. The United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) submitted a case 
story on its project in Sri Lanka and Pakistan on How Laboratory Business and Exports can grow 
Hand in Hand – Easing trade through trusted local  Conformity Assessment.  The Norway-funded 
project seeks to support testing laboratories attain international accreditation.  The accreditation of the 
laboratories in Sri Lanka and Pakistan led to an  increase in testing services, higher revenues for the 
laboratories and higher number of potential exporters  through reducing costs and time for testing.  In 
Sri Lanka, between 2002 and 2008, there was a 79 per cent increase in customers using the 
laboratories with 325 new customers satisfying global  requirements.  The quantity of exports to the 
European Union increased from 13,532 metric tonnes in  2002 to 20,594 metric tonnes in 2008.  In 
Pakistan, the services provided to exporters incr eased by 185 per cent from 2002 to 2008 and fishery 
exports to the European Union increased from 84,693 metric tonnes in 2002 to  135,000 metric tonnes 
in 2008.47  CS Ref. no. 115. 
220. The gender dimension of Aid for Trade was also addressed by the TeleConsult Group .  The 
case story analysed the gender dimension of Aid for Trade on women's economic empowerment 
                                                      
47 Repeated in sections about Asia-Pacific wide and Central and West Asia.  This case story is counted 
as Asia-wide only for the purpose of Chart 19.  WT/COMTD/AFT/W/26 
 Page 51 
 
 
  through technology, capacity building and access to information through the story of village phone 
women in Bangladesh.  The case story illustrate d the impact which the provision of mobile 
technology had on increasing market connectivity a nd income for the 20,000 women associated with 
the programme.   CS Ref. no. 64. 
221. Consultant, Ms Benita Sharma,  submitted a case story on Special Export Zones and its 
Impact on Women Workers in the Garment Manufactu ring Industry in Andhra Pradesh, India.  The 
case story focused on the need to mainstream gende r in policies establishing special export zones.  
The development of gender indicators to measure ga ps and achievements is seen as important in 
ensuring that trade policies are more gender sensitive.  CS Ref. no. 58. 
E. SOUTH -EAST ASIA48 
222. A total of 19 case stories were submitted about  South-East Asia.  Most submissions were 
made by donors or South-South partners (68 per cent).  Indonesia submitted three of the four case 
stories received from partner countries - and was the subject of two other case stories.   
Chart 27:  Case Stories about South-East Asia by Country or Region49 
 
5
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33
0123456
Cambodia Viet  Nam Indonesia Lao  PDR South ‐East Asia 
 
                                                      
48 South-East Asia:  Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia, Indonesia, Lao PDR, Malaysia, Myanmar, 
Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Viet Nam. 
49 Totals in Chart 3 and Chart 27 differ.  Figures in Chart 27 refer to where a country is the main 
subject of a case story.  Figures in Chart 3 refer to coun try citations in the case stories.  Hence, while Viet Nam 
was the direct subject of four case stories, it is cited in an additional four case stories. WT/COMTD/AFT/W/26 
Page 52  
 
  Chart 28:  Case Stories about South-East Asia by Category of Respondent  
 
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Donor Partner  country South ‐South Other 
 
223. The Asian Development Bank  (AsDB) submitted a case story on its Greater Mekong 
Subregion (GMS) East West Corridor Project in Viet  Nam, Lao PDR and Thailand.  The project aims 
to increase economic cooperation and facilitation of trade among the three countries by improving 
transport infrastructure in the East-West Corri dor and by lowering non-physical barriers to 
movements of goods and people.  This is a fl agship initiative of the GMS Economic Cooperation 
Programme that aims at promoting development th rough closer economic linkages.  Benefits from the 
road projects include increases in the average number of vehicles crossing, shorter travel time and 
growth in the average value of traded goods passi ng through the project roads.  CS Ref. no. 9. 
224. Australia (AUSAid)  submitted a case story on the development of the cocoa supply chain in 
Indonesia.  The Smallholder Agri-business Devel opment Initiative (SADI) aimed to address the high 
fragmentation of the supply chain, the lack of ac cess to crop storage facilities and the lack of price 
predictability in the cocoa sector.  The project f acilitated links between buyers and smallholder cocoa 
farmers through establishing buying centres.  This linking  of famers and buyers led to an increase in 
productivity and market information leading to a 6 per cent increase in cocoa production in one of the 
two districts the project focused on.  Indonesia expe rienced an 8 per cent average annual growth rate 
in volume of cocoa beans exported and reduced shell and waste during the time of the project.  It was, 
however, deemed difficult to attribute these results solely to the improved value chain linkages.  
CS Ref. no. 152. 
225. The Belgian Investment Company for Developing Countries  described the implementation 
of the expansion project of a private company in Viet Nam.  The Grand-Place chocolate company in Viet Nam received assistance to bu ild a new plant, diversify and e xpand its product ra nge for export, 
and implement quality standards.  The objective was to diversify production, integrate cocoa into the 
value chain, reduce importation of raw materials and increase exports.  It resulted in the marketing of 
the first Belgian chocolate manufactured entirel y in Viet Nam, increased exports, employment 
opportunities including for women, and a first example of  vertical integration of the cocoa sector in 
Viet Nam.  CS Ref. no. 217. 
226. China  submitted a case story on its assistance to Lao PDR in supporting the preparation of an 
Overall  Plan for Comprehensive Development of the Northern Area in  Laos.  The plan resulted in the 
production of seven development documents in the ar eas of:  industrial development;  agriculture and  WT/COMTD/AFT/W/26 
 Page 53 
 
 
  forestry;  industry and handcraft;  infrastructur e; and trade, investment and foreign economic 
cooperation.  These provided a basis for seeking inte rnational aid and attrac ting domestic and foreign 
investment.  CS Ref. no. 109. 
227. A case story by the  European Union  discusses the "Multilateral Tr ade Assistance Project III"  
in Viet Nam.  The project aimed to support Viet Nam's trade and economic integration strategy by 
strengthening the ability to implement WTO co mmitments, conduct negotiations, ensure fair 
competition and consumer protection in domestic  markets and improve facilitation in trade in 
services.  The project was deemed a success given its  strong alignment with Viet Nam's strategies and 
plans, strong ownership, built-in flexibility, broa d stakeholder participation including the private 
sector, increased FDI and the stability and predictabil ity of the legal and economic environment.  The 
project has been significant in supporting Viet Nam in its vision to fully integrate into the global 
trading and economic system.  CS Ref. no. 195. 
228. The German Development Cooperation  (GIZ) submitted a case story on value  chain 
promotion in the rattan furniture sub-sector in In donesia.  The case story showcased a component of 
the Local and Regional Economic Development (R ED) programme and its impact on the rattan 
furniture cluster.  Activities focused on overcoming existing bottlenecks and increasing 
competitiveness of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in an industry which was negatively impacted by the global economic crisis.  The pr ogramme registered positive outcomes, such as 
offering by companies of new and improved products , signing of private-public  partnerships and new 
services being established in the sector.  CS Ref. no. 185. 
229. Indonesia  submitted a case story on the Third  Country Training Programme on Artificial 
Insemination on Dairy Cattle, which was a South- South cooperation programme  offered by Indonesia 
to Cambodia, Lao PDR, Viet Nam, Philippines, Mala ysia, Thailand, Timor Lest e, Bangladesh, India, 
Sri Lanka, Mongolia, Fiji, Papua New Guinea, Kenya , Sudan, Zimbabwe, Afghanistan, Myanmar and 
Yemen in co-operation with Japan/JICA.  It aime d to improve skills in techniques of artificial 
insemination and management of cattle, assist in set ting up and improvement of artificial insemination 
programmes in developing countries;  update cu rrent knowledge, increase farmers' incomes and 
provide a knowledge-sharing forum.  By December 2010, 5,984 participants were trained.  The 
project contributed to enhancing the coherence be tween countries on these issues.  CS Ref. no. 70. 
230. Indonesia  also submitted a case story about the Indonesia Enterprise and Agricultural 
Development Activity (SENADA), which was a pr oject conducted by USAID to support greater 
competitiveness of Indonesian light manufacturing industries.  The overall objective was to 
reinvigorate Indonesia's business climate, attract i nvestment and generate economic and employment 
opportunities.  Although a number of positive results we re achieved, such as a 9.8 per cent increase in 
exports of home accessories and increase in number of formalized businesses created, there were 
concerns raised regarding the duration and limite d flexibility of the project.  CS Ref. no. 71. 
231. A further case story submitted by Indonesia  deals with the European Union-funded Trade  
Support Programme-1 which aimed to upgrade the technical aspects of the bilateral 
European Union-Indonesia import/export process and f acilitate greater integration into the multilateral 
trading system.  The project resulted in training in  WTO information, technical assistance in the area 
of standards and certification and assistance to im prove access to the Europ ean Union market for 
Indonesian companies dealing in fro zen fish and shrimp by improving the food safety controls. It led 
to reduced trade barriers, improved trade flows to the European Union and improved market access 
for fisheries exports to the European Union.  CS Ref. no. 72. 
232. Japan  submitted a case story on the development st udy on the Institutional Strengthening of 
Investment Promotion in Cambodia.  The project sought to formulate a master plan for the institutional strengthening of investment promoti on aimed at enhancing FDI, data collection and WT/COMTD/AFT/W/26 
Page 54  
 
