El Salvador’s electronic export system
The Electronic System of Exports (SIEX) in El Salvador enables exporters to obtain electronically via the Internet all the required export documents from the Export Procedures Centre (CENTREX), at any hour, day or night. Through SIEX, the exporter sends information on transactions and obtains the corresponding authorization directly at the place of business.
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Business case study from India
The Gujarat Cooperative Milk Marketing Federation Ltd (AMUL) links 10,000 village societies in India, a total of 2.1 million milk-producing families. Its business involves daily collection of milk at 25 supply centres in Gujarat; the production of butter, cheese, ice cream, baby food and milk powder; the marketing of these products through 50 sales offices throughout India; and distribution through a network of 4,000 stockists who, in turn, supply 500,000 retail outlets.
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Reaping the Digital Dividend
Once again, ITC presents trade development perspectives shaped by the impact of information and communication technology. This issue reports conclusions from “Executive Forum 2000: Export Development in the Digital Economy”, the resulting ITC e-trade strategy and how ITC is putting it into practice.
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Playing @ the Digital Game
Too few firms in developing countries are taking advantage of new technologies which can help them export better. In this article, ITC focuses on what developing countries can do to shift their attention from the “Digital Divide” to the “Digital Dividend”.
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Back Office Operations
Consider back office operations in your national export development strategy. Developing countries can harness the current trend of outsourcing business operations to address key challenges in managing their economic development. This article is the second of two about the growing opportunities for developing and transition economies to provide back office services to international firms, public-sector agencies and non-profit organizations (see also Forum, issue 3-2000).
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Back office operations in Barbados
Barbados was one of the first sugar-based agrarian economies to diversify into the provision of back office operations. The Government’s strategy to develop Barbados as an offshore financial centre started after research had been completed to establish the best way that Barbados could leverage its highly educated workforce of English mother tongue, its proximity to the United States and Canada, and its traditional links with the United Kingdom.
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Frequently Asked Questions ... About Business Negotiations on the Internet
Used effectively, e-mail and the web are good communication channels that business executives can use for negotiations.
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Moving towards E-competence
ITC, in cooperation with Switzerland’s State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (seco), hosted its second Executive Forum on National Export Strategies in Montreux in September 2000. Over 20 national teams participated in the debate, which concentrated on the theme, Export Development in the Digital Economy. Each team was asked to analyse the implications of e-trade for international competitiveness and to determine what, in its opinion, would be the most suitable national response.
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E-Trade Opportunities: Are Developing Countries Ready?
Services exporting, software development and hardware represent three major market opportunities for firms in developing and transition economies. Traditional exporters can also harness new technologies to cut costs and reposition themselves in the international marketplace. But are the firms most likely to benefit ready to take the plunge?
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Internet access is a challenge for many exporting SMEs in developing countries. For this reason, several national trade promotion strategies concentrate on connecting and training SMEs. |
E-challenges: Countries in Action
Ghana’s e-challenge
Ghana’s national strategy is to promote export development aggressively, primarily in non-traditional export sectors. The Ghana Export Promotion Council (GEPC) coordinates the implementation of this strategy. One of Council’s strategic objectives is that all registered Ghanaian exporters should become e-competent by 2003.
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Views on E-trade in Developing Countries
What are business executives in developing countries and trade development officials saying about e-trade? Below is a “sampler” – a taste of the individual views expressed during the Executive Forum process. For more views, see the Executive Forum web site, which contains e-discussions, e-briefs, interviews and an online version of the book emanating from the Executive Forum 2000.
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ITC Spells Out Its E-Trade Strategy
The conclusions drawn from the Executive Forum helped ITC to crystallize its thinking on how to assist its clients to understand, develop and apply the new information and communication technologies and associated business practices to international trade. The following are key elements from ITC’s strategy.
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Bridging the Digital Divide
Legal framework
• Create trust in the mechanics of e-trade (electronic signatures, copyrights, consumer protection, consumer privacy, dispute resolution).
• Reinforce international competitiveness (tax laws).
