Trade facilitation and paperless trade implementation in Latin America and the Caribbean: Regional Report 2017

The considerable progress made by LAC countries in implementing trade facilitation measures at
the national level would have a greater impact on trade flows and production integration if such
advances are coordinated at the regional or subregional level. Central America is a good example, as
shown by its positive experience using several common trade facilitation instruments. More recently,
there have been encouraging developments in other parts of the region. In particular, the Pacific
Alliance has made great strides in the area of trade facilitation. This is evidenced by initiatives such as
the electronic exchange of origin and phytosanitary certificates among its four members (Chile,
Colombia, Mexico and Peru) and ongoing work towards mutual recognition of their respective
authorized operator schemes. Moreover, in April 2017 the members of the Pacific Alliance and
Mercosur (Latin America’s two largest economic integration mechanisms) agreed on a roadmap for
further cooperation, including several trade facilitation-related topics such as digital certification of
origin, customs cooperation and interconnection of electronic single windows.
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