  dissemination;  and the transfer of knowledge and sk ills in investment promotion.  The result was the 
preparation of a number of Action Plans and an increase in actual investments.   CS Ref. no. 78. 
233. Japan  also submitted a case story on the Truck  Movement without Transhipment along the 
East-West  Corridor.  The project focused on promoting cross-border transport to increase regional 
trade and improvement of the investment environm ent.  It supported greater regional integration 
through greater intra-regional transportation.  Ex perience of the East-West Corridor will also help 
Mozambique's in its Nacala Corridor initia tive linking it to Malawi and Zambia.  
Case  story (CS) Ref. no. 163. 
234. Korea  submitted a case story on "The Project fo r Capacity Building in Trade in Goods and 
Services for Cambodia".  Assistance provided incl uded joint research on key trade-related topics, 
training and capacity building and the provision of equipment.  CS Ref. no. 79. 
235. Lao PDR's  case story described the Trade Development Facility  and the National Integrated 
Framework Governance Structure which aim to a ssist in WTO accession and regional and global 
economic integration.  The Trade Development F acility was designed based on the main constraints 
identified in the Diagnostic Trade Integration Stu dy (DTIS) and Action Matrix and resulted in the 
establishment of an Aid for Trade Executive Committ ee to provide advice, coordination and approval 
for implementation of trade-related projects.  CS Ref. no. 155. 
236. The Swiss State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (SECO) presented a case story on the 
promotion of the use of Intellectual Property (IP) in  Viet Nam.  The case story examined how the 
provision of technical assistance to Viet Nam offered potential for further cooperation with Lao PDR, an LDC.  The triangular cooperation broadened the impact of the assistance and showcased the role of 
effective IP in enhancing the business climate and attracting investment.  In Viet Nam, the number of 
registered Geographical Indications increased and registered trademarks doubled to 100,000 between 
2001-2005.  The lessons from Viet Nam were shared with Lao PDR.  CS Ref. no. 96. 
237. The United States submitted a case story on how USAID supported Viet Nam's legal and 
governance transformation through the Support for Tr ade Acceleration Project (STAR).  The project 
was premised on helping Viet Nam to effectiv ely implement its US-Viet Nam Bilateral Trade 
Agreement and complete its accession process to the WTO.  It helped Viet Nam to transform to a 
market-driven, rules-based economy and undersco red the importance of trade agreements as 
instruments to transform a country's legal and go vernance system.  The project provided assistance to 
Viet Nam to revise or develop over 100 laws, increa sed the level of exports to the United States from 
US$1.1 billion in 2001 to US$8.6 billion in 2006, and increased the level of imports from the 
United States from US$460 million to US$1.1 billion.  CS Ref. no. 232. 
238. The World Bank  provided a case story on the Gove rnment-Private Sector Forum in 
Cambodia, which was established to provide a co mmunication channel between Cambodian business 
and government.  The programme focused on sectors in  which Cambodia had market potential and, as 
70 per cent of the owners in these sectors were women, the programme provided specific benefits to 
women entrepreneurs by helping them expand their businesses and increase exports.  CS Ref. no. 125. 
239.  The World Bank  submitted a case story about the Be tter Factories Programme in Cambodia, 
a partnership between the International Finance Cor poration and the International Labour Office.  The 
Better Factories Cambodia programme received subs tantial support from the international private 
sector through its linkages to international markets.  It successfully illustrated the compatibility of 
adhering to international labour standards while increasing the competitive advantage of the garment 
industry in Cambodia.  CS Ref. no. 126.  WT/COMTD/AFT/W/26 
 Page 55 
 
 
  240. The World Intellectual Property Organization  (WIPO) submitted a case story on the 
international success of Laotian Beer.  The case st ory profiled the role that the registering of 
trademarks, and its link with quality management , had on production capacity and sales of Laotian 
beer.  CS Ref. no. 172. 
241. The International Centre for Trade and Sustainable Development  (ICTSD) submitted a 
case story on the Cambodia Rice Export Policy.  The submission provided an overview of 
multi-donor assistance to the rice sector which aimed at supporting trade diversification.  Positive results have been achieved in terms of market ac cess opportunities, the export process, greater efforts 
to align national and regional deve lopment strategies and the furthe r integration of Cambodian rice 
into regional value chains.  The case story illus trated the importance of country ownership and 
leadership in identifying binding constraints, l eading on trilateral partnerships (donor, public and 
private sector) and harnessing regional integratio n through developing economies of scale in the 
supply value chain.  CS Ref. no. 139. 
F. PACIFIC50 
242. A total of nine case stories were submitted about the Pacific.  Tonga submitted three case 
stories and was the subject of another case st ory submitted by the Asian Development Bank.  
Submissions by Australia and New Zealand fo cused on region-wide training programmes.  
Chart 29:  Case Stories about the Pacific by Country  
 
4
2
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Fiji Pacific Samoa Solomon
IslandsTonga
 
 
                                                      
50 Pacific: Cook Islands, Fiji, Kiribati, Marshall Is lands, Nauru, Palau, Papua New Guinea, Samoa, 
Solomon Islands, Timor-Leste, Tonga, Tuvalu, and Vanuatu. 
 WT/COMTD/AFT/W/26 
Page 56  
 
  Chart 30:  Case Stories about the Pacific by Category of Respondent  
 
45
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Donor Partner  Country 
 
243. The Asian Development Bank (AsDB) presented its Fiji Ports Development Project as a case 
story.  This project focused on wharf improvement s and aimed to:  support trade, investment and 
private sector development;  enhance competitiveness ;  achieve a stable macroeconomic environment 
through the rehabilitation of ports; and sustain improvement in port productivity.  The life of the main 
wharf at Suva was extended and capacity increased by the physical improvements to King's Wharf.  
The improved load-bearing capacity allowed for more productive cargo-handling equipment and led 
to a more rapid turnaround of ships in port, re duced congestion, and lowered freight rates and 
shipping surcharges.  Productivity improved from 5.23 containers per vessel hour in 2008 to eight 
containers per hour.  However, rigorous measurement  of productivity gains was impeded by lack of 
baseline data for key performance indicators.   CS Ref. no. 29. 
244. Australia  submitted a case story on the Australia  Pacific Technical College (ATPC), a 
Pacific-wide project to increase the supply of sk illed Pacific workers to meet industry needs and 
provide employment opportunities in five industry s ectors:  automotive, manufacturing;  construction 
and electrical;  tourism and hospitality;  and commun ity services.  The Project contributed to regional 
integration, trade in services and labour mobility, an d has fulfilled a niche role by providing training 
not previously available in the region.  As of February 2011, 1,386 students were enrolled and 2,424 
had graduated.  The programme will exceed its target of 3,000 graduates by June 2011.  This is seen 
as a successful regional appro ach to education and training services.  CS Ref. no. 176. 
245. Fiji presented a case story on the establishment of  Fiji's Competent Authority for fishery 
exports.  The project, funded by the European Union in collaboration with the ACP, aimed to address 
the sanitary and quality issues for Fiji's fish and fish ery products after the im position of an export ban 
by the European Union.  The project covered th e inspection and control of seafood exports to the 
European Union and resulted in a positive eval uation of Fiji's readiness to be placed on the 
European Union approved list of fi sh exporters.  CS Ref. no. 196. 
246. Fiji also submitted a case story on its sugar indust ry and addressed the impact of the decision 
to suspend financial and technical assistance as a re sult of political developments in Fiji.  The case 
story elaborates on the negative impact on the industr y and livelihoods of this decision and addresses 
the impact of the required adjustment to the Europ ean Union's sugar regime.  It illustrates the actions 
taken by the Government to support the sugar i ndustry including provision of investment for cane 
development and technical support received fro m the private sector.  CS Ref. no. 243. 
247. Another case story from Fiji describes Fiji's Trade Policy Framework which was developed 
with assistance from the European Union under EDF-9.  The completion of the project is expected to  WT/COMTD/AFT/W/26 
 Page 57 
 
 
  provide a comprehensive policy and regulatory gui deline on Fiji's trade and economic development 
policy, aligned to the overall national strategy.  The project will help define Fiji's national trade policy 
in the goods and services sectors, support private sect or development and export–led growth, facilitate 
mainstreaming of international trade into national policy making, and facilitate  Fiji's participation in 
negotiations.  CS Ref. no. 244. 
248. New Zealand  submitted a case story on its Recognised Seasonal Employer (RSE) Worker 
Pilot Training Programme, "Vakameasina-Learning for Pacific Growth".  The project provides training for Pacific workers to develop English literacy, numeracy and financial literacy skills and 
aims to increase opportunities and choices for Pacifi c RSE workers.  The cas e story argues the view 
that labour mobility can contribute to achieving sustainable economic development and can be a 
potential catalyst for increased trade in goods and services.  CS Ref. no. 86. 
249. The Solomon Islands  submitted a case story on the AusAid-funded Cocoa Livelihood 
Rehabilitation Project (CLIP) which aims at incre asing productive capacity of cocoa through training, 
distributing cocoa equipment and tool s, and provision of logistical assistance to remote farms.  The 
project resulted in record figures of cocoa expor t volumes of 5,481 metric tonnes in 2010 - an increase 
over the 400 metric tonnes annual export volume average of 2003-2009.  However, the case story 
raises questions about the sustainability of these increases.  CS Ref. no. 90. 
250. Tonga 's case story compared two agricultural sect or technical assistance programmes in the 
area of standards, specifically on quarantine issues.  The two programmes, the Regional Management 
of Fruit Fly Programme (RMFFP) and the Euro pean Union-funded STABEX programme, supported 
Tonga's stronger agricultural earnings but with varyi ng levels of success.  The importance of aligning 
projects with national priorities and the need to address project-related implementation challenges are 
highlighted as key conclusions.  CS Ref. no. 99. 
251. A case story from the not-for-profit organization Women in Business Development 
Incorporated  (WIBDI) in Samoa examined how developi ng relationships between families in Samoa 
and international private sector or ganizations, through global private sector partnerships, can facilitate 
links to global markets for Samoan organic produce. Partnerships with Body Shop International led to 
an increase in exports of virgin coconut oil from 2 to nnes to 10 tonnes, leading to a premium price.  A 
partnership with C1 espresso in the development of a sustainable Pacific Coffee Industry assisted 
farmers in production and export of Fair Trade coffee beans.  CS Ref. no. 257. 
VII. CENTRAL AND EASTERN EUROPE51 
252. A total of three case stories were submitted a bout Central and Eastern Europe.  Two of the 
cases story submissions were made by donors. 
                                                      