• Don’t overregulate: overregulation creates technological bias and unforeseen barriers.
• Work internationally: e-commerce is by nature without borders and harmonizing national laws is critical.
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E@ITC
Books
• Export Development in the Digital Economy (2000)
• Secrets of Electronic Commerce (2000)
• Offshore Back Office Operations (2000)
• The SME and Information Technology (2000)
• Innovating for Success in the Export of Services (1999)
• Business Guide to General Agreement on Trade in Services (1999)
• Trade in Information Technology Products and the WTO Agreements (1999)
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How many firms are plugging into e-trade? |
Are Developing Countries Ready?
A series of surveys conducted in preparation for the Executive Forum 2000 indicates that e-competent firms are the exception. The survey results, and the Executive Forum 2000 consultation, reveal that there has not been a concerted effort within the business community of most developing and transition economies either to acquire e-competency or to use the Internet as a tool to increase or, at the very least, maintain international competitiveness. This is particularly the case of the SME sector — the sector that, in the majority of developing countries, makes the greatest contribution to national export performance.
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Alexandra Wood and John Gillies discuss e-trade issues at the Executive Forum 2000. |
E-Brief from Canada
Tips on Canada’s e-strategy, services and partnerships, presented during ITC’s e-mail discussions on export development in the digital economy.
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E-Tr@de Briefs
The next WTO ministerial conference takes place in Doha, Qatar, from 9-13 November 2001. The work programmes of all major international agencies which play a role in shaping the future of e-commerce policies and infrastructures will be looking to this event as a key date in the 2001 calendar. In addition, the member governments of the Group of Eight (G8) will meet again in Genoa, Italy, in July to discuss, among other things, the progress made towards realizing the global information society. The sheer volume of freely available information related to the development of e-commerce is daunting. Here is a brief look at upcoming events, web sites you should bookmark for ongoing reference, and other bits and bytes to keep you abreast of developments in e-facilitated trade.
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Readers’ favourite topics: Back office operations
Here are two of the many letters we received following the first Forum article on back office operations. (The first article appeared in issue 3-2000, and a follow-up article appears in this issue.) “I have just seen the Forum mentioning the publication on back office services, and we would like to receive a copy. We are a non-profit export promotion body of refractory producers in India. I feel we can be of assistance to interested parties wanting support services in detailed designs and drawings, construction and dismantling of refractories, etc.” P. Das Gupta, Executive Director, Indian Refractory Makers Association, Calcutta, India irmaindia@hotmail.com Internet: http://www.irmaindia.org
“Your article on back office operations (Forum 3-2000) was very interesting. We would be very grateful to receive a copy of the book. As a counsellor in international trade to SMEs, this new material is quite important to develop new jobs.” Ricardo M. Grandi, International Business Adviser, Buenos Aires, Argentina regracon@giga.com.ar
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Readers’ favourite topics: Innovation
“Thank you for sending me your publications, Successful Services Exporting and Innovating for Success in the Export of Services, which you had promised me in your e-mail responding to my comments on Forum magazine (issue 2-2000). “This information has been so useful that I have found myself doing things I would not have thought of otherwise. For instance, to innovate, I copied the addresses of Asian pharmaceutical companies from their medicines sold here and contacted them with a proposal to translate their labels and leaflets into French. Further, I e-mailed Asian Chambers of Commerce and Industry to offer translation services to companies exporting goods from their countries to West Africa. I advised them that they stand to gain in export competitiveness if their products and/or leaflets also carried inscriptions in French. As an argument, I let them know that the majority of West African countries are French-speaking and that an English-only label, especially in the case of medicines, could drive off many buyers. “The enthusiastic responses from some of the Chambers are indications of things to come.
“I will owe much of any success in the export of translation services to ITC’s dedication and foresight in helping those in developing countries. Thank you all.” Akoli Penoukou, Manager, Ets. Pyramide, Lomé, Togo akolipenoukou@hotmail.com
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Readers’ favourite topics: Silk
“I would like to congratulate you on your article, Silk: Tradition with a future? (issue 1-1999). It is really good: analytical, brief and crisp in presen-tation.
