African exporters are facing a growing and often overlooked burden from non-tariff measures, with a new UNCTAD policy update warning that compliance costs are now outweighing tariffs for most countries and are hitting developing economies especially hard.
The report, Invisible Barriers: The Costs of Non-Tariff Measures, says trade-related regulations have become more interventionist in recent years, driven by national security concerns, industrial policy and geopolitical tensions. While tariff rates rose sharply in 2025, UNCTAD found that non-tariff measures still impose higher costs on exports for 88 percent of countries, including many in Africa.
UNCTAD said the problem is particularly severe for smaller developing countries and least developed countries, which often lack the technical capacity, laboratories, certification bodies and administrative systems needed to comply with changing requirements. In some cases, exporters must route goods through third countries just to secure compliance documentation. The agency estimates that least developed countries lose about 10 percent of their exports to G20 markets because of their inability to meet these standards.
The report argues that the issue is not simply one of tariffs or market access, but of regulatory complexity. Non-tariff measures include import licensing rules, quotas and bans, but they also cover technical measures aimed at health, safety and environmental protection. While many such rules serve legitimate public policy goals, they can still create major trade costs through certification, labeling, inspection and information requirements.
For Africa, the implications are significant. UNCTAD says the cost of technical measures in Africa remains high, and the potential benefits of regulatory cooperation are large. In the agri-food and manufacturing sectors, stronger alignment of rules could reduce technical trade costs by 30 to 40 percent. The report says even limited cooperation among African countries, including mutual recognition of standards and better transparency around regulations, could improve South-South trade and make regional integration under the African Continental Free Trade Area more effective.
The update also warns that African exporters are often disadvantaged by weak transparency. Many trade measures are notified to the World Trade Organization too late, incompletely or not at all, making it difficult for firms—especially smaller ones—to understand which rules apply. UNCTAD says better transparency could reduce non-tariff trade costs by about 19 percent.
At the same time, developing countries have become more active in defending their interests in the WTO, while least developed countries remain underrepresented in trade diplomacy. UNCTAD says this “diplomatic silence” limits the ability of poorer countries to challenge restrictive measures or seek clarification on rules that may block their exports.
The report also highlights a broader shift in global trade policy. After years of tariff decline, the world is now seeing more trade intervention, with recent years marked by the COVID-19 pandemic, the war in Ukraine and new tariff hikes from the United States. Trade negotiations are increasingly focused on regulatory and administrative issues such as standards, conformity assessment, local content rules and import licensing, rather than tariffs alone.
UNCTAD says this makes regulatory cooperation more important than ever. It argues that countries should align domestic rules with international standards, strengthen notification systems and improve access to trade information. For Africa, the report says, these measures could help turn regional trade into a stronger engine of growth at a time when external market access is becoming more complicated.
The publication concludes that while non-tariff measures often pursue legitimate goals, their rising cost burden risks undermining decades of progress in trade liberalization. Without transparency, capacity-building and stronger regulatory cooperation, UNCTAD warns, African exporters will continue to face an uneven playing field in global and regional trade.
