Establishing NTFC - Myanmar wkshop - Day 2- session 4 ......Focal Point (ENFP)* in 2010 Scope of...

National Workshop on Trade Facilitation and the Implementation of the WTO Trade Facilitation Agreement

Nay Pyi Taw, Myanmar

4-5 June 2015

The Government of the Republic

of

the Union of Myanmar

National Workshop on Trade Facilitation and the Implementation

of the WTO Trade Facilitation Agreement, Nay Pyi Taw, 4-5 June 2015

Establishing National Trade

Facilitation Committee

by

Dr. Yann Duval, Chief, Trade Facilitation Unit,

Trade and Investment Division, UN ESCAP

The Government of the Republic

of

the Union of Myanmar

• Background and rationale for an NTFC

• WTO Article 23.2

• UN/CEFACT Recommendation No.4

• General Step-by-Step Approach to Establishing an NTFC

• NTFCs Around the World

• UNCTAD survey 2013 – key findings

• WCO survey 2014

• Establishing an effective NTFC in Myanmar?

• Part of the Institutional Arrangements of the Agreement

� MANDATORY

• Must be implemented upon entry into force of the WTO TFA (2016?)

• Complete flexibility on organization, structure…

“National Committee on Trade Facilitation - Each Member

shall establish and/or maintain a national committee on

trade facilitation or designate an existing mechanism to

facilitate both domestic coordination and implementation of

the provisions of this Agreement."





• NTFCs Around the World


• WCO survey 2014


Source:

http://www.unescap.org/resources/designing-and-implementing-trade-facilitation-asia-and-pacific-2013-update

Designating A Lead Trade Facilitation Agency

Factors to consider when choosing the lead agency

(i) the envisaged focus and scope of the trade facilitation efforts;

(ii) the commitment of the agency to trade facilitation and competitiveness;

(iii) the capacity (intrinsic authority and experience) of the agency to coordinate and communicate with the other agencies involved, as well as the private sector; and

(iv) the capacity of the agency to mobilize the necessary level of political support, and dedicate adequate and sustainable financial and human resources to trade facilitation.

While public agencies involved in trade have different objectives, they have to coordinate their

actions before any public–private collaboration. This may be done by appointing a lead ministry

or agency to handle trade facilitation matters or to act as a national focal point.

Source:


Establishing A National Trade Facilitation

Body

2.1 Terms of Reference of the National Trade Facilitation Body

2.2 Composition of the National Trade Facilitation Body

2.3 Structure and Function of the National Trade Facilitation Body

2.4 National Trade Facilitation Body Secretariat and Technical Team

After designating a lead agency for trade facilitation the next step is to establish a national

trade facilitation body (institutional structure) that will bring together all the diverse parties

with interest in trade facilitation and provide an effective and coherent mechanism for

identifying problems and developing solutions. The NTFB should be established by the lead

agency to cover the following four items.

develop measures to reduce the cost and

improve the efficiency of internationalt

rade

identify issues affecting the cost and

efficiency of their country’s international

trade

assist in the implementation of the measures

provide a national focal point for the

collection and dissemination of

information on best practices in

international trade facilitation

participate in international efforts to

improve trade facilitation and

efficiency

ensure consistency of

adopted measures with national policies and international

obligations

Based on the WTO TFA text:

• Facilitate domestic

coordination on TF

• Facilitate implementation

of the provisions of the

WTO TFA

Source:


The NTFB should have a balanced membership from both public and private sectors and

should be representative of the stakeholders involved in trade facilitation. A non-exhaustive

list of organizations that should be considered for inclusion in the NTFB is provided in Table

3.2, categorized under three main trade stakeholder groups.

Source:


To be effective, the NTFB needs to be correctly positioned within the chain of authority.

The NTFB should have a knowledgeable technical team and secretariat.

To increase stakeholder ownership and avoid government bureaucracy, the secretariat may be housed in a representative private sector organization willing to champion trade facilitation.

At least in the initial stages, the government should provide financial support to the secretariat.

The development of formal and informal linkages between the NTFB and regional or global trade bodies and networks should generally be supported, as this will allow the NTFB to facilitate trade processes beyond its own borders for the benefit of its national stakeholders.

Source:






• Experience of NTFCs Around the World


• WCO survey 2014


Pro-committees

NTFCs / NTTFCs

WTO TF

negotiations

Committees /

Support Group

• Did your Government establish or maintain a NCTF?

• 23 (of 66 respondents) had NCTFs in place:

• 15 Members had designated already existing Committees to carry

out the roles and responsibilities of an NCTF

• What is the role of Customs in the NCTF?

• Chair: 5 NCTF; Co-Chair: 2; Vice-Chair: 7; Other: 9

• What is the level of Participants?

