Trade Obstacles Alert Mechanism
Trade regulations and procedures represent a major source of obstacles to international trade and a particular challenge for small and medium-sized enterprises. The International Trade Centre’s Trade Obstacles Alert Mechanism (TOAM) is a tool to support businesses to overcome such trade barriers.
TOAM: a tool to identify and tackle trade barriers
ITC’s Trade Obstacles Alert Mechanism (TOAM) reports and tackles trade barriers faced by small and medium-sized businesses.
How can the Trade Obstacles Alert Mechanism work for you?
- Report and inform: Companies can report online the obstacles they face when exporting or importing.
- Dispatch automatic alerts: National authorities and trade operators will be mutually alerted about the obstacles reported and the responses provided.
- Monitor progress: Policymakers and trade support institutions can access an up-to-date information database on the obstacles faced by the private sector and put in place the appropriate policies.
What are the Trade Obstacles Alert Mechanism components?
- An online platform connecting companies and fostering the exchange of information about trade regulations and procedures between the private and public sectors.
- An institutional network ensuring the cooperation of different actors involved in the identification and resolution of problems reported through the online platform.
What are the impacts?
- Improving the business environment and regional economic integration by simplifying the flow of information between the public and private sectors.
- Assisting national and regional authorities in the design of trade facilitation policies.
- Providing the public and private sectors with the trainings and equipment needed to deepen the understanding of regulatory and procedural obstacles.
Video
12 April 2022
