The World Trade Organization (WTO) announced on Wednesday (16.09.2020) that the trade in medical products grew by 38,7 percent in the first half of 2020, the Secretariat said after a study carried out in 41 countries.
According to informative note, the shortage of personal protective equipment around the world during the initial phase of the Covid-19 pandemic decreased, as both the Production and trade expanded to meet the unprecedented peak demand.
The duties, taxes and charges on medical products and other essential supplies have been eliminated or temporarily deferred by 40 WTO member nations, including 12 G20 members, the communication added.
These actions, he noted, help reduce the cost of goods needed to combat the pandemic for both the health sector and the general public.
Measures to reduce or eliminate import tariffs accounted for around Two-thirds of import trade facilitation measures notified to the WTO, the international organization revealed.
He also elaborated, Customs procedures and border clearance for critical Covid-19 medical products have been accelerated by cutting red tape.
Actions taken by members include establishing priority clearance channels, reducing and simplifying electronic processing and documentation requirements, and enhancing border agency cooperation.
In addition, expedited transit procedures They have also helped landlocked countries improve their access to essential supplies.
On the other hand, the WTO added that measures have been taken measures to improve the regulatory approval and cooperation on standards for traded goods, including measures to speed up regulatory assessments, recognising the results of foreign regulators and allowing remote or electronic conformity assessment procedures, the WTO said.
Also, measures related to the Intellectual Property Rights (PI) to facilitate innovation in
and access to COVID-19-related technologies, the WTO reported.
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