St. Kitts and Nevis deposited its instruments of acceptance with the WTO Secretariat on 17 June. With the acceptance by St. Kitts and Nevis, the number of TFA ratifications now stands at 82, meaning the WTO has received just over three-quarters of the ratifications needed to bring the Agreement into force.

The Trade Facilitation Agreement will enter into force once two-thirds of Members have domestically ratified a Protocol of Amendment and notified the WTO of their acceptance of this Protocol. 

Implementation of the WTO Trade Facilitation Agreement has the potential to increase global merchandise exports by up to $1 trillion per annum, according to the WTO’s flagship World Trade Report 2015. The Report also found that developing countries will benefit significantly from the TFA, capturing more than half of the available gains.

On 8 June the WTO hosted an experience-sharing event to help Members identify best practices and the challenges faced by WTO members in establishing or maintaining national trade facilitation committees.  It was the first such event to discuss how best to implement specific commitments under the TFA.  Experts from more than 20 countries and five international organizations made presentations at the workshop.