Obaid Salem Saeed Al Za'abi, UAE Permanent Representative to the United Nations Office in Geneva, delivered the ratification instrument of the UAE on the Trade Facilitation Agreement, or TFA, to Roberto Azevedo, Director-General of the World Trade Organisation.

Azevedo expressed his thanks and gratitude to the UAE for being the first Arab country to deposit its instrument of acceptance, hoping that other countries will see the UAE as a role model to follow in this regard.

The ceremony, which took place at WTO headquarters in Geneva, was also attended by Abdul Salam Al Ali, director of the UAE Office at the WTO.

Concluded at the WTO's 2013 Bali Ministerial Conference, the TFA contains provisions for expediting the movement, release and clearance of goods, including goods in transit. It also sets out measures for effective cooperation between customs departments and other appropriate authorities on trade facilitation and customs compliance issues. It contains provisions for technical assistance and capacity building in this area.

The TFA will enter into force once two-thirds of the WTO membership has formally accepted the agreement.

Meanwhile, the UAE remains one of the world's top trading economies, ranking 20^th globally and first in the Middle East and Africa in commodity exports.

It is also placed 19^th internationally in commodity imports and led the Mena region in overall commodity trade, with regional exports totalling $265 billion to account for 1.6 per cent of the worldwide total in 2015, according to WTO figures.