51 Central and Eastern Europe: Albania, Belarus, Bosnia & Herzegovina, Croatia, Former Yugoslav 
Republic of Macedonia (FYROM), Mo ldova, Montenegro, Russian Federati on, Serbia, Turkey, and Ukraine. 
 WT/COMTD/AFT/W/26 
Page 58  
 
  Chart 31:  Case Stories about Central and Eastern Europe by Country  
 
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012
Croatia Macedonia,  Former
Yugoslav Rep ofMoldova 
 
Chart 32:  Case Stories about Central and Eastern Europe by Category of Respondent  
 
2
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Donor Partner  Country
 
 
253. Croatia  submitted a case story on the construc tion of the Rijeka-Zagreb Motorway 
connecting the Croatian capital, Zagr eb, with Rijeka, the largest Croa tian port, within the framework 
of a wider road network reconstruction in the c ountry.  The motorway is important for economic 
development as it links Central and Western Europe a nd will become part of the future Adriatic-Ionic 
Motorway.  CS Ref. no. 228. 
254. The Economic Chamber of Commerce and the Ministry of Industry and Trade of the 
Czech Republic  submitted a case story on the project "Concrete Instruments Supporting the SME 
Sector" in the Republic of Moldova. Professional assistance and training was provided by Czech 
experts to Moldovan partners on po licy formulation for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs).  
The project was well-received by  the Moldovan authorities who showed interest in establishing 
further contacts with Czech business entrepreneurs a nd experts to share their experience with cluster 
development.   CS Ref. no. 35. 
255. The World Customs Organization (WCO) submitted a case story on the implementation of 
WCO Single Window solution in the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia.  The case story illustrates how technical assistance in the area of da ta harmonization can be an important element of 
Aid-for-Trade delivery, by bringing the example of  implementation in the Former Yugoslav Republic 
of Macedonia.  The adoption of the Single Window system in the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia led to a general reduction in costs and time for cross-border procedures.  CS Ref. no. 189.  WT/COMTD/AFT/W/26 
 Page 59 
 
 
  VIII.  LATIN AMERICAN AND THE CARIBBEAN 
256. A total of 67 Aid-for-Trade case stories we re submitted about the Latin American and 
Caribbean region.  Most of the case stories submitted were from the Caribbean and Central America.  
Nearly 60 per cent of cases stories were submitted by  partner countries and regional organizations.   
Chart 33:  Latin American and Caribbean Case Stories by Sub-region 
 
28
17
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Caribbean Central  America South  America Latin  America and
Caribbean  wide
 
 
Chart 34:  Latin American and Caribbean  Case Stories by Category of Respondent 
 
30
13
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05101520253035
Partner
CountryDonor Regional
organizationsOther South ‐South 
 
A. LATIN AMERICAN AND CARIBBEAN -WIDE CASE STORIES  
257. The Inter-American Development Bank (IaDB) submitted a case story on its Trade Finance 
Reactivation Programme (TFRP), an initiative based on previous work undertaken by the European 
Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), to  ensure that credit lines remained open in the 
wake of the 2008 global economic crisis.  By th e end of 2010, the TFRP had approved more than 
US$1.2 billion in credit lines and had issued gua rantees worth more than US$800 million in support WT/COMTD/AFT/W/26 
Page 60  
 
  of more than 1,000 individual international trade tr ansactions totalling over US$1.1 billion.  The IaDB 
built up a network of 72 issuing banks in 19 Latin American and Caribbean (LAC) countries.  The 
programme has since been expanded to include 53 co untries with 240 banks belonging to 88 different 
banking groups.  About 10 per cent of the trade gua rantees issued by the TFRP support intra-regional 
trade.  IaDB intends to combine financing with tr aining, technical assistance and enhanced networks 
in the next steps of the project so as to increase capacity, expertise and access to new markets in the 
Latin American and Caribbean region.  CS Ref. no. 117. 
258. The Inter-American Development Bank (IaDB) submitted a case story on the Mesoamerica 
Project (MP) which aims to assist Belize, Colombia, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama and the Dominican Republic  with regional integration.  The MP aims to 
foster the development, financing and implem entation of regional infrastructure and social 
development projects.  It also aims to reduce tr ansport and trade costs by providing financial and 
knowledge resources as well as funding for infrastruct ure.  Since 2001, the IaDB has been the main 
source of funding for the region's further integrati on, allocating US$1.5 billion in investment loans for 
areas such as energy, transportation, natural disaster prevention and relief, environment, trade 
facilitation, telecommunication services and health.  The MP seeks to enhance the region's position in 
the global marketplace including making investments in road transport systems that by 2015 are to cut 
average freight travel time from eight down to 2.25 days.  Customs procedures are to be accelerated and harmonized and border-crossing times reduced fro m 60 to eight minutes.  Also targeted are 
improvements to the power grid structure as well as enhancing telecommunication services.
52  
CS Ref. no. 120. 
259. The Inter-American Development Bank (IaDB)  submitted a case story on activities to 
strengthen the capacity of Latin American and Caribbean (LAC) countries to better understand the 
issues related to rules of origin and integrate them in the design and implementation of trade policies.  
These activities focussed on human and institutiona l capacity building and resulted in training 
activities for negotiators, awareness raising, data co llection and computerization of the certification 
process with more than 11,000 digital certification of origins issued in Colombia alone.  The overall 
success of the programme will depend on the abili ty of maintaining a meaningful public-private 
partnership and the mobilization of resources to establish permanent training programmes for 
government officials and negotiators.  CS Ref. no. 213. 
260. The Organization of American States  (OAS) described the activities carried out under the 
CIDA-funded Trade Capacity Building Programme for the Implementation and Administration of 
Trade Agreements.  The programme is training 5 00 government officials in trade policy and is 
helping to strengthen institutions responsible fo r trade policy design and management in Latin 
American and Caribbean countries.  Officials from Canada, Chile, Costa Rica, Mexico and the 
United States have exchanged experiences and lessons learned and have realized the benefits of using 
horizontal cooperation in institutional capacity  building projects.  CS Ref. no. 168. 
261. Spain  submitted a case story on a distance le arning course and on a workshop on negotiations 
concerning international investment agreements fo r Latin American and Caribbean countries.  The 
case story describes the format and the objectives of the UNCTAD-implemented training programme and the results of an evaluation questionnaire completed by participants.  CS Ref. no. 203. 
262. The United States submitted a case story on the Dominican Republic-Central 
America-United States Free Trade Agreement (C AFTA-DR) Sanitary and Phytosanitary Trade 
Capacity Building programme funded by USAID and implemented by the US Department of 
Agriculture.  The programme provides technical assistance to the public and private sector in 
                                                      
52 Repeated in sections about Central America and th e Caribbean. This case story has been counted as 
Latin-America-Caribbean wide for the purpose of Chart 33.  WT/COMTD/AFT/W/26 
 Page 61 
 
 
  Guatemala, Honduras, El Salvador, Nicaragua, Co sta Rica and the Dominican Republic to expand 
agricultural trade through compliance with the Unit ed States and international standards.  The case 
story emphasizes the importance of trade capacity bu ilding to ensure an integrated SPS regulatory 
framework for the region and within the framework of th e CAFTA-DR.  The programme 
implementation has resulted in the training of 4,300 people both in the public and private sector, the 
involvement of over 1,000 firms, and has generate d export revenues to the value of US$100 million 
since 2006, with positive impacts on employment crea tion.  The adoption of harmonized regulations, 
together with the enhancement of testing faciliti es, certification procedures and institutional support 
has proved its effects in expanding trade from the region and creating a more level playing field.53  
CS Ref. no. 223. 
263. The Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture  (IICA) submitted a series of 
case stories addressing SPS and food safety issues.  The first case story discu sses the Initiative for the 
Americas on Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures. The aim of the project was to help officials learn 
more about SPS measures and to strengthen nationa l institutional frameworks responsible for SPS at 
the international level. More than 230 offici als from 32 participating countries attended SPS 
Committee meetings at the WTO in Geneva so that  they could participate in the negotiation and 
approval of international standards, directives and recommendations and more actively defend their 
interests. Funded by the US Department of Agricu lture, the project enabled national specialists to 
increase their technical capacities and improve inte r-institutional cooperation at the national level.  
One of the lessons learned was that for some count ries in the Caribbean region a regional approach 
and strategy to enhancing SPS-relate d institutions could help achieve more results.  CS Ref. no. 251. 
264. Another submission by the  Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture  
(IICA) focused on sustainable institutional capacity building in the countries of the Americas to 
consolidate active participation in the SPS Committe e and move forward with the implementation of 
the WTO/SPS Agreement.  Twenty-eight of the 34  IICA member countries participated in this 
project, which focused on preparing national age ndas for SPS measures and then implementing four 
regional sub-projects in the Andean, Caribbean, Central American and S outh American regions. 
Institutional priorities were identified which helped  provide a guide as to what kind of technical 
assistance should be provided at the national and/or regional level.  Main problems identified related 
to the development of institutional capabilities in the area of SPS and training on risk assessment of 
microbiological and chemical hazards in food.  The project resulted in numerous training activities at 
the national and regional level a nd in the production of operation ma nuals for national Codex and SPS 
committees.   CS Ref. no. 252. 
265. The Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture (IICA) also submitted a case 
story on strengthening the national agricultural h ealth and food safety (AHFS) services through the 
application of the IICA's Performance, Vision and St rategy (PVS) tool.  The case story reports on the 
development of the PVS tool with the cooperation of  the World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE) 
and the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) a nd its utilization in various Latin American and 
Caribbean countries.  It was seen that the use of th e PVS tool can be crucial in raising awareness of 
SPS measures.  CS Ref. no. 253. 
                                                      
