At a meeting on 5 November 2020 the Informal Working Group on Micro, Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (MSMEs) completed a package of six recommendations and declarations to assist the participation of MSMEs in international trade. The recommendations are to be officially endorsed in December 2020.
The Working Group which includes 90 WTO members is aiming to look at obstacles to participation by small business in global trade and to facilitate solutions.
The package finalised on 5 November 2020 included non-binding recommendations in relation to transparency and information sharing, access to finance, trade facilitation, access to market information and the inclusion of small businesses in regulatory developments.
MSME-related information in WTO Trade Policy Reviews
The package recommends that members should provide a list of available MSME-related information, on a voluntary basis, in the course of a Trade Policy Review. Sharing this information could help to identify good practices in response to challenges encountered by MSMEs when engaging in international trade. The Working Group has recommended that the WTO Secretariat should set up a database of the details obtained from WTO members.
Declaration on access to information
The Working Group is asking WTO member countries to agree on voluntary provision of updated and complete information to the WTO Secretariat for the Global Trade Helpdesk. This is a tool to provide market intelligence and information on tariffs and regulatory information.
Recommendation on trade facilitation for MSMEs
The Working Group is also calling for the full implementation of the Trade Facilitation Agreement and sharing of information on experience of the implementation of the agreement in relation to MSMEs. It is considered important to effectively implement trade facilitation disciplines that help to reduce transit times and costs.
Promoting MSME inclusion in regulatory development
The Working Group encouraged WTO member countries to promote the consideration of issues relevant to MSMEs in domestic regulatory development in relation to issues covered by the WTO agreements.
MSMEs and the WTO Integrated Database
The Working Group is recommending that WTO member countries should ensure that their information in the WTO Integrated Database is updated, so MSMEs can access reliable market access data including details of tariffs.
MSME access to finance
Access to finance is important for MSMEs engaging in international trade. Difficulties in obtaining finance and problems with cross-border payments can be a significant obstacle to their participation in the global trading system. The Working Group is asking WTO member countries to discuss measures that can facilitate measures to address these difficulties. Relevant measures could be promoted by means of information sharing and capacity building.
WTO members are also called on to cooperate in international initiatives facilitating a global legal identification system. Legal entity identifiers are used to provide information on entities involved in financial transactions and to help financial institutions find due diligence information on their customers, including small businesses.
