ARMENIA SELECTED ONE OF NINE PILOT COUNTRIES FOR UNIDO-WTO ENHANCED COOPERATION
ArmenPress
Oct 14 2004
YEREVAN, OCTOBER 14, ARMENPRESS: The UN Industrial Development
Organization (UNIDO), UN Development Program (UNDP), World Trade
Organization (WTO) and the Ministry of Trade and Economic Development
of Armenia held a joint seminar today to begin implementation of the
Doha Development Agenda. Seminar participants included senior officials
from the Government, donor community, international organizations,
business associations, as well as experts.
A press release from UNDP said the main aims of the Doha Development
Agenda, which was agreed in December 2001 by WTO members, are
to ensure that trade and industrial development enhance economic
development and to assist the integration of the developing countries
and transition economies into the global economy and the multilateral
trading system. In order to facilitate implementation of the Doha
Agenda, UNIDO and WTO will implement pilot activities in an initial
group of nine countries, including Armenia. The initial group also
includes Bolivia, Cambodia, Cuba, Egypt, Ghana, Jordan, Kenya and
Mauritania. The aim of these pilot activities is to identify priority
sectors and products with high and strategic export potential;
address trade capacity weaknesses including supply-side constraints,
lack of conformity to market requirements and standards; and support
the implementation of multilateral trade agreements.
Mr. Alexander Avanessov, UNDP Deputy Resident Representative, noted:
“The fact that Armenia has become a member of the WTO indicates the
great progress made by the country since independence. The pilot
activities that are being launched by UNIDO and WTO at this seminar,
in combination with initiatives from UNDP and other donors, will
assist countries like Armenia to integrate further into the global
economy and multilateral trading systems.”
Armenia officially became the 145th member of the WTO on February
5, 2003. The country’s main trading partners include the European
Union (EU), Russia, USA, Iran and Georgia. A recent survey within
the business community on external trade and which was presented at
the seminar indicates that certification and standardization have
had a serious impact on external trade. Local companies involved
in the survey identified a number of obstacles to trade, including:
corruption in customs and taxes; complicated and fragmented tax and
customs legislation; and lack of cooperation between the customs and
tax administration bodies. Sixty-three percent of the respondents said
that they had lost export orders due to technical barriers to trade.