53 Repeated in sections about Central America and th e Caribbean.  This case story has been counted as 
Latin-America-Caribbean wide for the purpose of Chart 33. WT/COMTD/AFT/W/26 
Page 62  
 
  B. 
CARIBBEAN54 
266. A total of 28 case stories were submitted about the Caribbean - 83 per cent being submitted 
by partner countries or regional organizations.  Among donors, only one case story submission was 
made by the European Union.  The Caribbean Comm unity made most submissions (4) followed by 
Jamaica and the Organization of American States, both of which submitted three case stories.  
Chart 35:  Caribbean Case Stories by Country or Region 
 
14
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Chart 36:  Caribbean Case Stories by Category of Respondent 
 
14
10
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0246810121416
Partner Country Regional
OrganizationsOther Donor 
 
267. The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Commerce of Antigua and Barbuda  submitted a case 
story on the European Union-fund ed Caribbean Rum Programme whic h aims at revitalizing the Rum 
                                                      
54 Caribbean: Anguilla, Antigua & Barbuda, Aruba, Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Cuba, Dominica, 
Dominican Republic, Grenada, Guadeloupe, Guyana, Ha iti, Jamaica, Martinique, Montserrat, Puerto Rico, 
St. Kitts and Nevis, St. Lucia, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Suriname, Trinidad and Tobago.  WT/COMTD/AFT/W/26 
 Page 63 
 
 
  industry in the Caribbean.  The case story focuses on the support given to Antigua Distillery Ltd., a 
manufacturing company in Antigua and Barbuda, wh ich was concerned by the challenges posed by 
the European Union/United Stat es agreement for the removal of duties on white spirits.  The 
programme was implemented by the West Indies  Rum & Spirits Producers' Association Inc. 
(WIRSPA).  Its support allowed Antigua Distillers Ltd. to undergo plant modernization, training, 
marketing and promotion, and to  launch its products in the Unite d Kingdom market and elsewhere.  
CS Ref. no. 200. 
268. Belize  presented a case story on developing an Aid-for-Trade strategy.  Several donors are 
involved in this ongoing project, including th e Inter-American Development Bank (IaDB), the 
United Kingdom's DFID, the Organization of  American States (OAS) and the CARICOM 
Aid-for-Trade Fund.  The strategy developed by  Belize focuses on using trade as a tool for global 
integration.  Meeting international SPS standard s is a major objective for Belize with the private 
sector, the media and civil society all actively taking part.  Some of the results achieved include stronger public-private-civil society relationships and more visibility for the country's Trade Ministry.  
Efforts are underway to monitor aid flows and to  better assess and measure the impact of Aid for 
Trade.  CS Ref. no. 177. 
269. The four case stories submitted by the Caribbean Community  (CARICOM) Secretariat 
touch on different trade-related issues.  The first case story describes the activities carried out under a 
joint European Development Fund and Commonw ealth Secretariat project on Trade Policy 
Formulation, Negotiation and Implementation (Hub and Spokes).  The aim of this Aid-for-Trade 
initiative was to promote the effective particip ation of ACP countries in international trade 
negotiations and to strengthen their capacity to fo rmulate, negotiate and implement trade policies, 
especially as they relate to WTO Agreements or the European Union's Economic Partnership 
Agreements.  The project has trained more than  2,800 officials in CARICOM and OECS states.  
Almost 50 per cent of those trained were women.  CS Ref. no. 22. 
270. The Caribbean Community  (CARICOM) Secretariat highlighted the 
European Union-funded Caribbean Rum Sector Pr ogramme which helped Caribbean rum exporters 
adapt to the new trading environment after the lif ting of quotas and the European Union-United States 
decision to open markets completely to trade in wh ite spirits.  A main focus of the programme was to 
help producers offer more higher-value, branded prod ucts by upgrading existing manufacturing plants 
as well as through better marketing and branding support activities.  The programme resulted in the 
introduction in the European Union market of 18 new brands from the region.  Locally, there was a 
140 per cent increase in the number of tourists  visiting rum production facilities since 2003.  
Furthermore, even though employment in the sect or remained stable at 6,000 jobs, the number of 
women employed in rum production rose 20 per cent from 2003 levels.  The programme also generated US$140 million in tax receipts fo r governments, a 40 per cent increase over 2003.   
CS Ref. no. 23. 
271. The Caribbean Community  (CARICOM) Secretariat submitted another case story on the 
establishment of the Caribbean Agricultural H ealth and Food Safety Agency (CAHFSA) and a 
regional SPS Regime.  Funded by the United States a nd the European Union, the programme aims to 
help countries strengthen and coordinate their agricult ural health and safety systems.  The main aim of 
the programme was to train officials to learn more about SPS standards thus creating increased 
opportunities for food shippers and distributors, food suppliers and companies catering to tourists in 
the hotel and tourism industry. CS Ref. no. 24. 
272. The Caribbean Community  (CARICOM) Secretariat described the functioning of the 
Regional Integration Trust Fund (CARTFund) in a case story.  The CARTFund is a mechanism for 
delivering Aid-for-Trade support to CARICOM a nd CARIFORUM. This ongoing project worth 
US$13 million is funded by the United Kingdom's DFID. Its aim is to help CARICOM's private WT/COMTD/AFT/W/26 
Page 64  
 
  sector benefit from the Economic Partnership Ag reement (EPA) which CARIFORUM signed with the 
European Union.  The Caribbean Aid-for-Trade Trust Fund has so far approved 18 projects (five regional and 13 national) which have  a direct relevance to improving trade opportunities and regional 
co-operation and integration.  The projects are be ing implemented by government agencies, regional 
institutions and private sector entities in Antigua an d Barbuda, Barbados, Belize, Dominica, Grenada, 
Guyana, Jamaica, and Trinidad and Tobago.   CS Ref. no. 25. 
273. Dominica  submitted a case story on the implementation of ASYCUDA World. Funded by the 
European Union and the World Bank, this custom s reform project focused on improving Dominica's 
trade facilitation and customs procedures and up dating the ASYCUDA clearance system as well as 
strengthening the country's Customs and Excise Division.   The aim of this project is to achieve faster 
clearance times for goods in customs, improved ser vices for traders, higher customs revenues for the 
Government and an improved administrative sy stem for managing risk.  CS Ref. no. 230. 
274. A case story submitted by the Dominican Republic  deals with the installation of a digital 
telecommunications system designed to allow more  mobile phone companies and consumers benefit 
from the country's telecommunications market.  With special technical assistance provided by 
USAID, and as a follow-up to its free trade agre ement with the United States (DR-CAFTA), the 
Dominican Republic faced the challenge of finding a company ready to invest large sums of money 
into a relatively small market.  It also had to p ass new legislation which would regulate providers of 
telecommunications services.  The law was designed to meet several objectives, including enhanced 
competition which would lower costs and increase th e value of services on offer.  The Government 
also sought to achieve higher efficiency of tel ecommunications as a core service and to facilitate the 
entry of new telecommunication operators and provide rs in the national market.  CS Ref. no. 231.   
275. The European Union  submitted a case story on the implementation of Phase II of the 
Caribbean Trade and Private Sector Development Programme (CTPSD) implemented by the Caribbean Export Development Agen cy.  The case story illustrates the importance of channelling 
trade-related support via regional organizations to make use of regional economies of scale and 
generate greater coherence for de velopment strategies.  With funding from the European Union, the 
Caribbean Export Development Agency provided tr aining and technical assistance for companies to 
increase their competitiveness, supported the creation of a CARIFORUM strategy for private sector trade and export development and designed direct assi stance grant schemes that led to grants to 197 
companies and business support organizations amoun ting to €2.6 million.  CS Ref. no. 207. 
276. Grenada 's case story submission focused on improvi ng the quality of fishery products for 
exports.  With this European Union-funded project , Grenada was helped to become more competitive 
in its fish exports and to adapt to international st andards for storing and transporting fish.  Assistance 
focused on establishing quality assurance agencies, testing laboratories, technical institutes and 
processing companies as well as providing help to sm all-scale exporters of fishery products.  The 
project encountered difficulties in the form of human capacity constraints and other external factors 
affecting fish availability.  Grenada, however, was able to overcome these difficulties through training 
in the use of the Hazard Analysis Critical Control Point (HACCP) food safety methods.  More than 275 fishermen, vendors, boat owners and market sta ff received training on this approach to ensure 
food safety compliance.  CS Ref. no. 67. 
277. Guyana  submitted a case story on the launch of its  National Competitiveness Strategy.  One 
of the main objectives of the strategy was to strengthen public-private dialogue on competitiveness 
and to help improve the business environment for pr ivate investment and export development.  The 
processing of imports and exports was identified as a major weakness by the private sector, especially as Guyana ranked 113
th out of 181 countries in the 2009 World Bank's Doing Business Index.  An 
action plan was developed which identified 83 points,  24 of which related to 'obtaining a licence'.  
Different sources of funding were provided from the Inter-American Development Bank (IaDB) and  WT/COMTD/AFT/W/26 
 Page 65 
 
