The United Kingdom government will provide US$2.4 million (£1.8 million) to United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) to help developing countries boost trade and recover from the Covid-19 pandemic.
UK minister for Asia and the Middle East, Amanda Milling, announced the funding on 4 March, which will extend the ongoing partnership of UNCTAD with the UK government that has supported over 25 countries to expedite the movement of goods and strengthen public-private collaboration, since 2015.
“Through simplifying, modernising and harmonising export and import processes, least developed and developing countries can increase their trading capacity and revenue, contributing to their sustainable economic growth,” said Milling.
The new funding represents a 102% increase in funding from the previous US$1.2 million (£880,000) provided by the UK government for UNCTAD’s work on trade facilitation.
UNCTAD secretary-general Rebeca Grynspan said, “The United Kingdom is a valued partner for UNCTAD and has provided key support to developing and least developed countries since 2015 to ensure trade efficiency.”
The work is part of the UK-funded “Accelerate Trade Facilitation” programme. Its next phase will concentrate on strengthening countries’ capacity to better respond to future crises, furthering the digitalisation of trade procedures and targeting trade-related bottlenecks, according to a statement.
Additionally, it will continue to foster gender equality and diversity, while also assisting administrations to assess policies, practices and activities to develop concrete recommendations for supporting gender mainstreaming reform.