• High-level: 2 NTFC; Director level: 3; Technical-level: 4;

Mixed Director & below: 5; Mixed Ministerial to Technical: 9

• Does the Committee have a Secretariat of its own?

• Yes 15 (13 MoC); No 6

• How many Members are there in the Committee?

• 5 to 43*Released April 2015 at:

http://www.wcoomd.org/en/topics/wco-implementing-the-wto-atf/~/media/279C3BBB7C9447A0860420F87ED0F827.ashx

Existing Mechanism: The NTFC is called the Trade Facilitation Secretariat (TFS),

established under the National Steering Committee for Economic Integration

(NSCEI) in 2010

Scope of Work & TOR: Coordinating and facilitating trade by focusing on simplifying administrative procedures and easing trade barriers to support and

promote expansion of trade

• Created the National TF Strategic Plan (2011-2015) in 2011

Chair: Vice Minister of Industry and Commerce

Vice Chairs: DGs of Import & Export, Customs, Transport, and Agriculture

Secretariat: Department of Import and Export, Ministry of Industry and Commerce

Membership: DDGs of related line departments and chambers of commerce

Level of Representation/Organizational Structure (next slide)

Frequency of Meetings: ordinary meetings twice a year, with special meetings

organized to resolve important and urgent issues. The TFS shall report

regularly to the NSCEI and share minutes of meetings with the line ministries

and other concerned organizations.

Funding: a budget aligned with the budget plan of the NSCEI and approved by the Ministry of Industry and Commerce

Organizational Structure





• Experience of NTFCs Around the World


• WCO survey 2014


Issues to consider/discuss:

1. Existing mechanism OR establishment of a new one

[what are existing related bodies/mechanisms?]

2. Purpose / Scope of work

3. Terms of reference / functions

4. Chairmanship

5. Membership

6. Level of representation of Members

7. Organizational structure [incl. Secretariat & working groups]

8. Technical support to NTFC

9. Funding & resources

10.Other considerations?

[For reference in

Small group discussion]

Annex - Reference Material on establishing an NTFC

• Part 3, Chapter 3, Guide to Implementation, DESIGNING AND

IMPLEMENTING TRADE FACILITATION in A-P (ADB-ESCAP, 2013) http://www.unescap.org/sites/default/files/6%20-

%20Part%20III_Guide%20To%20Implementation%E2%80%94Moving%20Forward.pdf

• UN/CEFACT Rec. 04 + Guidelines on Establishment of National Trade

and Transport Facilitation Body (2000) http://tfig.unece.org/contents/recommendation-4.htm

• Guidelines being updated (2015); draft available for public review at: http://www1.unece.org/cefact/platform/display/CNP/Revision+of+Recommendation+4+on+National+

Trade+Facilitation+Bodies+and+its+guidelines

• ESCAP GUIDELINES ON ESTABLISHING AND STRENGTHENING NATIONAL

COORDINATION MECHANISMS FOR TTF (2010; focus on transport facilitation): http://www.unescap.org/sites/default/files/0%20-%20Full%20Report_12.pdf

• National TF Bodies in the World (UNCTAD, 2014): http://unctad.org/en/pages/newsdetails.aspx?OriginalVersionID=928&Sitemap_x0020_Tax

onomy=UNCTAD%20Home

• Including online repository on National TF bodies

• Pakistan and Mongolia case studies (APTFF 2014)

http://unnext.unescap.org/tfforum14-presentations.asp

Existing Mechanism: The National Task Force Committee on Trade Facilitation, established under the Sub-Committee on

Trade Facilitation of the Enlarged National

Focal Point (ENFP)* in 2010

Scope of Work & TOR: Facilitates domestic

coordination on trade issues and

implementation of the WTO TFA provisions

Chair: Ministry of Trade

Vice Chair: Nigeria Customs Service

Secretariat: Ministry of Trade

Membership: 21 related line agencies and chambers of commerce

Frequency of Meetings: not specified

Funding: not specified

*ENFP is an inter-ministerial committee

on domestic trade and multilateral trade

matters

Chair

Ministry of Trade

Working Group on

Regulatory and

Infrastructure Issues

Task Force Committee on

Trade Facilitation

Vice Chair

Nigeria Customs Service

Working Group on

Trade Process

Streamlining


Existing Mechanism: The National Trade and Transport Facilitation Committee (NTTFC) is a public/private sector joint venture created in August 2001

Scope of Work & TOR: Main tasks include the modernization of border control and

Customs procedures; improvement of

trade and transport logistics;

modernization of transport legislation;

accession to international conventions;

bilateral and multilateral transit trade

and transport agreements; and the WTO

TFA

Chair: Secretary, Ministry of Commerce

Secretariat: Ministry of Commerce

Membership: 38 members comprising

related federal ministries, public sector

organizations, chambers of commerce,

trade associations and terminal operators

Chairperson

Secretary

Ministry of Commerce

CommitteesBoard of Directors

Working Groups

Executive Secretary

Deputy Secretary

Secretariat

Frequency of Meetings: not specifiedFunding: not specified

Existing Mechanism: The Sub-Committee on Rules and Other Disciplines, under the Technical Working Group on WTO Matters (TCWM) of the Trade and Related

Matters (TRM) Committee* of the National Economic Development Authority

(NEDA) is the interim national WTO TF committee. The TRM Committee was

established in 1987.