 
  from the United Kingdom's DFID.  With DFID's assi stance, further bolstered by the Caribbean 
Development Bank, a Single Window Automate d Processing System for Trade Transactions was 
developed for exporters and importe rs.  This important project h as helped raise awareness amongst 
stakeholders that they need to do more to furt her boost the competitiveness of Guyana when trading 
across borders.  It has also underlined the need  for further assistance from donors to help Guyana 
improve its capacity to trade.  CS Ref. no. 245. 
278. Haiti  showcased the introduction of the Automa ted System for Customs Data (ASYCUDA) 
customs clearance system through a project funded by the Inter-American Development Bank (IaDB).  
This project aimed to reduce clearance times for im ports and exports, produce trade statistics in real 
time and harmonize customs procedures.  The new sy stem required Haiti to overhaul its customs code 
of 1987 and to align it with international cust oms regulations as well as WTO rules.  Customs 
clearance times have been reduced from four days  to two hours for some declarations.  Customs 
officials now also have the ability to pre-clear perishable goods and to exercise control over risk 
management.  More importantly, the ASYCUDA Worl d system encouraged the standardization of 
customs procedures in as many as ten Haitia n customs offices.  CS Ref. no. 246. 
279. The Inter-American Development Bank (IaDB) submitted a case story on the Mesoamerica 
Project (MP) which aims to assist Belize, Colombia, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama and the Dominican Republic  with regional integration.  The MP aims to 
foster the development, financing and implem entation of regional infrastructure and social 
development projects. It also aims to reduce tran sport and trade costs by providing financial and 
knowledge resources as well as funding for infrastruct ure.  Since 2001, the IaDB has been the main 
source of funding for the region's further integrati on, allocating US$1.5 billion in investment loans for 
areas such as energy, transportation, natural disaster prevention and relief, environment, trade facilitation, telecommunication services and health.  The MP seeks to enhance the region's position in 
the global marketplace including making investments in road transport systems that by 2015 are to cut 
average freight travel time from eight down to 2.25 days.  Customs procedures are to be accelerated 
and harmonized and border-crossing times reduced fro m 60 to eight minutes.  Also targeted are 
improvements to the power grid structure as well as enhancing telecommunication services.
55  
CS Ref. no. 120. 
280. Jamaica  submitted a case story on its Na tional Export Strategy.  This 
European Union-funded pr ocess was designed to help Jamaica develop a trade strategy which would 
stimulate exports through public-private partnerships .  The strategy aimed to remove some of the 
impediments to competiveness in the export sector but faced some problems such as insufficient 
financing, lack of ownership at the sectoral level a nd a lack of funding for certain priority projects.  
The strategy was refined to focus on specific industr ies such as food and beverages, coffee, education, 
entertainment services, information technologies, fash ion, and minerals and mining rather than trying 
to address the entire export sector.  More funding is required from internationa l development partners 
to meet the key objectives of the strategy.  CS Ref. no. 143. 
281. Jamaica  also submitted a case story on the compe titiveness of the craft and agro-processing 
sub-sectors.  This project was funded by the In ter-American Development Bank (IaDB) and aims to 
help the Jamaican Business Development Corporation assist small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) become more competitive and sell more products abroad. SMEs in Jamaica account for 
86 per cent of all businesses and employ 36 per cent of the work force.  This project sought to 
improve product designs and resulted in the creation of three new products which were then marketed 
and showcased in local trade shows.  A main challe nge with this project was to convince owners of 
small businesses to engage in the formal sector.  CS Ref. no. 181. 
                                                      
55 Repeated in sections about Latin-America and Cari bbean-wide and Central America.  This case story 
has been counted as Latin-America-Caribb ean wide for the pu rpose of Chart 33. WT/COMTD/AFT/W/26 
Page 66  
 
  282. Jamaica  presented a further case story on the Commonwealth Hub and Spokes Project for 
building the capacity of ACP countries in trade polic y formulation, negotiations and implementation.  
A trade policy analyst was made available to help in  training and the sensitization of stakeholders on 
trade policy issues.  The analyst al so assisted the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade with 
negotiations between CARIFORU M and the European Union on the Economic Partnership 
Agreements and with the Ca nada/CARIFORUM Trade and Development Agreement.  
CS Ref. no. 182. 
283. ASYCUDA World was the subject of a case story by Montserrat . Funded by the 
European Union, the project supported Montserrat,  Anguilla and the Turks and Caicos Islands to 
migrate to the latest version of UNCTAD's ASYCUDA Automated System for Customs Data.  The 
implementation of the programmes was not without problems, but the smoother and faster trade 
facilitation procedures offered by ASYCUDA Worl d will benefit the governments and the business 
community in the long term.  CS Ref. no. 5. 
284. A total of three case stories were submitted by the Organization of American States (OAS).  
The first described the Professional Masters Prog ramme in International Trade Policy at the 
University of the West Indies in Barbados.  This project, mainly funded by the Canadian International 
Development Agency, also included USAID and th e European Union as partners.  Its objectives 
focused on strengthening the institutional capacity of the University of the West Indies by delivering 
training essential for trade policymakers and negotia tors.  Graduating students (mainly women) have 
been hired by ministries, government agencies and regional organizations working on trade issues.  
Since the Masters Programme is also generating income, especially through its shorter training 
modules, the project is set to continue in the long term.  CS Ref. no. 84. 
285. A case story by the  Organization of American States (OAS)  addresses the need to 
strengthen the official sanitary system of agricu ltural goods for export markets in CARICOM member 
States.  Chile provided funds through the OAS to co ntribute to strengthening the technical capabilities 
of officials responsible for the design and mana gement of SPS systems in CARICOM countries.  A 
workshop was held in St. Lucia and three study tour s were organized in Chile.  CARICOM officials 
received specialized training from the Chilean offici als in this South-South cooperation activity to 
enhance regional capacity.  CS Ref. no. 169. 
286. The Organization of American States (OAS) submitted a case story on a Caribbean 
Intellectual Property (IP) Value Capture Export Strategy.   The objective of the project was to increase 
the awareness of Caribbean producers, business leaders and managers of small and medium-sized 
enterprises (SMEs) in the IP value of their pro ducts and services.  As many as eight Caribbean 
products were evaluated in Belize, Grenada, and Jamai ca to test their potential and to demonstrate the 
results of IP Value Capture Strategies.  Some of  the products identified included Grenadian Nutmeg 
and West Indian Sea Island Cotton.  The products were selected mainly for their potential impact on 
poverty alleviation and on women empowerment.  The project was accompanied by a methodology to 
help Caribbean governments support their private sector  to identify more IP va lue products for export.  
CS Ref. no. 170. 
287. The Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS) submitted a case story on the 
implementation of the European Union-funded Hu b and Spokes Project aimed at developing the 
capacity of ACP members and regional organizations  to design and implement trade policies and to 
effectively participate in trade negotiations.  The case story analyses the implementation of activities, 
results achieved, setbacks encountered, as well as good practices and lessons learnt.  Lessons learnt 
include the importance of taking a flexible a pproach, having demand-driven design and obtaining 
stakeholders' engagement in the design and im plementation of capacity-building programmes.  
CS Ref. no. 258.  WT/COMTD/AFT/W/26 
 Page 67 
 
 
  288. The Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS) also provided a case story about a 
Canadian International Development Agency (C IDA) funded programme for institutional capacity 
building for trade policy.  The case story looks at the activities undertaken by the Trade Policy Project 
(TPP) that led to the creation of a regional coordi nating mechanism, a dedicated Trade Policy Unit 
and a technical mission in Geneva, the latter with  funds from the Commonwealth Secretariat and the 
European Union.  The implementation of the new institutional structure allowed the development of 
an OECS trade policy framework, enhanced partic ipation in the WTO nego tiations and improvements 
in the way the OECS countries meet their multilatera l trade commitments.  What contributed to the 
success and sustainability of the new institutional structure was the strong political endorsement and 
the ability to attract support from donors for trade policy related activities.  CS Ref. no. 259. 
289. Trinidad and Tobago  submitted a case story on its Services Trade Mission to Guadeloupe 
and Martinique.  Reimbursed in part by a Europ ean Union Development Fund for CARIFORUM, the 
€37,000 project focused on strengthening business ties and government relations in the services sector 
between Trinidad and Tobago and Guatemal a and Martinique.  CS Ref. no. 188. 
290. Tourism was the subject of a case story by St. Vincent and the Grenadines  on the country's 
Tourism Development Project (TDP).  The TDP was developed to implement a clear policy targeting 
the development of productive capacities in the tour ism sector and the expansion of trade in those 
services.  The project addressed – and sought solutions – to constraints identified as being critical to the further development of St. Vincent and the Grenad ine's tourism sector.  It also aimed at attracting 
local investments as well as foreign direct investments in the accommodation sub-sector.  Job opportunities have been created which are impacting on  poverty reduction; the quality of the country's 
tourism product has been improved through the upgradi ng of tourist attractions and recreational sites; 
greater linkages between tourism and other economic sectors have been created; and a National Parks Authority and National Parks Management System  have been establishe d and operationalized.  
CS Ref. no. 264. 
291. The case story submitted by  Suriname on improving the trade facilitation environment  
illustrates how a project driven by the private sector to speed up trade facilitation by, inter alia , 
expanding physical infrastructure, modernizing cargo handling and storage, upgrading procedures and 
processes, and enhancing certification and legisla tion processes, has attracted investments to the 
amount of US$612.7 million.  Despite the positive im pacts that have resulted from the improvements 
made thus far – i.e. time and cost reduction – it would be essential to establish a formal body for 
drafting, managing and coordinating trade facilitation po licies if basic standards are to be met and full 
advantage taken of the investments made so far.  High on the list of further achievements to be made 
include the acquisition of Automated System fo r Customs Data (ASYCUDA) World, becoming a 
member of the World Customs Organization (WCO ), the establishment of an Electronic Single 
Window, and further investment in physical infrast ructure to make Suriname's main port more 
accessible.  CS Ref. no. 94. 
292. The United States submitted a case story on the Dominican Republic-Central 
America-United States Free Trade Agreement (C AFTA-DR) Sanitary and Phytosanitary Trade 
Capacity Building programme funded by USAID and implemented by the US Department of 
Agriculture.  The programme provides technical assistance to the public and private sector in 
Guatemala, Honduras, El Salvador, Nicaragua, Co sta Rica and the Dominican Republic to expand 
agricultural trade through compliance with the Unit ed States and international standards.  The case 
story emphasizes the importance of trade capacity bu ilding to ensure an integrated SPS regulatory 
framework for the region and within the framework of th e CAFTA-DR.  The programme 
implementation has resulted in the training of 4,300 people both in the public and private sector, the 
involvement of over 1,000 firms, and has generate d export revenues to the value of US$100 million 
since 2006, with positive impacts on employment crea tion.  The adoption of harmonized regulations, 
together with the enhancement of testing faciliti es, certification procedures and institutional support WT/COMTD/AFT/W/26 
Page 68  
 
