Strengthening Inter-Agency Cooperation and Coordination in the Implementation of the Strategic Trade Management Act With a View to Enhancing Trade Facilitation: A Philippine Customs Perspective

Abstract

This paper provides insights into the state of play of inter-agency cooperation and coordination among government agencies in the Philippines involved in the implementation of the Strategic Trade Management Act, such as the Philippine Bureau of Customs, the Strategic Trade Management Office, and Investment Promotion Agencies (IPAs), which exercise control and supervision over registered enterprises in the freeport and economic zones in the Philippines. It will identify the challenges faced by customs officers in the facilitation of exports of potentially strategic goods requiring referral to the licensing agency for technical reachback, the complexity of commodity identification, which impacts frontline officers’ ability to identify strategic goods, and the non-integration of export declaration systems utilised by exporters in the freeport and economic zones with customs’ export declaration system. The paper also outlines recommendations and solutions to the challenges that confront Customs in the Philippines in effectively implementing strategic trade controls and facilitating legitimate trade in a timely manner.