Ibrahima Nour Eddine Diagne, Director General of GAINDE 2000, has been elected as the president of the United Nations Centre for Trade Facilitation and Electronic Business (UN/CEFACT) for the 2026-2029 term. This marks a significant milestone as he is the first representative from the Global South to hold this position. The election took place during the plenary session of UN/CEFACT in Geneva. Diagne will lead the organization with ten vice-presidents representing various countries.
The UN/CEFACT plays a crucial role in developing standards to simplify, harmonize, and digitalize commercial procedures. The organization is affiliated with the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE). Its work impacts public administrations, economic operators, customs authorities, transport actors, and enterprises involved in international logistics chains. UN/CEFACT has developed 49 policy recommendations and nearly 900 data standards and models.
These standards and recommendations serve as references for countries aiming to modernize their import and export procedures, reduce administrative formalities, and improve information circulation among trade actors. Notable developments include standards for single windows, which centralize external trade formalities, and the UN/LOCODE system, used to harmoniously identify ports, airports, and other locations involved in international exchanges.
Interoperability of systems is a primary challenge in this standardization. It enables administrations and enterprises to exchange data in common formats, minimizing information disruptions, repetitive processing, and costs associated with cross-border procedures. Diagne's experience at GAINDE 2000, a Senegalese actor specializing in dematerializing external trade procedures, is crucial to his profile.
His election continues his work at GAINDE 2000, which provides solutions for digitalizing procedures, simplifying administrative steps, and connecting different logistics chain stakeholders. This national experience occurs as many African countries seek to enhance trade fluidity, particularly within the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA). Establishing interconnected digital systems and harmonizing procedures are essential to reducing non-tariff obstacles and improving African enterprise competitiveness.
As president of UN/CEFACT, Diagne will focus on strengthening the adoption of international standards, mobilizing expertise from different world regions, and promoting broader use of UN/CEFACT recommendations. His mandate begins during a period of profound transformation in international trade, driven by digital technologies, automation, dematerialization of commercial documents, and new traceability solutions.
In his first message after the election, Diagne emphasized the importance of mobilizing different world regions to contribute more experts to UN/CEFACT's work and announced a focus on using the organization's deliverables to enhance system interoperability and reduce trade costs. The adoption of shared standards is vital for developing economies, often confronted with fragmented digital infrastructures and administrative procedures reliant on physical documents.
Key points
- Ibrahima Nour Eddine Diagne, Director General of GAINDE 2000, elected as president of UN/CEFACT for 2026-2029.
- First representative from the Global South to hold the position of UN/CEFACT president.
- Diagne aims to enhance system interoperability and mobilize global expertise to reduce trade costs.
