The United Nations is urging governments to accelerate efforts to make trade systems more inclusive and sustainable, highlighting limited support for vulnerable groups including small and medium-sized enterprises, women traders and the agricultural sector despite steady progress in broader trade facilitation.
"The global trading environment has recently faced unprecedented challenges. Extensive tariff measures have introduced uncertainty and increased trade costs, while broader disruptions have exposed vulnerabilities in global supply chains. These trends underscore the urgent need to enhance the efficiency, transparency and resilience of international trade systems," shared Armida Salsiah Alisjahbana, United Nations Under-Secretary-General and Executive Secretary of the Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP).
According to the sixth United Nations Global Survey on Digital and Sustainable Trade Facilitation, progress has been observed in more efficient trade facilitation with the global implementation rate improving by five percentage points over the last two years. The global average implementation rate currently stands at 70 per cent. Developed economies performed strongly (86 per cent) followed by countries in South-East and East Asia (81 per cent). Pacific countries have the lowest implementation rate at 45 per cent.
In the Asia-Pacific region, overall trade facilitation implementation increased by five percentage points between 2023 and 2025, with the highest rates observed in Australia and New Zealand, as well as East and North-East Asia.
Implementation of measures under the WTO Trade Facilitation Agreement remains robust, while cross-border paperless trade facilitation has shown the greatest improvement. Improvements in legal frameworks for electronic transactions and digital authentication also signal growing commitment to modernizing trade.
Meanwhile, regional and subregional initiatives such as the Framework Agreement on Facilitation of Cross-border Paperless Trade in Asia and the Pacific, have been instrumental in driving global progress. These initiatives can further support countries in transitioning from paper-based to paperless and eventually cross-border paperless trade by offering a dedicated, inclusive and capacity-building intergovernmental platform.
This year's Survey has also introduced new and forward-looking measures on cross-border e-commerce and green trade facilitation. As climate challenges intensify, aligning trade with environmental goals becomes increasingly urgent. More research and efforts on the greening of trade will be necessary.
The UN Survey, covering 180 economies, is jointly conducted by the Economic Commission for Africa, the Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific, the Economic Commission for Europe, the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean, the Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia and United Nations Trade and Development. It aims to support countries in identifying trade facilitation gaps and priorities, as well as inform future research and policy responses across regions and globally. The Survey is coordinated by the Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific.
The survey and latest data are available at https://www.untfsurvey.org/
