International Trade Centre (ITC)

The United Kingdom Trade Partnerships (UKTP) Programme aims to increase trade from developing countries to the United Kingdom (UK) and the European Union (EU) by maximizing the benefits of UK and EU Economic Partnership Agreements (EPAs) and the UK's Developing Countries Trading Scheme (DCTS). The UKTP Programme works in partnership with government agencies, private sector organisations, public sector institutions, small and medium-sized enterprises and other local stakeholders. The UKTP Programme is funded by the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO) of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland under the UK's Trade Centre of Expertise. EPA and DCTS countries participating in the UKTP Programme will have access to high quality trade-related technical assistance through sector initiatives. Target beneficiaries will be export-ready SMEs that are committed to securing new trade opportunities with the UK. This project will aim to promote exports through facilitating access to markets, providing advisory services to SMEs to improve their products and business operations, and strengthening business support organizations. This project builds upon the lessons learnt and achievements of the UKTP programme since 2019. Previous engagement with SMEs in multiple EPA countries has shown the benefit of selecting export-ready companies with compelling products for UK customers and consumers to participate and of preparing them specifically with UK market entry services to succeed in the UK market. This project complements and works in synergy with UKTP in the Pacific.

The project aims to increase the engagement of seven developing and emerging countries in the Trade and Environment Structured Sustainability Discussions (TESSD) and the Committee on Trade and Environment (CTE) at World Trade Organisation (WTO). The project will carry out research in partnership with countries on the role of trade in supporting climate change mitigation and adaptation objectives. On the basis of this research, it will support countries to make submissions to the WTO CTE and TESSD in the form of best practices, lessons learnt, common regional approaches on standards etc. Furthermore, the project will provide tailor made capacity building for MSMEs on trade and environment related issues.

The UK Trade Partnerships Programme is designed to ensure countries maximize the benefits of the UK's Economic Partnership Agreements and the Developing Countries Trading Scheme (DCTS). The programme will increase awareness on EPA preferences by increasing availability and uptake of trade intelligence and build capacity of targeted firms/products to export to UK/EU market in selected countries. ITC will measure impact in two ways: (1) increased trade between EPA partner countries and the UK and EU markets and (2) increased jobs supported through that trade.

The project contributes to Nepal’s sustainable and inclusive economic growth and poverty reduction, and more specifically aims to increase trade and participation in regional and global value-chains. Next to support in trade policy and facilitation, the project focuses on expanding Nepal’s export base in coffee and pashmina value chain, by linking rural producers to exporters and connecting those to regional and international markets.

The GreenToCompete Hubs act as a one-stop shop offering integrated sustainability solutions supporting MSMEs to transition to a green economy. Providing knowledge, practical expertise and a global network, the Hubs support small businesses go green while strengthening their competitive advantage. The Hubs mobilize local institutions and organizations, private sector, and government to provide an enabling business environment and support services for small businesses. The Hubs are hosted by local Business Support Institutions (BSOs) at the country level. ITC established seven Hubs in the Caribbean, Ghana, Kenya, Laos, Nepal, Peru and Vietnam.

This project supports ITC's oning work under its non-tariff measures (NTMs) programme, which aims at creating the evidence base that decision makers need to effectively reduce trade cost related to NTMs and create a business environment conducive to inclusive trade. The programme ensures that the concerns of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) about regulatory and procedural trade obstacles are brought to the attention of policymakers and other stakeholders, enabling them to take concrete actions to address these. The work also contributes to increasing the transparency of NTMs and related procedures, and provides thought leadership through research and analysis, informing national, regional and multilateral trade policy making.