Finance Secretary Carlos Dominguez III has underscored the critical role of the newly formed Philippine Trade Facilitation Committee (PTFC) in enabling the country’s micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) to actively participate in international trade and broaden their access to global value chains.
During the first meeting of the PTFC on Wednesday morning, Dominguez said the Committee’s primary task of streamlining trade processes and modernizing major customs operations will be beneficial to MSMEs, which often lack access to the global markets and have no financial capacity to overcome the inefficiencies of the trading system.
The PTFC was created through Executive Order (EO) No. 136, which was issued last May 18 by President Duterte to enable the Philippines to comply with its commitments under the World Trade Organization-Trade Facilitation Agreement (WTO-TFA).
The WTO-TFA mandates each member-state to 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 the agreement.
“Our work is especially critical for the micro, small and medium enterprises or MSMEs that often do not have the financial capacity to overcome the inefficiencies of the trading system and lack access to the global markets. What we aim to accomplish here will allow them to actively participate in international trade and broaden their access to the global value chains,” Dominguez said.
He said the spillover effects of improved trade processes and customs administration will create more jobs, bring in more possible investments, and help advance the skills and capabilities of Filipino workers and local entrepreneurs.
“All these will support the sustainable and long term growth of the economy,” said Dominguez, who was designated as PTFC chairman.
He said the expansion of the Philippines’ trade markets is among the vital factors that would aid the country’s post-pandemic recovery, which is why it is crucial for the government to continuously strive for a modern, more efficient administration of customs standards, rules and processes.
“The role of this committee is very crucial to the attainment of that goal. This committee was not just created to simply comply with our commitments under the World Trade Organization. This was formed to ensure that we remain competitive in the continuously evolving global trade landscape,” he said during the meeting.
Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) Secretary Ramon Lopez sits as co-chairman of the PTFC, with the Bureau of Customs (BOC) serving as the Committee Secretariat.
Dominguez said harmonizing the Philippines’ trade processes and modernizing customs operations will allow the country to thrive in the digital economy; make trade transactions cheaper, more efficient and transparent; enhance revenue generation; and allow the government to pinpoint sources of administrative inefficiencies and corruption.
These will also lead to a more conducive trading environment for businesses, which, in turn, will increase the country’s trade volumes and reduce costs for both consumers and producers, he added.
The other members of the PTFC are ranking officials from the Departments of Agriculture (DA), of Foreign Affairs (DFA), of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR), and of Transportation (DOTr); National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA); Tariff Commission (TC); Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP); DTI-Bureau of International Trade Relations (BITR); DTI-Bureau of Import Services (BIS); Food and Drug Administration (FDA); and the Philippine Economic Zone Authority (PEZA).
Official representatives of the member-agencies to the PTFC were appointed during the meeting.
Also invited to the meeting were representatives from the World Bank (WB), who briefed the PTFC on the role of national trade facilitation committees and shared the best practices of other countries that have put in place these mechanisms.
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