HCM City – Trade facilitation is one of the most important priorities for APEC, a meeting of the  Committee on Trade and Investment – Friends of the Chair on Trade Facilitation heard in HCM City on Thursday.

“APEC has been leading the world in trade facilitation, and we are now hoping to contribute to the implementation of trade facilitation by members,” Marie Sherylyn D. Aquia, supervising trade and industry development specialist, Bureau of International Trade Relations, the Philippines’ Department of Trade and Industry, who chaired the meeting, said.

“Today we are drafting a monitoring framework for the supply chain framework action plan, which is now in phase 2. We would also try to address five chokepoints that will decrease the cost of doing business and also improve the efficiency and reliability of supply chains.”

The first of the five chokepoints she referred to is the lack of co-ordinated border management and underdeveloped border clearance and procedures.

The second is the inadequate quality and lack of access to transport infrastructure and services.

Member economies need to improve transportation infrastructure, which would determine the efficiency and reliability of supply chain operations, and ensure there are good port facilities and cross-border logistics co-operation to enable firms can send their goods at the required time as demanded by partners and customers, Aquia said.

It would also ensure shorter transit times and reliable delivery schedules and secure maritime trade at reasonable costs to promote multi-modal transportation to enhance transportation efficiency and reduce congestion, and encourage private participation and transparency in the financing of transport infrastructure, she said.

The third chokepoint is unreliable logistics services and high logistical costs.

The goals are to improve quality and options for logistics services through innovation and a more competitive market in logistics sector, and to have wider options to develop logistics services, Aquia said.

The fourth is the limited regulatory co-operation and best practices.

Aquia called for promoting better regulatory co-ordination and co-operation between trade authorities and private stakeholders.

The final problem is the underdeveloped policy and regulatory infrastructure for e-commerce.

Members need to streamline procedures, improve supply chain visibility and have better collaboration in e-commerce, Aquia said. -- VNS