“I would like to avail myself of this opportunity to raise some of my concerns about silk and World Trade Organization rules and regulations. What will be the future of silk after full implementation of the WTO agreements and the removal of import barriers in India? What are the challenges to the Indian silk industry, especially with regard to quality standards? What strategies could be adopted to safeguard domestic producers?” Dileep Kumar, Central Silk Board, Bangalore, India dkthathan@yahoo.com
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Communicating trade issues
EXPORTER magazine and web site complement work of ITC “I have just received issue 3-2000 of your excellent magazine, which prompted me to bring you up to date on our developments. “The EXPORTER is in the process of introducing a new web site, sometime in the first quarter of 2001.
“We are going to take more of a global perspective. And because the International Trade Centre does such a good job in its mission, we are carefully designing our web site not to re-invent any wheels you have already invented. We are going to divide trade into two components: international trade being defined as trade between not-related parties, which is probably closer to your focus; and global trade of multinationals between related parties, which gets to issues such as transfer pricing, foreign direct investment, etc. “I think that the material I have found on your web sites and in the magazine is excellent. This was a critical factor in our decision to migrate from a US-oriented publication (slowly) to a more international one, at the same time, supporting the work of ITC.” Leslie Stroh, Publisher, EXPORTER magazine lstroh@exporter.com
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Converting Export Opportunities into Business
ITC will organize a Business Sector Round Table for the Third United Nations Conference on the Least Developed Countries (Brussels, May 2001). The meeting provides a forum for creative dialogue to some 75 participants comprising entrepreneurs and senior policy-makers from least developed countries (LDCs), buyers of LDC products from developed countries and LDCs’ bilateral and multilateral development partners involved in trade development.
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ACP Countries “Think Regional”
How can African, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) countries benefit most from the new world trading system? This was the theme of a keynote address delivered by ITC’s Executive Director, J. Denis Bélisle, at the Meeting of the ACP Ministers Responsible for Trade (Brussels, December 2000).
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Regional round tables stimulate networking and capacity building for e-trade. |
Business Round Table on IT Prospects in Central and Eastern Europe
ITC joined with the Slovenian Ministry of Economic Relations and Development and WTO to hold a regional business round table on International Market Prospects for Information Technology Industries (Portorose, November 2000).
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Craft Trade and Protection: ITC and WIPO together in Cuba
The first joint ITC/World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) Workshop on Legal Protection of Craft Items (Havana, February 2001) gathered 160 participants from 16 countries in Latin America and the Caribbean. They included artisans and representatives from intellectual property rights authorities, the craft sector and its trade support institutions. Besides the organizers, two international organizations were present: the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) and the World Crafts Council. The three-day sessions were chaired by the director of the Fundación Española para la Artesanía (Spanish crafts foundation).
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Executive Forum 2001: Is your trade support network working?
Executive Forum 2001 will be held in Montreux, Switzerland, from 26–30 September. The theme this year: “Is your trade support network working?” The question will be explored from two perspectives: the viewpoints of the aspiring exporter and of the national export strategy-maker. The research phase of Executive Forum 2001 has already begun and we encourage all those interested to contribute their views. In particular, we welcome short analyses of the situation in individual developing and transition economies. Please contact ITC directly at execforum@intracen.org
We will also be organizing a series of e-discussions at this address to exchange ideas on specific aspects of the question: “Is your trade support network working?” The publications produced following the previous two Executive Forums can be viewed on the web site at http://www.intracen.org/execforum To order the printed versions, send an e-mail to execforum@intracen.org
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New ITC Director of Administration
Mr. Gian Piero Roz, an Italian national, has joined ITC as Director, Division of Administration. His previous post was as Director, Information Services Technology Division, Department of Management at the United Nations (UN) headquarters in New York.
