Afghanistan's imports in1986). 2.Transport-relate4 tradeproblwms 36.Thelackofsovereign accelrtotheleaan~itsimplic~tions, exacerbated by theveryremoteness fromoverseas mark~ts andbygenerally poortransitfacilities, ~~verisetoadditional freight costs,additional transport timesandadditional transport risks. Thesefactors createanenvironment inwhichtheexporttradeof land-locked developing countries isseentobefundamentally unpredictable. Since, inmostcases,transit countries andtheirland-locked neighbours havethesame markettargets fortheirproducts, asuddensharp declin~ ~nthedemandfortheir exports could,withthereduced competitive ability, seriously threaten the survival ofthelend-locked countries. Furthermore, if~xporters inland-locked countries failtodeliver theirgoodsontime,theirnegotiated contract ilbroken, andthebuyercanrefusetoaccepttheconli9~m.nt. In1986,Burundi wasunableto takeadvantage ofhighcoffeepricesbecau.e ofinflexibility an~delaylinthe transit system. Suqarexporters inSwa.ila~~ limilarly f~ceasituation inwhich insurance companies aremoreandmorereluctant toinsuresugartransport onthe Ihortftlt andcheapest r~utesthrough Mozambique, following persistent derailments andpilferage. InChad,theeX.Q!nnery costofcottoniloneoftheloweltin /...A/44/588 English Page18 WestAfrica andChadian cottonisgoodquality ~ndfetches aslightly higherprice thantheworld pric~toracomparable stapleJength, butthecentr~ofthecotton p~oducing regionissituated 1,350kilometres fromDouala, thema10rportusedfor cottonexports. Theresulting highcostoftransportation affects boththef.o.b. exportcostsofcotton andthecostofimported inputsforcottonproduction to suchanextentthat,despite thelowproduction costsandhighqualitl, theissue oftheviability ofcottonproduction inCha~hasbeenraised. Attempts todevelop newexport commOdities canalsobeeasilyfrustrated. NewcustomerA intheFederal Republic ofGermany, ItalyandFranceforMalawi's smalltextlle iaduetry became disillusioned intheearly1980swheninefficiencies inthetransit transport systemdelayed aconsignment andthesevital ma~kets werelost. 37.Transport-related tradeproblems havep&rticularly adversv conser,uences when theyaffectstrategic imports. InMalawiintheearly1980&,itwasestimated that transport-related delays iklthearrival offertilizers atthebeg~nning ofthe agricultural seasonwouldresultinthegrosedomestic produ~t being7percent lowerthanitwouldhavebeenifthefertilizcl's weretoarrive ontime.InChad, in1986,thec.i.f.costofpetroleum products was$600pertoninNdjamena while thesameproducts' c.i.f.costontheWestAfrican coastwas$150perton.Such highcostsradiate t~.rough theeconomy. Mor~over, because ofthehighCO.,tof transport, evenasignificant reduction inthointernational priceofoilhasa relatively smalleffect onthedelivered pric~. Whiletheaveragee.i,f.priceof petroleum products ontheWestAfrican coastdr.opped by40percentbetween 1985 and1986,thelandedcost i~Chaddecreased byonly15percent. 38.Another important consideration with r~6pact toimports isthatthehigher importpricesassociated withthecostsandr.isksoftransit-transport provide some opportunities forlocalimport substituti~n inland-locked countries. Such opportunities cannot, however, befullyexploited ingeneral, notonlybecause the domestic marketissmall,butalsobecause capital investment costsareinflated by thecostsoftrans-shipping heavyequipment andtherequired intermediate inputs. Theaeareafewexamples ofthetransport·~el~ted tradeproblems facedbyexporters andimporters inland-locked developing countries. Inshort,theyactasa deterrent toinvestment a~dgrowth. Land-locked countries maytrytoadjusttothe special constraints onaccesstooverseas markets andoverseas supplysources, but theseeconomic adjustments cannotwhollyoffsetthenegative impactofthese constraints ontheoverall economic performance. B.Tranait-transport constraints andthe balan~e:~ayments-tmplicationl 39.Thegeographical situation oftheland-locked developing countries reduces the volumeoftheirexporttrade. Exporttradevolumeispartlyreduced because resources thatcouldprofitably betransformed intoexport commodities ar8left unutilized asaresultoftransport disadvantages. Thetermsoftradeareworsened directly because borderpricesofexports aredepressed bythecostsandrisksof transit-transport whiletheborderpricesofimports aresimultaneously inflated. Thisconstellation offactors iscompounded uythefactthatcommodity buyersin
**Analysis**
The text primarily focuses on the challenges faced by land-locked developing countries in terms of international trade, particularly in regards to transportation costs, delays, and risks. It highlights the impact of these challenges on the economy, trade, and production of these countries, including the effects on agriculture, industry, and the overall economic performance. The text also touches on the opportunities for local import substitution, but emphasizes the difficulties in fully exploiting these opportunities due to the constraints on access to overseas markets and supply sources.

**Category**
International trade, Transport and communication