International Trade, Ecolabelling and Standards: A case study of the greater Mekong subregion

This case study examines the role of ecolabelling and environmental standards in the Greater Mekong Subregion (GMS) and the wider ASEAN region, highlighting how these tools often act as trade barriers for developing countries due to high implementation costs and a lack of domestic environmental consciousness.

• In the Greater Mekong Subregion (GMS), environmental standards and labelling are in early stages of development and are primarily driven by the need to comply with strict regulations in developed nations to ensure market access. Because the system is export-oriented, ecolabels are mostly found on industrial or manufacturing goods rather than primary or natural-based products.
• Several factors contribute to the limited adoption of environmental standards and ecolabelling in the GMS: a lack of familiarity with environmental issues among economic actors and policy-makers, a focus on exports that ignores the environmental impact of domestic consumption, high costs and complexity of implementation, and slow cooperation within the GMS and ASEAN.
• To improve the situation, the GMS and ASEAN should focus on building a culture of environmental consciousness through public capacity building and the creation of national standards bodies. Improving the knowledge of policy-makers regarding the links between trade and the environment is necessary to balance trade growth with environmental protection.

APA

Oraboune,, S. (2010). International Trade, Ecolabelling and Standards: A case study of the greater Mekong subregion. International Institute for Sustainable Development. https://www.iisd.org/publications/report/international-trade-ecolabelling-and-standards-case-study-greater-mekong

Chicago

Oraboune,, Syviengxay. International Trade, Ecolabelling and Standards: A case study of the greater Mekong subregion. International Institute for Sustainable Development, 2010. https://www.iisd.org/publications/report/international-trade-ecolabelling-and-standards-case-study-greater-mekong.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Oraboune, |first1=Syviengxay |title=International Trade, Ecolabelling and Standards: A case study of the greater Mekong subregion |publisher=International Institute for Sustainable Development |date=24 June 2010 |url=https://www.iisd.org/publications/report/international-trade-ecolabelling-and-standards-case-study-greater-mekong |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{oraboune2010international, author = {Oraboune,, Syviengxay}, title = {{International Trade, Ecolabelling and Standards: A case study of the greater Mekong subregion}}, institution = {International Institute for Sustainable Development}, year = {2010}, month = jun, url = {https://www.iisd.org/publications/report/international-trade-ecolabelling-and-standards-case-study-greater-mekong}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }