   
  
G/TBT/W/780  
 
20 December 2023  
(23-8715) Page: 1/2 
Committee on Technical Barriers to Trade  Original: English  
 
INTEROPERABLE DATA STANDARDS IN TRADE  
TENTH TRIENNIAL REVIEW  
Proposal from Australia  
The following submiss ion, dated 20 December  2023, is being circulated at the request of the  
delegation of Australia . 
 
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1  BACKGROUND  
1.1.  A number of thematic sessions during the 9th Triennial Review period explored matters relevant 
to digital trade. A recurring theme in all these sessions was the importance of interoperability and 
the value of international standards for achievin g it. This proposal is an extension of the exploration 
of these topics, considering these issues in the context of data standards.  
1.2.  Digitalisation and digital technologies may facilitate access to international markets and reduce 
the costs of entry, especia lly for MSMEs.  However, the growth of digital trade and the spread of its 
benefits is not guaranteed since divergent data standards may create incompatibilities which become 
barriers to cross -border trade and constrain the adoption of new technologies.  
1.3.  Incompatibilities may take the form of regulatory controls based on mandated local 
technologies, data localisation requirements, data flow restrictions, or privacy or security laws acting 
as trade barriers.  Large companies with resources for digital transfo rmation may also widen the 
existing digital divide by dominating smaller companies, including scenarios where proprietary 
systems become de facto  standards for key supply chain operations to the disadvantage of smaller 
companies.   
1.4.  Adoption by economies of interoperable data standards can accelerate the adoption of digital 
processes in support of a rules -based and open global trading environment.  Such an environment 
may reflect the high -level principles on digitalization of trade documents agre ed at the August 2023 
G20 Trade & Investment Ministerial Meeting, namely: 1. Neutrality, 2. Security, 3. Trust, 
4. Interoperability, 5. Data privacy, 6. Reliability, 7. Voluntary sharing of data, 8. Collaboration, 
9. Traceability, 10. Scalability .  
2  PROPOSAL  
2.1.  Australia proposes a thematic session to explore the importance of interoperable data 
standards for digital trade, with a view to:  
a. Supporting the reduction of barriers to trade; and  
b. Supporting a better understanding of the significance of interop erability in a data context.  
2.2.  Topics and areas of focus could include:  
a. The cross -sectoral relevance and application of data standards;  G/TBT/W/780  
 
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  b. Presentations by interested stakeholders, including Members, industry, international 
organizations, or non -government orga nizations, that have introduced or are in the 
process of introducing systems or regulations having cross -sectoral and 
cross-jurisdictional application that leverage interoperable data standards, with a view to 
identifying the necessary prerequisites for in teroperability, any implementation challenges 
and the potential for further extension.   
 
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