The Czech Republic has committed CZK 550,000 (approximately CHF 22,000) in 2021 to help developing countries and least-developed countries (LDCs) implement the WTO’s Trade Facilitation Agreement (TFA) and to support the objective of achieving full implementation of the Agreement by all WTO members.

The contribution to the Trade Facilitation Agreement Facility (TFAF) will finance capacity-building activities in developing countries to help them implement the Agreement. The TFAF assists these countries by providing training activities and by identifying partners to fund these activities, including through its own grant programme. To date, 154 members have ratified the Agreement, representing close to 94 per cent of the membership.

WTO Director-General Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala said: “I thank the Czech Republic for generously contributing to helping developing countries and LDCs harness the benefits of the Trade Facilitation Agreement. Encouraging governments to take trade facilitation measures, making sure that no red tape, no bureaucracy is holding goods up at the ports will be essential to help bring more economic prospects to the people of these countries.”

The Czech Republic's Permanent Representative to the WTO, Ambassador Václav Bálek, said: “ Implementation of the Trade Facilitation Agreement can help address many inefficiencies in international trade. The TFA has become even more important in the context of the COVID‑19 pandemic. We highly value the assistance the Trade Facilitation Agreement Facility is providing to developing countries and LDCs and its significant contribution towards these countries' integration into regional and global trade.”

This is the Czech Republic's second donation to the TFAF. Overall, the Czech Republic has donated CHF 400,000 (CZK 9.7 million) to the various WTO trust funds over nearly 20 years.