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Navigating the interplay between digital-trade provisions and sustainable development aspects
Get PDFThis paper examines the evolving landscape of Preferential Trade Agreements (PTAs) in the Asia-Pacific region, focusing on the integration of digital economy related provisions that address affordability of access, digital trust, and innovation.
Key findings reveal that Asia-Pacific PTAs are increasingly embedding provisions to ensure affordable access to digital technologies, aiming to bridge the digital divide and promote inclusive economic growth. The analysis also underscores the importance of building digital trust, with over 60 agreements featuring robust provisions for personal data protection, and online consumer rights. This focus on legal safeguards is essential in fostering consumer and business confidence in digital transactions and services.
Moreover, the paper delves into how these PTAs are nurturing innovation, particularly through provisions related to cross-border data flows, data localization, and interactive computer services. The inclusion of advanced digital concepts like AI, machine learning, and data governance showcases the region's commitment to fostering a technologically advanced and ethically responsible digital economy.
Overall, this paper highlights the ongoing efforts in incorporating digital considerations into Asia-Pacific PTAs. The dynamic reflects a shift from traditional trade policy models towards ones that prioritize digital economy integration, digital inclusivity and sustainability.</p
Asia-Pacific trade and investment trends brief 2022/2023 : East and North-East Asia
No full textThis brief covers recent trends and developments in trade and investment. It has been produced as an accompaniment to the Asia-Pacific Trade and Investment Trends 2022/2023
Readiness to implement the action plan to strengthen regional cooperation on social protection : Maldives
No full textSocial protection is a key policy instrument to build productive, protected and healthy populations. In 2020, ESCAP member States endorsed the Action Plan to Strengthen Regional Cooperation on Social Protection in Asia and the Pacific (Action Plan). The Action Plan serves as a shared vision, strategy and platform for promoting partnership, peer learning and identifying needs for capacity development. The Action Plan sets out 12 national actions that underpin the achievement of more inclusive and comprehensive social protection systems, ranging from upholding the right to social protection in legislative and regulatory frameworks, to ensuring a more effective design, coordination and delivery of social protection schemes.
To support member States in the implementation of this first-ever regional Action Plan, ESCAP has been mandated to develop a regional platform. As part of this support, national reports and consultations are being conducted in Cambodia, Georgia, the Maldives, Mongolia, the Philippines and Türkiye, with the purpose to share national experiences and pathways towards the vision of the Action Plan.
The report for Maldives aims to:• present an overview of the national social protection situation, policies and approaches,• identify the potential impact a broadening of social protection coverage could have on poverty and other areas,• initiate a discussion on ways for the Government to implement the Action Plan. </p
Collaboration opportunities for science, technology and innovation in Cambodia, Lao People's Democratic Republic, Thailand and Viet Nam
No full textScience, technology and innovation (STI) have always been key drivers for achieving economic development and prosperity in Asia and the Pacific. The Governments of Cambodia, the Lao People’s Democratic Republic, Thailand and Viet Nam (CLTV) have recently adopted or are in the process of adopting national STI policies to support the development of domestic STI capacities. However, significant gaps remain in the implementation of these policies and strategies, such as:
Insufficient technical knowledge to design specific policy instruments.
Limited institutional capacity to implement and oversee initiatives to nurture domestic STI capabilities.
In this regard, South-South and triangular cooperation emerges as a valuable instrument to collectively overcome technical, institutional and financial limitations and build STI capabilities in CLTV. South-South relations have already contributed significantly to an increased volume of trade, foreign direct investment flows and technology transfer. Moreover, technical cooperation among CLTV has proven to be an effective tool for Governments, international organizations, academics, civil society and the private sector to collaborate and share knowledge, skills, successful initiatives and lessons learned in specific areas.</p
Food losses in international trade : case studies from Asia and the Pacific
No full textFood losses in international trade have high socio-economic costs, impacting food security, waste management, and climate change. The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) reported that around 800 million people face food shortages and that one-third of all food, amounting to 1.3 billion tons annually, spoils worldwide – this figure is expected to rise to over two billion tons by 2030. The FAO’s Food Loss Index indicates that about 14% of food is lost from post-harvest to the delivery at the last trading point, excluding retail losses. As such, reducing food losses associated with international trade could significantly alleviate world hunger and improve food security.
Both developed and developing countries experience food losses, with a significantly higher magnitude in developing countries. The main reasons for greater food losses in these countries include inadequate trade logistics, poor storage and handling, unfavourable climate, infrequent transport services, outdated storage facilities, lack of cold chain infrastructure, sub-standard packaging, limited market knowledge, inefficient marketing institutions, and losses due to non-compliance with quality and sanitary-phytosanitary standards.
This publication not only identifies the critical challenges faced by developing countries in managing food losses in international trade but also offers a nuanced understanding of the complex interplay of factors contributing to these losses. Each chapter serves as a detailed case study, providing valuable insights into the specific conditions and practices in different countries, and collectively they paint a broader picture of the scenario that developing countries face in the region.
Chapter 1 focuses on India’s food trade uncovers the intricate journey of food products from packing to delivery, excluding final retail. The in-depth analysis based on a primary survey of India’s three largest traded food products sheds light on the nature, causes, and stages of food losses. The study’s findings are particularly relevant for policymakers and stakeholders in developing countries, offering a roadmap for reducing food losses through tailored measures at various levels of the supply chain.
In Chapter 2, the examination of Indonesian tuna exports highlights the impact of differing international standards and regulations on food losses. The study underscores the importance of harmonizing standards and improving the understanding and dissemination of these standards among stakeholders in the tuna trade. It suggests that addressing both the micro-level issues, such as improving post-harvest handling and sanitation, and macro-level challenges, like the complexity of non-tariff measures, can significantly reduce food loss in this sector.
Chapter 3 provides an insightful analysis of Sri Lanka’s agricultural trade. By using the Standard Compliance Analytics of the United Nations Industrial Development Organization, the research identifies significant rejection rates at Sri Lankan borders. The study emphasizes the need for enhanced awareness among exporters and government officials about both domestic and international regulations, suggesting that improving infrastructure in the agricultural value chain can play a crucial role in reducing border food losses.
Lastly, Chapter 4’s exploration of Bangladesh’s fruit and vegetable trade underscores the dire need for infrastructural improvements, including cold storage systems and specialized transportation facilities, to combat food losses. The paper calls for a multifaceted approach, involving compliance with agricultural best practices, effective post-harvest handling, and governmental support to foster a conducive environment for reducing food loss.
Together, these chapters offer a comprehensive perspective on the various dimensions of food losses in international trade, particularly in developing countries. They highlight the need for concerted efforts at both national and international levels to address this critical issue. The strategies and insights presented are not only academically valuable but also practical, providing a foundation for future policymaking and implementation aimed at reducing food losses, enhancing food security, and ultimately contributing to the Sustainable Development Goals. </p
Harmonization of national laws with the convention on the rights of persons with disabilities : country case study China
No full textThis publication emanates from an ESCAP research project to study the trends of Asian and Pacific countries in harmonizing national laws with the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. It examines the extent to which reporting obligations have been fulfilled in a timely and substantive manner and the ways in which national human rights institutions and civil society organizations, in particular organizations of persons with disabilities, have been involved in that process. It further analyses good practices in harmonization, and challenges which have arisen in relation to the implementation of the Convention in China. This analytical country case study was prepared under the above mentioned ESCAP project and draws from credible sources. It is issued for the attention of members and associate members in the ESCAP region towards further enhancement of the effective harmonization of national legislation with the Convention and the implementation of the Convention.
Click here to view the analytical regional overview and five country case studies (Australia, China, India, Republic of Korea, Thailand)Government of Chin
A practical guide : developing and revising policy documents on older persons in Asia and the Pacific
No full textThis publication is a guide for Asia-Pacific policymakers and practitioners
in developing and revising policies and programmes on older persons. It
provides an overview of (a) global, regional and subregional norm-setting
documents that address issues related to older persons and (b) linkages
between the Sustainable Development Goals and the priority directions
of the Madrid International Plan of Action on Ageing (MIPAA). It describes
documents, including laws, policies, strategies and action plans. There are
templates of these documents and a checklist for developing policies and
programmes on population ageing. Tools developed by ESCAP to support
member States in drafting and revising policy-related documents on ageing
are highlighted. The Annex contains the 2022 outcome document of the Asia-
Pacific Intergovernmental Meeting on the Fourth Review and Appraisal of
the Madrid International Plan of Action on Ageing, which is the most recent
region-specific norm-setting document on population ageing in Asia and the
Pacific
Asia-Pacific trade and investment trends brief 2022/2023 : Lao PDR
No full textThis brief covers recent trends and developments in trade and investment. It has been produced as an accompaniment to the Asia-Pacific Trade and Investment Trends 2022/2023.</p