Establishing Well Functioning National Trade Facilitation Bodies (NTFBs)
In the OIC Member States
39
has been its focus ICT as a key enabler for business efficiency and trade facilitation, in spite of its
scarce resources.59
2.4. Worldwide Cases, Success Factors and Achievements from NTFBs
2.4.1. General success factors drawn from top cases
There is no golden rule on what will make a good NTFB and that the particular situation of each
economy and the needs/issues at play will influence the precise form that its NTFB should take. As
mentioned above in this study the only factor that has clearly been identified as linked to the success
and sustainability of an NTFB is level of development.60 The specific circumstances (political,
relationship between public and private stakeholders, of a country will ultimately dictate what
composition and structure the NTFB should take. Indeed, the above examples show that there is
some diversity in the form that successful NTFBs take; in this regard, the Korean NTFB stands out in
particular.61
Flexibility and responding to needs appears to be central to making an NTFB successful however.
This apparent need for flexibility is fully consistent with the observation that there is no golden rule
for a successful NTFB. If there is one common thread that reappears in each of the four NTFBs
discussed above, it is that successful NTFBs are NTFBs that respond to changing needs and changing
environments. Indeed, these NTFBs have institutional structures that were created to respond to
specific issues and needs.
Despite the fact that there is no golden rule for what makes a successful NTFB, there are factors that
have been recognized as contributing to the success of an NTFB and these factors find reflection in
the NTFBs of the four countries discussed above. Thus, drawing on literature62 and the examples of
top performing NTFBs, the following listing has been compiled, which highlights common factors
present in the various successful NTFBs.
 Public–private partnerships are vital to the identification of issues and appropriate
measures to address those issues, etc. Stakeholders that should be involved include the
following and their representatives should be appropriately qualified and have an up-to-
date knowledge of relevant issues of trade facilitation:
o Customs authorities
o Port authorities
o Government officials from trade and transport ministries
o Chambers of commerce
o Manufacturers
o Importers associations
59
consulted 13-07-15 14:15
60 UNCTAD, National Trade Facilitation Bodies in the World (New York and Geneva, 2014), p. 10.
61 The fact that the specific circumstances and culture of a country dictate the form of NTFBs is well recognized. For example,
UNESCAP relied on the Korean example in making this very point: i.e., UNESCAP acknowledged that trade facilitation had long been a
priority in Korea and that the particular circumstance of Korea led to the National e-Trade Committee being formed in 2003 in order
to facilitate the development of an advanced electronic trade facilitation system. See, UNESCAP, Designing and Implementing Trade
Facilitation in Asia and the Pacific: 2013 Update, p. 165.
62 This section draws heavily from the following publication in particular because it provides valuable (albeit not country-specific)
information based on first-hand experience of the factors that tend towards the success and failure of NTFBs: UNCTAD, National
Trade Facilitation Bodies in the World (New York and Geneva, 2014).