  has proved its effects in expanding trade from the region and creating a more level playing field.
56  
CS Ref. no. 223. 
293. A case story by the Caribbean Export Development Agency  focuses on enhancing 
competitiveness and promoting trade and export development for CARIFORUM.  Funds from a 
variety of donors including the European Union, the United Kingdom's DFID, Canadian International 
Development Agency (CIDA), German Technical Co -operation (GTZ) and the World Bank helped to 
realize activities in the area of tourism services, th e speciality food sector and an export marketing 
training programme for small- and medium-si zed enterprises (SMEs).  CS Ref. no. 20. 
294. A joint submission by the European Centre for Development Policy Management  
(ECDPM) and the Technical Centre for Agriculture and Rural Co-operation (CTA) aims at analysing 
and learning from the experience of the Integrated  Development Programme for the ACP Caribbean 
Rum Sector.  The objective of this European Uni on-funded programme was to help rum exporters in 
the West Indies become more competitive by cr eating high quality/high-value brands supported by 
international marketing campaigns.  Twenty comp anies received assistance for modernization and 
investment and many reported cost and operation savings of between 15 and 20 per cent because of 
improved management and/or production techniques.   The programme featured a cost-sharing grant 
scheme which allowed the programme  to use the European Union's €46.6 million contribution and 
raise it to more than €150 million with additional private sector financing and non-reported associated 
private investment.  CS Ref. no. 2. 
295. The European Centre for Developing Policy Management  carried out an analysis of the 
lessons learnt from the Sugar Protocol Adjustme nt Measures Programme in the Caribbean.  The 
European Union funded this programme to help private sector sugar producers in ACP countries 
adjust to changes in the European sugar import regi me.  The main aim of the programme is to have 
the private sector take the lead in enhancing th e competitiveness of the sugar and sugar cane sectors 
and to promote the economic divers ification of sugar.  This prov ed problematic and it was deemed 
necessary to continue supporting market-led, private- sector based trade with more public funding.  It 
was also seen as important to support any market-led production efforts with more emphasis on 
addressing existing human resource constraints,  the limited physical infrastructure and the 
shortcomings of sales and marketing techniques to  promote existing or new sugar products.  An 
overall outcome was the realization that consider able support must be provided to strengthening 
agricultural producer organizations.   CS Ref. no. 31. 
296. The International Centre for Trade and Sustainable Development (ICTSD) submitted a 
case story on the Caribbean Aid for Trade and Re gional Integration Trust Fund (CARTFund).  The 
£5 million fund is financed by the United Kingdom's  DFID and is to assist CARIFORUM countries 
boost their economic growth and reduce poverty thro ugh increased trade and regional integration.  A 
key aspect of the United Kingdom's Regional Deve lopment Strategy is to help the Caribbean 
signatories benefit from the Economic Partnership Agre ements (EPAs) they signed in 2008 with the 
European Union.  As many as 18 of 26 projects had been implemented by March 2011.  Projects 
focused on the creation of national EPA implementa tion units, establishing a regional unit housed in 
the CARICOM Secretariat, and the creation of servi ces coalitions and tourism-related projects by both 
regional and national authorities.  CS Ref. no. 153. 
                                                      
56 Repeated in sections about La tin-America-Caribbean wide and Central America. This case story has 
been counted as Latin-America-Caribbean wide for the purpose of Chart 33.  WT/COMTD/AFT/W/26 
 Page 69 
 
 
  C. CENTRAL AMERICA57 
297. A total of 17 case stories were submitted about Central America.  Most case stories were 
submitted by partner countries (7), donors (5) and South-South partners (4).  Chinese Taipei 
submitted two case stories on its South-South cooperation with Honduras and Guatemala.  
Chart 37:  Central American Case Stories by Country or Region58 
 
4
3
222
13
012345
Honduras Guatemala El  Salvador Nicaragua Costa  Rica Mexico Central
America 
 
Chart 38:  Central American Case Stories by Category of Respondent 
 
7
5
4
1
012345678
Partner Country Donor South ‐South Other
 
 
                                                      
57 Central America: Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guat emala, Honduras, Mexico, Nicaragua, and Panama. 
58 Totals in Chart 3 and Chart 37 differ.  Figures in Chart 37 refer to where a country is the main 
subject of a case story. Figures in Chart 3 refer to countr y citations in the case stories.  Hence, while El Salvador 
and Nicaragua were the subjects of two case stories,  both are cited in an additional six case stories. 
 WT/COMTD/AFT/W/26 
Page 70  
 
  298. Argentina  provided technical assistance to fishermen in Nicaragua to improve their 
sustainable fishing techniques.  Fishermen were tr ained in the use of SPS measures and in the use of 
fish production techniques with the aim that Nicaragua would improve its overall competitiveness in fish production and export.  CS Ref. no. 199. 
299. Chile presented a programme to strengthen the co mmercial and institutional management of 
EXPORTA in El Salvador.  This programme wa s funded by the Inter-American Development Bank 
(IaDB) and consisted of providing El  Salvador with training in export promotion.  Activities focused 
on developing needs assessments, identifying b est practices for the implementation of export 
strategies and analysing market information.  El Sa lvadoran officials were provided with training in 
the Chilean export offices for Central America located  in Costa Rica and were offered internships in 
Chile. Results included strengthening El Salvador's ca pacity to promote exports with officials gaining 
a better understanding of what an "export culture" represents for their country. Inroads were also 
made to finding coordinated approaches between El Salvador's private sector and its public 
institutions involved in economic de velopment.  Moreover, an export promotion and sales office was 
established at the El Salvadoran Embassy in Washington D.C.  CS Ref. no. 124. 
300. Chinese Taipei  submitted a case story about the implementation of an Oriental Vegetable 
Project in Honduras.  The project introduced Hondur an farmers to several varieties of oriental 
vegetables and ensured that measures were taken to ensure a higher yiel d of these vegetables. In 2009, 
exports of these vegetables genera ted foreign exchange earnings for Honduras of US$28.6 million.  
CS Ref. no. 68. 
301. Chinese Taipei  also presented a case story about c ooperation with the Guatemalan Ministry 
of Agriculture, Livestock and Food (MAGA) to estab lish and operate a demons tration farm for the 
production of papaya.  The case story details the development of the papaya export project, the 
installation of the demonstration farm and the training activities for Guatemalan small-scale farmers.  The project has resulted in positive production proces s changes, greater employment, more awareness 
of international standards and an increase of e xport to the United States and Canada. Exports in 2010 
reached a total of 56,622 cartons of papa ya worth US$202,604.  CS Ref. no. 133. 
302. Costa Rica  describes combining a process of gradual trade liberalization and reform with a 
sustained policy of attracting foreign direct invest ment.  A key objective for Costa Rica has been to 
have its business sector benefit from more targeted  FDI in order to secure more participation in 
Global Value Chains.  Costa Rica's strategy to boost FDI is based on further improving economic 
infrastructure, simplifying bureaucratic regulations and increasing investment in research and 
development activities.  Results achieved so far ha ve been fruitful and Costa Rica enjoys a steady 
stream of new investment.  Costa Rican officials sa w the need to back domestic reform in regulations 
with an outward trade liberalization effort and to  forge ahead with multilateral and bilateral trade 
agreements.  The Inter-American Development Bank (IaDB) assisted Costa Rica with its efforts to 
develop capabilities among small- and medium-sized businesses to become domestic suppliers to high 
technology multinational firms.  The result is that Costa Rican business is present in five major global 
value chains:  electronics;  medical devices;  automotive;  aeronautic/aerospace;  and film/broadcasting devices.  CS Ref. no. 156. 
303. A second case story by Costa Rica  identifies trade opening as a key element of the 
development agenda.  This contribution is based on Costa Rica's experience since the early 1980s of 
using trade liberalization as a principle focus for its development strategy.  The country combined 
multilateral (WTO) and preferential trade agreements  with gradual trade liberalization to create a 
robust export platform that has been able to reduce th e country's poverty levels by more than a third.  
With funding from the Inter-American Developm ent Bank (IaDB) and technical assistance from the 
WTO, the Costa Rican Ministry of Foreign Trade (C OMEX) has been able to train its negotiators in  WT/COMTD/AFT/W/26 
 Page 71 
 
