20 April 2016: A report from the UN Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) maps “the new landscape” facing trade policymakers, noting that trade policy can play an important role in achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by enabling policy coherence at the national, regional and global levels.

The report, titled ‘Trading into Sustainable Development: Trade, Market Access and the Sustainable Development Goals,’ examines the interactions between market access conditions – customs tariffs, non-tariff measures (NTMs) and physical connectivity to markets – and the determinants of sustainable development. The authors explain that, by generating significant impact upon consumer welfare and the competitiveness of domestic industries, market access conditions in international trade are a key determinant of the effectiveness of trade as a means of implementation (MOI) for the SDGs. Consequently, the report examines interactions between trade policies with a focus on market access conditions.

The report considers, in Chapter 1, how well sustainable development concerns are integrated in trade policyamking, currently; in Chapter 2, the use of tariffs for development purposes, and trade-related indicators for the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development; in Chapter 3, how NTMs can act as a “policy interface” for trade the SDGs; and in Chapter 4, the importance of connectivity for market access, particularly maritime connectivity. [Publication: Trading into Sustainable Development: Trade, Market Access and the Sustainable Development Goals] [UNCTAD Press Release]