Scope of Work & TOR: The Sub-Committee on Rules and Other Disciplines of the

TCWM, which also handles trade facilitation matters (among other issues),

functions to discuss and recommend Philippine positions/strategies on trade

rules and related topics with direct relevance to the country’s implementation

of its WTO commitments and continuing participation in the MTS.

Chair: Director, Bureau of International Relations, Department of Trade & Industry

Secretariat: WTO Desk of the Bureau of International Relations

Membership: not specified




Philippine NCTF FOCAL POINTS1. NCTF Coordinator / Lead Agency:

Bureau of International Trade Relations (BITR)

Director (Agency Head)

Secretariat: WTO Desk of BITR

2. Officials responsible to coordinate with

donors:

Two BOC Deputy Commissioners

(Deputy Agency Heads)

3. Geneva Delegate:

Philippine Mission to the WTO Representatives

(Commercial Attache)

NCTF

NEDA

TRM Cabinet

Committee

National Economic

Development

Authority (NEDA)

Trade Related Matters

Committee (TRM)

Interim National

Committee on Trade

Facilitation (NCTF)


Existing Mechanism: The Networking Committee on Trade Policy and Procedures Simplification (NCTPPS), under the Export Development Council (EDC), which

was established in 1994.

Scope of Work & TOR: EDC-NCTPPS is a Policy Networking Committee of the EDC

that 1) recommends trade policies that would strengthen the export industry; 2)

simplifies systems and procedures pertinent to export to reduce the (a) cost of

doing business and b) turnaround time and signatures; 3) optimizes the use of ICT

in streamlining the systems and procedures pertinent to export; and 4) assists in

ensuring that the tariff structures favor national interest.

Chair: Trustee, Philippine Exporters Confederation, Inc.

Vice Chair: Deputy Commissioner, Bureau of Customs

Secretariat: Export Development Council

Membership: Export Development Council (EDC), Export Management Bureau (EMB),

Philippine Exporters Confederation (PhilExports), Bureau of Customs (BOC),

Philippine Economic Zone Authority (PEZA), among others

Organizational Structure: The EDC is an attached agency of the Department of

Trade and Industry



Existing Mechanism: The National Committee on Trade Facilitation (NCTF), established under Customs in compliance with the WTO TFA Article 23.2 in

June 2014 (no new legislation)

Scope of Work & TOR: Responsible for identifying Category B & C commitments

to be notified to the WTO, expediting the national ratification procedure for

the TFA, ascertaining the capacity building and financial needs of border

agencies on Category C commitments, and liaising with donor agencies and

Government to secure funding for implementation of Category C commitments

Chair: Director General of Customs

Secretariat: not specified

Membership: 9 members of agencies involved in border procedures and the

chamber representing the private sector trading community of Sri Lanka




Chairperson

DG of Customs

Technical Committee

Representatives nominated

by Members* of the NCTF

Customs

Working Group

Coordinates with NCTF and the technical

Committee on matters related to the TFA

Advises the NCTF on technical matters

National Committee on Trade

Facilitation

Functions:

Members: Heads of Customs, Commerce, Trade and Investment Policy (under Ministry of Finance), Health

Services, Department of Agriculture, Sri Lanka Standard Institution, Import & Export Control Department,

Exchange Control Department, Sri Lanka Ports Authority, Chamber of Commerce of Sri Lanka


Pasadilla and Liao (2005). Does the Philippines Need a Trade Representative Office? Philippine Institute for Development Studies. Discussion Paper Series No.

2005-26.

Nghardsaysone, Konesawang (2014). Trade Faciliation Committee and Trade

Portal in Lao PDR (Presentation). World Bank Group 2014.

Lao PDR National Steering Committee for Economic Integration (2010). Agreement on the Structure and Role of the Trade Facilitation Secretariat.

http://www.laotradeportal.gov.la/kcfinder/upload/files/TFSA_Eng.pdf

World Customs Organization(2014). NCTF Case Studies.http://www.wcoomd.org/en/topics/wco-implementing-the-wto-atf/national-

committees-on-trade-facilitation.aspx

Mansoor, Javaid (2014). National Experience in Stakeholder Engagement and

Inter-Agency Coordination of National Trade and Transport Facilitation Committee,

Pakistan (Presentation). Asia Pacific Trade Facilitation Forum 2014.

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