Mr. Roz graduated from the University of Turin with a degree in Political Science. Following assignments in Algeria and Italy, he began his career with the UN in 1974, with the Economic Commission for Africa. From 1979 to 1986, he worked for the United Nations Industrial Development Organization in Vienna as a Recruitment Officer, before joining the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development as a Personnel Officer. He returned to the UN system in 1990, when he was appointed Coordinator for Human Resources Management in New York.
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Arusha-Moshi trade tutor candidates, resource speakers and programme administrative staff. |
Training trainers in the United Republic of Tanzania
ITC trained 19 experts in the Arusha-Moshi region, United Republic of Tanzania, in diagnostic, training and counselling skills to help small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) become internationally competitive. The Trade Tutor Team Building programme, which trains experts in various countries, organized the course, at which the trainees attended workshops on ITC’s Business Management System, Needs Assessment, Programme Design and Materials Development. The programme has already trained 26 trainers in Dar-es-Salaam. The project is jointly funded by the United Nations Development Programme and the Swiss government and executed by ITC.
For more information, contact Osman Atac, ITC Senior Adviser on Training Capacity Development, at atac@intracen.org
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New trade promotion project in Bolivia
The Swiss secretariat of economic affairs (seco) is financing a three-and-a-half-year ITC project in Bolivia. The project seeks to address problems in the development of Bolivian exports by integrating several national and international initiatives for export development and promotion. The project will concentrate on export promotion and on developing product groups such as fruits and vegetables; leather goods; wooden furniture and textiles.
The strategy is to achieve short-term results by working directly with three to five major exporting enterprises in each group. Problem areas common to most export sectors are product and market development; human resource development for foreign trade; quality control; export packaging; international physical distribution; institutional infrastructure for trade development and promotion; and trade information. Medium-term results will be achieved by translating “lessons learned” to other existing or potential exporters in these sectors through broader-based technical cooperation activities. For more information, contact Rubens Lopes Braga, ITC Senior Trade Promotion Officer, at lopesbraga@intracen.org
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CD-based tools for trainers and business managers
ITC has four CD-ROM-based tools that help trainers diagnose business management problems, and address them strategically: • NEEDSME identifies managerial problem areas and the extent to which business objectives are achieved, both for firms and for industry sectors. It is available on CD-ROM, with an accompanying manual containing case studies. • DEMANDSME, a companion CD-ROM complete with a manual, creates questionnaires in any language that help users identify needs for training and counselling services. • PLANSME is a strategic business planning tool, also available on CD-ROM with a case-study manual. It allows managers to design business plans, step by step.
• The Export Fitness Checker is a CD-ROM and manual that helps managers determine whether their firms are ready to manage export transactions. • NEEDS ASSESSMENT is a manual that explains the coordinated use of the four CD-ROM-based tools outlined above, which can be used together or on a stand-alone basis. For more information, contact Osman Atac, ITC Senior Adviser on Training Capacity Development, at atac@intracen.org
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ITC’s Market Brief Programme
ITC’s Market Briefs are short market analyses, available in print and on ITC’s web site, which review export potential for products and markets of interest to developing countries. Below is a summary of a recent ITC Market Brief on Fruit and Vegetable Juices in the United Kingdom.
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Latest ITC Publications
International marketing and the trading system. 219 pages. Study dealing with marketing principles and key managerial decisions facing SMEs in developing and transition economies, in the light of the WTO Agreement and the multilateral trading system, it identifies and analyses regulatory problems in export markets; includes case studies illustrating in detail how business firms, in a variety of countries and industries, are affected by regulatory change and how they respond to it.
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ITC’s International Trade Bulletins
ITC produces a variety of international trade bulletins which complement ITC’s books and technical papers. To subscribe, contact the relevant sections of ITC listed below.
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ITC Technical Papers
Fibres and Textiles Industry at the Turn of the Century: Some Observations. 44 pages (Technical Paper). Background paper covering issues with significant impact on future development in international trade in textiles and clothing, focuses on WTO Agreement on Textiles and Clothing (coming to an end in 2004), and its consequences for the sector; examines anti-competitive practices, as well as individual regional and government policies; reviews supply and demand trends and prospects; environmental issues and their impact on sector.
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