Laos signs GMS agreement to promote Customs Transit
(KPL) Commercial trucks from the Lao PDR, Thailand and Vietnam will be able to efficiently pick up and deliver goods in each other’s territory without transloading once the Customs Transit Guarantee System is signed.
The Lao Customs Department (LCD), Ministry of Finance, and the Lao International Freight Forwarders Association (LIFFA) signed an agreement on the operation of the Greater Mekong Sub-region’s Customs Transit Guarantee System (CTS).
The agreement is expected to promote transport and trade facilitation in the Greater Mekong Sub-region (GMS). Under the agreement, the LCD authorises the LIFFA to provide guarantee service to facilitate the passage of Vietnamese and Thai trucks carrying goods that are transiting the Lao PDR.
The agreement was signed in Vientiane on 23 February by the LIFFA President, Mr. Prachith Sayavong and Customs Department Director General, Mr. Santiphab Phomvihane.
The signing ceremony were attended by Lao Minister of Public Works and Transportation, Mr. Sommad Pholsena, Lao Minister of Finance, Mr. Somdy Douangdy, and Mr. Gil Hong Kim, Country Director, Asian Development Bank-Lao PDR Resident Mission. Senior officials from the Lao National Transport Facilitation Committee witnessed the signing ceremony.
The CTS is a scheme designed to facilitate efficient movement of goods in transit, under a system of secure seals and motor vehicles, standardised declaration documents and a reliable guarantee mechanism protecting the interests of all stakeholders. With the CTS, only one guarantee is used for the transit of goods through all transiting countries signatory to the agreement.
The board of trade of Thailand and Vietnam Automobile Transport Association, both guarantee organisations, signed a similar agreement with Thai Customs and Vietnam Customs, respectively, for the operation of CTS.
The CTS is one of the mechanisms for implementing the Cross-Border Transport Agreement (CBTA) among the GMS countries. The CBTA applies to selected and mutually agreed upon routes and points of entry and exit in the signatory countries.
Under the ADB-assisted GMS economic cooperation programme, GMS countries have forged a cross-border transport agreement, which ensures the smooth movement of people and goods across borders. The agreement provides a practical approach to streamline regulations and reduce non-physical barriers in the sub-region.
“The CBTA provides the legal instrument enabling the border crossing for vehicles, drivers, and goods,” said Yushu Feng, senior economist in ADB’s Southeast Asia Department. With the CBTA, time spent at borders could be reduced through the CTS and single-window inspection, improved at border facilities, communication system for information exchange, and advance information for clearance”.
The ADB is planning to have a kick-off meeting for the operation of the CTS along the East-West Corridor and conduct a hands-on demonstration on how to use CTS documents and to exchange bank guarantee letters from guarantee organisations.
In November 1999, the governments of the Lao People’s Democratic Republic, Kingdom of Thailand and Socialist Republic of Vietnam signed the agreement. In 2001, the Kingdom of Cambodia acceded to the CBTA, followed by PR China in 2002, and the Union of Myanmar in 2003.
The ADB, based in Manila, is dedicated to reducing poverty in Asia and Pacific region through inclusive economic growth, environmentally sustainable growth, and regional integration. Established in 1966, it is owned by 67 members – 48 from the region. In 2008, it approved $ 10.5 billion of loans, $811.4 million of grant projects, and technical assistance amounting to $ 274.5 millio n.
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