Customs facilitates trade, contributes to national effort

Ramani Kangaraarachchi

The Sri Lanka Customs is dedicated to enforce revenue and social protection laws of the State while facilitating the trade with the objective of contributing to the national effort, said Associate Director, Centre for Custom and Excise Studies, University of Canberra, Australia, George Grace.

He was making a presentation on International capacity building initiative - Customs and Private Sector at the International Conference on Trade Facilitation organized by the Federation of Chambers of Commerce and Industry Sri Lanka FCCISL at the Cinnamon Grand Hotel on Friday.

Referring to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) he said that successful customs reform reduced clearance time and increase revenue, brings significant increases in customs revenue in countries with weak customs administrations and even moderate modernization initiatives can bring quantifiable improvements. He said that some show that customs revenue remained stable after significant cuts in tariffs.

According to Grace, The World Customs Organization (WCO) in 107 diagnostic missions have diagnosed that 69 countries are involved in Phase 2 implementation which includes the largest ever single consistent and coherent Global Diagnostic of Customs. It has delivered a detailed strategic plan in April, 2008 which included Sri Lanka, he said. It has also diagnosed the member development needs, strategic and operational needs.

According to the diagnostic findings fifty-one percent need fundamental reforms. The strategic diagnostic findings have revealed the necessity to improve business management skills and a more compliant industry culture and operational diagnostic findings stress the necessity to improve intelligence and risk management, further process simplification, improving relationship with trade, post clearance audit, improve anti smuggling audits and staff training and development.

The Commonwealth Secretariat, UK is assisting the Government through the FCCISL to highlight the recent international trade facilitation initiatives undertaken by international organizations for the benefit of local trade facilitation practitioners and policy makers, in the public and private sectors.

Advisors, Special Advisory Services Division, Commonwealth Secretariat Sujeewan Perera and Nikhil Treebhoohun were also present. Minister of Foreign Affairs Rohitha Bogollagama was the chief guest.