Brazil unlocks new trade roads with UN TIR system

The Federative Republic of Brazil has become the 79th contracting party to the United Nations TIR Convention.

Brazil has joined TIR, the only global transit system.

This landmark development paves the way for more efficient and secure trade in South America and globally.

IRU Secretary General Umberto de Pretto said, “Brazil’s accession to the global TIR transit system is a transformational milestone for the country and region.”

“With TIR, Brazil can significantly elevate the efficiency and security of trade with its neighbouring countries and far beyond. This is what TIR, the UN’s longest-running public-private partnership, has been doing for over 75 years,” he added.

The UN-backed TIR system will help Brazil and South America maximise investment in the Bioceanic Corridor, which will connect the Atlantic and Pacific oceans through Brazil, Paraguay, Argentina and Chile.

The Bioceanic Corridor will reinforce Brazil’s leadership in regional connectivity and elevate its role in South America’s logistics landscape. Yet its competitiveness would be undermined without harmonised border processes. TIR is key to delivering on the corridor’s potential.

“Coupling this major infrastructure investment with the proven trade facilitation tool that is TIR is pivotal to the Bioceanic Corridor’s success,” said Umberto de Pretto. “Infrastructure is crucial, but so are harmonised cross-border processes. The corridor otherwise risks becoming just another road route, lacking the competitiveness needed to attract investment and trade.”

IRU created TIR in 1949. It became a United Nations convention in 1959, which was later replaced by the current TIR Convention in 1975 following the advent of containerisation, which made TIR applicable to multimodal movements.

Tried and tested, TIR cuts border transit times by up to 92% and lowers transport costs by up to 50%.