At a seminar held on November 23, the private sector of Latin America presented its comments regarding the implementation of the Trade Facilitation Agreement and the digitalization of trade procedures, with a view to contributing to greater regional coordination.
At the event, organized by the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC) and the Latin American Integration Association (ALADI), in Uruguay, the results of the fifth edition of the Global Survey, conducted during the first half of 2023 with the participation of 26 countries in Latin America and the CaribbeanRepresentatives from the various subregional economic integration forums also discussed their progress and work agendas in the area of trade facilitation.
In this context, Fabián Villarroel, Director of Regulatory and Customs Affairs for South and Central America at DHL, widely acknowledged the importance of the survey that allows measuring the progress of the WTO Trade Facilitation Agreement. He also highlighted the efforts of countries to apply operational measures necessary to save time and costs associated with border customs procedures; in this regard, he underlined the impact of electronic commerce on the way of consumption.
As a party involved in trade facilitation, the private sector representative presented his opinion on some measures whose improvement could greatly speed up trade, namely:
Advance declaration: This mechanism that allows information on goods to be delivered prior to their arrival in the national customs territory “is not very common in the region.” Villarroel raised the importance of outlining “a cultural change” where instances of “true dialogue” are generated, pointing to the concept of “Voluntary Compliance” in Customs, a notion highlighted in the WCO Regulatory Framework.
Sanctioning Regime: Villarroel explained the reasons why the region suffers from “certain discretion” in terms of sanctions. He considered it necessary to continue with efforts to achieve uniformity.
Authorized Economic Operator (AEO) Program: The private sector representative suggested moving forward with the implementation of the OEA and the incorporation of other operators such as the courier industry. Also, promoting “proactive dialogue” among qualified operators to obtain facilities. He mentioned the good experiences obtained with the Customs of Paraguay and Guatemala.
Cross-border e-commerce: In this regard, the survey indicated that 15 of the 26 participating countries reported having a de minimis regime for shipments purchased through express services. Under this regime, such shipments valued below the respective de minimis threshold are subject to simplified customs procedures and exempt from the payment of import duties. Villarroel suggested, in this regard, intensifying efforts to unify the thresholds (Costa Rica has a de minimis of USD 100; Colombia claims to have a de minimis of USD 300, but it is only for shipments from the US, and Chile increased the de minimis from USD 30 to USD 41).
SMEs: Regarding small and medium-sized enterprises, she shared the results of the survey on advancing trade facilitation to promote the internationalization of these companies and intraregional trade, in which they have a large presence. She shared the experience with SIECA and Peru. In addition, she proposed incorporating questions referring to women and indigenous peoples in an effort to respond to the call to include more diverse voices in trade.
Single Window for Foreign Trade: In this regard, the lawyer stressed that the industry sector is working to ensure that countries' single windows have special modules for express shipments.
Lifting times: At this point, Villarroel spoke about the application of the Study of Rise Time both to measure performance and to improve it through the development of operational measures. He highlighted the experiences of Guatemala and Brazil, work carried out with the support of the WCO.
Infrastructure: In this category, it was considered important to improve transport infrastructure and logistics for more efficient and sustainable trade; he also stressed the urgency of allocating adequate resources to the maintenance and repair of infrastructure innovation existing."
In addition, Villarroel mentioned the initiative of "Green Customs", as well as the need to deepen the work of the private sector with customs to reduce the abandonment of goods and thus minimize the environmental impact. And he asked to include the issue of security, in international trade.
Experience has shown that public-private partnerships are essential to determine what traders and governments require and to implement any relevant measures to improve cross-border transactions.
“The ACF provides a common basis for moving forward in this regard. The ALADI house gives us an opportunity to do so. Also, the MERCOSUR Free Trade Agreement with the Pacific Alliance is a step forward. For this reason, the national trade facilitation committees should include more tools that foster dialogue with the private sector,” said Villarroel.
And most importantly, technological systems need to be supplied; “without this consideration, there is no facilitation possible,” he concluded.
Aduana News is the first Argentine customs newspaper to launch its digital version. With 20 years of experience, its publications and initiatives aim to provide the most relevant knowledge on customs issues in order to contribute to safe trade in the region.