 
  services, market access and agricultural negotiations as well as on rules of origin, customs procedures, 
trade defence measures and intellectual property rights.  CS Ref. no. 157. 
304. El Salvador  presented its experience with th e United States Millennium Challenge 
Corporation-funded programme FOMILENIO (Fondos de l Milenio para la Zona Norte), a five-year 
programme to reduce poverty and pr omote economic growth through an  integrated strategy that 
addresses issues of social and human developmen t, productive capacity building and infrastructure 
creation.  The majority of the US$461 million allocat ed for the programme has been invested in the 
construction of the Carretera Longitudinal del Norte that is expected to improve the links between 
cities and rural communities.  Further to activities in the agricultural and livestock sector and the 
improvement of network infrastructures and social ser vices, important results have been registered in 
employment creation, the adoption of technol ogy and the mobilization of investments.  
CS Ref. no. 233. 
305. Guatemala  submitted a case story on the Entrepre neurial Development of Cooperative 
Federations in Guatemala. This project was f unded by Canada and focused on providing technical 
assistance and expertise to two producer organizations to increase exports of cardamom from 
Guatemala.  From having no cardamom exports in  2002, Guatemala exported 40 tons worth of the 
product in 2006 and 400 tons in 2009.  Family incomes for the producers involved have increased 
between 24 and 35 per cent, with significant benef its going to the many women involved in every 
aspect of the production cycle.  Guatemala is now a major cardamom exporter with values of exports 
increasing from US$93 million in 2002 to more than  US$304 million in 2009.  A key finding of the 
project showed the important roles played by both venture capital and close mentoring in building 
productive capacity.  Another was the involvement of women in the decision-making process.  The 
latter was seen as being an important contributory fact or to the long-term sustainability of the project.  
CS Ref. no. 118. 
306. Honduras 's case story presents the launch and implementation of its National 
Competitiveness Programme "Honduras Compite" that aims at improving business productivity and 
international competitiveness.  The case story illust rates Honduras's efforts to translate the success of 
its textiles and apparel industry to other sectors of  the economy.  With the joint support of the World 
Bank and the Inter-American Development Bank (Ia DB), Honduras was able to develop a national 
competitiveness strategy to develop a more robus t export capacity, improve the climate for business 
and support Honduras's effective participation in the negotiations of the United States 
Dominican Republic-Central America Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA-DR).  CS Ref  no. 247. 
307. The Inter-American Development Bank (IaDB) submitted a case story on the Mesoamerica 
Project (MP) which aims to assist Belize, Colombia, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama and the Dominican Republic  with regional integration.  The MP aims to 
foster the development, financing and implem entation of regional infrastructure and social 
development projects.  It also aims to reduce tr ansport and trade costs by providing financial and 
knowledge resources as well as funding for infrastruct ure.  Since 2001, the IaDB has been the main 
source of funding for the region's further integrati on, allocating US$1.5 billion in investment loans for 
areas such as energy, transportation, natural disaster prevention and relief, environment, trade facilitation, telecommunication services and health.  The MP seeks to enhance the region's position in 
the global marketplace including making investments in road transport systems that by 2015 are to cut 
average freight travel time from eight down to 2.25 days.  Customs procedures are to be accelerated 
and harmonized and border-crossing times reduced fro m 60 to eight minutes.  Also targeted are WT/COMTD/AFT/W/26 
Page 72  
 
  improvements to the power grid structure as well as enhancing telecommunication services.
59  
CS Ref. no. 120. 
308. The Inter-American Investment Corporation , a partner of the Inter-American 
Development Bank (IaDB), submitted a case story on  FINPYME ExportPlus, an initiative which 
seeks to assist small- and medium-sized enterp rises (SMEs) improve their access to export markets 
and to ensure better compliance with internationa l standards.  A pilot programme in Guatemala 
focused on increasing the competitiveness and the e xport market diversification opportunities of 
SMEs – mainly those in the agribusiness sector - through a focus on certification procedures and operational and management processes.  Preliminar y monitoring and evaluation surveys show that 
more than 85 per cent of the operators of SMEs put  into practice the knowle dge they gained.  This 
resulted in a 50 per cent increase in export capacity.  The project has been extended to other countries 
in Central America and the Caribbean including, El Salvador, Costa Rica, Nicaragua, Dominican 
Republic, Haiti, Bahamas, Guyana, and Suriname.  CS Ref. no. 121. 
309. The Inter-American Development Bank (IaDB)  submitted a case story on the international 
transit of goods through the El Amatillo border crossing between El  Salvador and Honduras, a border 
with one of the highest volumes of trade-relate d transactions in Central America.  The IaDB 
supported the US$2 million project to improve border clearance ti mes and procedures through an 
electronic system (TIM in Spanish) for managing the flow of goods in transit by harmonizing procedures and consolidating information and cer tificates into a single electronic document.  
Clearance times were reduced from 62 minutes to an average of eight minutes.  The project's success has stimulated interest in neighbouring countries and with another US$950,000 the IaDB helped to 
extend the TIM procedures to Mexico, Guatemala, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, and Panama.  The customs 
clearance procedures will help with the realizati on of the Mesoamerica Project. CS Ref. no. 122. 
310. The International Solidarity Foundation of Finland  submitted a case story on the 
Nicaraguan Tierra Nueva cooperative of small farmers for the export of organic coffee and honey.  
The cooperative, formed in 1997, envisioned th e realization of international market access 
opportunities for coffee producers and beekeepers in Nicaragua through the improvement of 
knowledge of quality standards, th e enhancement of the value chain and increased productivity.  
Tierra Nueva, which has a member ship of 620 producers, conducted training activities, consolidated a 
model of certified organic agriculture, created a larg e network of customers, and grew to become the 
largest exporter of honey in Nicaragua.  CS Ref. no. 98. 
311. Regional integration of Central American c ountries is the focus of a case story by the  
Ministry of Economy of  Mexico .  The submission addresses the ongoing negotiating process to 
converge the trade agreements in force between Me xico and five other Central American countries 
(Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras and Nicaragua) into a single free trade agreement.  
The negotiating process has received the technical suppor t of IaDB.  Despite delays in the start-up of 
the negotiations, the high level of commitment of th e partner countries to deeper integration and the 
full and early engagement of the private sector have  ensured the establishment of a clear road map.  
The negotiations are scheduled to conclude by the end of 2011.  CS Ref. no. 108. 
312. The Ministry of Economy of  Mexico  submitted a case story on its National Development 
Plan for 2007-2012 that aims to spur competitiv eness through the implementation of reforms and 
procedures aimed at improving the country's busin ess climate.  The case story addresses areas where 
reforms are being implemented and the progress made so  far.  The main areas of action have involved 
a programme of trade facilitation that includes tariff reductions on the import of industrial goods, 
customs reforms, regulatory simplification to reduce the cost of setting up a business and further 
                                                      
59 Repeated in sections about La tin-America-Caribbean wide and The Caribbean.  This case story has 
been counted as Latin-America-Caribbean wide for the purpose of Chart 33.  WT/COMTD/AFT/W/26 
 Page 73 
 
 
  simplification of procedures to f acilitate the access to new technolog y by Mexican enterprises.  The 
suggested reforms are already producing more  market openness and a more business-friendly 
environment.  It is expected that these resu lts will lead to more competitiveness, increased 
productivity, further market access opportunities and job creation.  CS Ref. no. 114. 
313. Spain  submitted a case story about the development of sustainable fishing capacities in 
Southern Honduras.  The project sought to improve the commercialization of fishing products and 
was able to establish better procedures and develop 20 alternative products to traditional fishing 
activities.  It also resulted in a more su stainable trade of these fishing products.   CS Ref. no. 178. 
314. The United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) presented the 
example of Honduras to illustrate the assistance  it provides for capacity building and improved 
participation in WTO negotiations.  The case story illustrates the support given to Honduras within 
the framework of the UNCTAD multi-donor trust fund  to strengthen the Honduran national task force 
on trade facilitation.  Through organization of re gional and national activities, Honduran officials 
attended seminars and round tables aimed at ins titutional capacity building and enhanced dialogue 
amongst stakeholders.  The main outcome was the marked improvement in Honduras's participation 
in the trade facilitation negotia tions.  CS Ref. no. 101. 
315. The United States submitted a case story on the Dominican Republic-Central 
America-United States Free Trade Agreement (C AFTA-DR) Sanitary and Phytosanitary Trade 
Capacity Building programme funded by USAID and implemented by the US Department of 
Agriculture.  The programme provides technical assistance to the public and private sector in 
Guatemala, Honduras, El Salvador, Nicaragua, Co sta Rica and the Dominican Republic to expand 
agricultural trade through compliance with the Unit ed States and international standards.  The case 
story emphasises the importance of trade capacity bu ilding to ensure an integrated SPS regulatory 
framework for the region and within the framework of th e CAFTA-DR.  The programme 
implementation has resulted in the training of 4,300 people both in the public and private sector, the 
involvement of over 1,000 firms, and has generate d export revenues to the value of US$100 million 
since 2006, with positive impacts on employment crea tion.  The adoption of harmonized regulations, 
together with the enhancement of testing faciliti es, certification procedures and institutional support 
has proved its effects in expanding trade from the region and creating a more level playing field.60  
CS Ref. no. 223. 
316. The research centre Centro de Derecho Económico Internacional (CDEI) presented the 
case of the International Network of Mesoamerican Highways (RICAM) to address the issue of 
managing unintended consequences in regional Ai d-for-Trade infrastructure projects.  This 
multi-donor funded project (Japan, Mexico, Norway, Chinese Taipei, the United States, the Inter-American Development Bank (IaDB) and the Wo rld Bank) has already completed 80 per cent of 
the transport projects destined for the Mesoamerican  region.  There has been a strong focus on trade 
facilitation and infrastructure as well as on addressing so cial health concerns such as the spread of 
HIV/AIDS.  CS Ref. no. 3. 
D. SOUTH AMERICA61 
317. A total of 13 case stories were submitted about South America, with nine case stories being 
made by partner countries.  Peru was the subject of  most case stories (4), followed by Colombia (3) 
and Chile (2).  
                                                      
