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

The report examines how ecolabelling, while intended as a trade-positive tool, often acts as a barrier to trade in developing countries due to high implementation costs. In the Greater Mekong Subregion, environmental standards are in early stages and are primarily driven by the requirements of developed country markets for industrial products, neglecting domestic environmental impacts. The document recommends building national standards bodies, increasing public capacity building, and improving policy-maker knowledge to balance trade growth with environmental protection.

• Environmental standards and labelling in most Greater Mekong Subregion (GMS) member countries are in their early stages and are largely reactive responses to strict regulations in developed nations.
• Ecolabelling in the GMS is predominantly focused on industrial and manufacturing goods for export, with very few labels applied to natural or primary products.
• The limited adoption of environmental standards in the region is driven by policy-maker unfamiliarity with environmental issues, the focus on export markets over domestic ones, high implementation costs, and slow cooperation within the GMS and ASEAN.

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} }