Preferential Trade Agreements and Trade Liberalization Efforts in the OIC Member States
With Special Emphasis on the TPS-OIC
59
• Collaboration measures: As Trade Facilitation involves multiple actors from public and
private sectors, it is necessary to define mechanisms for cooperation such as working groups
at the national level but also at the multinational. A revision of the provisions in many FTAs
suggests that these general points are represented evenly (UNCTAD, 2011). In particular,
measures associated with customs clearance as well as cooperation and information exchange
were frequently present. An analysis of the FTAs that include Trade Facilitation provisions
suggest that the majority involve some developed country member. All the agreements
negotiated by the European Union, including EPAs, have included these provisions. This also
applies to many FTAs negotiated by the United States. Some FTAs negotiated between
developing countries such as Pakistan-Sri Lanka and the WAEMU (West Africa Economic and
Monetary Union) also included trade facilitation provision.. Many OIC members such as
Turkey, Jordan, Pakistan, Malaysia and Tunisia are part of agreements that include Trade
Facilitation procedures.
3.2. UNDERSTANDING THE GROWTH IN RTAS IN THE CONTEXT
OF THE MULTILATERAL TRADING SYSTEM
Figure 3 presents the evolution in the number of RTAs by type of notification. It can be seen
that after the end of the WTO’s Uruguay Round in 1994, the number of RTAs, especially those
notified under Art.XXIV rose sharply. Although the Understanding on the Art.XXIV has played
an important role in this, the trend observed in regionalisation cannot be attributed solely to
this and the underlying reasons have important economic roots, as will be discussed.
Figure 3: Evolution of Regional Trade Agreements
Table 3 classifies the existing notified agreements by type (either CU, FTAs, EIA or PTAs) and
the notification category under which they have been notified. As was mentioned, whilst FTAs