60 Repeated in sections about La tin-America-Caribbean wide and The Caribbean.  This case story has 
been counted as Latin-America-Caribbean wide for the purpose of Chart 33. 
61 South America: Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Ch ile, Colombia, Ecuador, French Guyana, Paraguay, 
Peru, Uruguay, and Venezuela. WT/COMTD/AFT/W/26 
Page 74  
 
  Chart 39:  South American Case Stories by Country or Region
62 
 
4
3
22
11
012345
Peru Colombia Chile South
AmericaEcuador Bolivia 
 
Chart 40:  South American Case Stories by Category of Respondent 
 
9
22
012345678910
Partner Country South ‐South Donor 
 
318. Argentina  submitted two examples of South-South cooperation in the region.  The first 
project consisted of providing technical assistan ce to Bolivian meat producers and addresses sanitary 
controls, warehousing, transporta tion and commercialization of meat.  A main objective of this 
South-South cooperation effort was to help official s learn more about SPS standards, especially those 
related to meat storage and the use of modern sanitary facilities.   CS Ref. no. 197. 
                                                      
62 Totals in Chart 3 and Chart 39 differ.  Figures in Chart 39 refer to where a country is the main 
subject of a case story.  Figures in Chart 3 refer to coun try citations in the case stories.  Hence, while Peru was 
the direct subject of four case stories, it is cited in an additional five case stories. 
  WT/COMTD/AFT/W/26 
 Page 75 
 
 
  319. A second example of Argentina's  South-South cooperation is the technical assistance 
provided to dairy companies operating in Peru's Arequipa/Puno region.  The case story focused on 
assisting milk producers with training in the area of standards and in improving production processes. 
Dairy farmers were also given instruction on how to  add more value to dair y products through cheese 
production.  CS Ref. no. 198. 
320. Chile  submitted a case story on its Program Pymexporta which seeks to help the country's 
7,000 small- and medium-sized-business (SMEs) e xporters take advantage of Chile's new trade 
agreements.  The Government tested the export potential of SMEs across Chile and identified 400 as 
possible contenders from which 102 participated in  the programme.  These companies were then 
provided with advice on regulatory compliance for export markets, advice on product suitability and 
distribution and marketing advice.  They also receive d technical assistance and participated in training 
sessions and in trade fairs.  CS Ref. no. 123. 
321. Colombia  submitted a case study on Digitalized Certificates of Origin.  With the assistance of 
the Inter-American Development Bank (IaDB), new procedures were put in place for issuing and 
receiving digital, electronic certificates of origin .  The new system helped reduce clearance times 
from an average of two to three days to 10 minutes, thereby generating significant financial savings in 
both staff and administrative costs.  The project was deemed to be highly successful and survey results show that the Unique Trade Export Window is  making a solid contribution to trade facilitation, 
to transparency and to produc t traceability.  CS Ref. no. 226. 
322. A second case story submitted by Colombia  described a Technical Assistance Project for 
Foreign Trade.  Funded by the European Union, the project aims to strengthen the trade capacities of 
Colombia and to make more use of trade as a way to reduce the country's poverty rate.  The project 
focuses on the private sector and small and medium -sized enterprises (SMEs) and on providing 
training in areas still considered as weak in term s of SMEs being able to meet international 
requirements for exports, especially in regard to  SPS standards and other non-tariff barriers.  CS 
Ref. no. 227. 
323. Ecuador presented the establishment of the National Policy for Logistics as an instrument for 
Trade Facilitation.  The case story analyses the pr ocess that led to the design of a strategy to 
strengthen logistics and trade facilitation with the financial support of the CAF (Corporación Andina 
de Fomento) and technical support from the Inter-A merican Development Bank (IaDB).  The strategy 
provides the basis for the National Policy for Logist ics adopted by the Ecuadorian Government and 
was integrated in the national agenda fo r export development. CS Ref. no. 43. 
324. Ecuador  submitted a case story on "Facilitating Tec hnical Assistance and Trade".  This 
ongoing project concerns the implementation of an  agreement on Andean norms on cargo transported 
over land and a proposal for facilitating logistics at  border crossings between Ecuador, Colombia and 
Peru.  Funded mainly by the European Union, this  project aims to strengthen the capacity of public 
and private institutions.  The project is led by the Ecuadorian Federation of  Exporters (FEDEXPOR), 
the Colombian National Association of Foreign Tr ade and the Lima Chamber of Commerce.  The 
project involved training government officials on the specific rules to be followed under the Andean Agreement for the flow of persons, baggage, cargo and vehicles.  This required training officials on 
both national and regional integrati on regulations.  CS Ref. no. 44. 
325. The Ministry of Foreign Trade and Tourism of Peru  submitted three case stories.  The first, 
entitled Public-Private Partnershi p and Biodiversity: The range of Maca in Peru, illustrates that 
public-private partnerships are an essential tool fo r development that can be  used as instruments to 
promote the use of value chains.  The case story e xplains how technology tran sfer, development of an 
organic product certification, training, and technol ogical innovation have enabled rural producers to 
improve and develop the cultivation of Maca to a ddress increasing demand for biodiversity products.  WT/COMTD/AFT/W/26 
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  As a result, the market price per kilo of M aca has increased by approximately 60 per cent, from 
US$1.90/kilo in 2008 to US$3.440/kilo in 2010.  CS Ref. no. 136. 
326. Peru's second case story illustrates how the mainstreaming of trade in national development 
strategies can be used as an engine for sustaina ble economic growth and development.  With support 
from bilateral partners and development instituti ons – including the Inter-American Development 
Bank (IaDB), the World Bank, the Corporación Andi na de Fomento (CAF), USAID, Switzerland and 
the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA) – Peru designed a National Strategy for 
Trade Capacity Building (ENFCC).  As a result, a number of trade policy reforms were implemented 
to strengthen its competitiveness, its position as an e xporter of goods and servic es, its connections to 
supply chains, and its ability to attract private inv estment.  As a result of the trade policy reforms, 
tariffs were lowered from an average of 66 per cent to  the current level of 3.4 per cent and all forms of 
para-tariff restrictions on imports of goods were eliminated.  Customs procedures were simplified and 
the state monopoly on food imports was removed.  A number of bilateral trade agreements have been 
negotiated, including with the United Stat es, Canada, Chile, China and Singapore, the 
European Union, European Free Trade Association (EFTA), Japan and Korea.  Peru now holds first 
place out of the Americas in the World Bank Doing Business Report 2011, ranking 36 in 2010 as 
compared to 56 in 2009.  CS Ref. no. 137. 
327. Peru's  third case story concerns an Inte r-American Development Bank (IaDB) and 
United Kingdom/DFID-funded programme to devel op skills and business management in a remote 
region of Peru.  The project focused on training artisans (mainly women) in the Cuzco region of Peru in the areas of production processes, marketing, planning, financial and quality controls, product 
certifications, design, fashion, and technical innovation.  The overall aim of the programme, 
Development of Cuzco Artisanal Textile Export Asso ciations:  Gender Equality in Entrepreneurship 
and Business Development, was to  promote local economic developm ent processes in low-income 
areas in the Cuzco region to enable integration in to the domestic and international market.  Despite 
geographical and language difficulties, the programme  has been successful r esulting in the innovation 
of handicraft products and improvement in pro cess and manufacturing techniques as well as the 
creation of the registered company "KAMAQ".  National and international demand for the artisanal products has increased.  CS Ref. no. 138. 
328. The Swiss State Secretariat for Economic Affairs  (SECO) submitted a case story on the 
establishment of a national Cleaner Production (CP) Centre in Colombia for the provision of business development services to build up small- and me dium-sized enterprises (SME's) ability to meet 
international standards, strengthen their comp etitiveness and benefit from resource efficient 
sustainable production.  The case story explains the setting-up of the centre and its service portfolio which includes public advocacy and awareness raisi ng, capacity building, technical assistance, 
training and an information clearing-house function with the purpose of improving both the quality of, and the demand for, CP and related services.  The success of the Colombian Centre can be measured 
by its continuous compliance with its objectives, even  after the end of the donor's financial support.  
Although it is hard to assess the economic impact , the environmental assessment shows a more eco-
efficient use of natural resources with cost-savi ng consequences for companies.  CS Ref. no. 183. 
329. A submission by the  University of Chile  related to PYMEXPORTA, an activity led by 
Pro-Chile and the Chilean Chamber of Commerce with administrative support from the Inter-American Development Bank (IaDB).  The proj ect involves assisting small- and medium-sized 
enterprises (SMEs) to benefit more from the increased market access opportunities resulting from 
Chile's recently concluded regional trade agreements.  The project benefitted from training activities 
and strong private sector participation and prov ided counselling on regulatory compliance, product 
suitability and distribution and marketing advice.  Mo re than 400 SMEs throughout Chile were tested 
for their export potential.   CS Ref. no. 32.  WT/COMTD/AFT/W/26 
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  330. The Universal Postal Union (UPU) presented the "Exporta Fácil" project, a postal export 
project for micro, small- and medium-sized ente rprises (MSMEs) in South America.  The case story 
explains the rationale beyond the initiative and show s the results achieved in  the countries where it 
has been implemented.  The project, based on Braz il's public postal operator initiative, has benefitted 
from the expertise of the Initiative for the Integra tion of Regional Infrastructure in South America 
(IIRSA) and the technical cooperation provided by the Ministry of Communication of Brazil.  Exporta 
Fácil was able to enhance the competitiveness of MSMEs and facilitate their access to international 
markets, with a significant increase in export volumes in Peru and Brazil.  The results achieved point 
to the importance the postal sector can play in enhancing a country's capacity to trade.  CS Ref. no. 16. 
 
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