Lao PDR has made progress in preparing for the country’s integration with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations’ “single window” system (ASW), with the National Single Window Steering Committee now formed. An official from the Ministry of Finance’s Customs Department revealed the progress at the 9th Meeting of the ASEAN Single Window Steering Committee that opened in Vientiane. “For our country, the National Single Window Steering Committee was formed with the Deputy Minister of Finance Mr Santiphab Phomvihane as its chairman,” said Mr Phoutthanikone Khennavong, the Acting Director of the International Customs Cooperation department. According to a provision of the ASW Agreement reached in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia in December 2005, and the ASW Protocol in December 2006, most individual ASEAN member countries are required to have their national single windows in place by 2008, while Cambodia, Laos, and Myanmar were given until 2012 to do so.
Mr Phoutthanikone said the relevant units have done sufficient work regarding projects such as the study on whether internal regulations support the policy. With support from the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and the ASEAN Secretariat, three meetings were held over the past two years to formulate a plan of action, with representatives from both the public and private sectors attending. The ASEAN Single Window constitutes the cornerstone of ASEAN connectivity and the realization of commitments to having the ASEAN Economic community by 2015. In his remarks at the meeting opening ceremony, Director General of Customs Department Mr Athsaphangthong Siphandone said Laos, as a member of ASEAN and the World Trade Organization, has accelerated efforts to modernize customs services to facilitate trade, logistics, and investment. “We have achieved activation of the automated System for Custom Data – the ASYCUDA World at the largest border checkpoint and its deployment to ten additional checkpoints in the country will be completed within the year,’ he said.
According to Mr Athsaphangthong, people have to understand that the National Single Window is more than a customs system, and various ministries of the Lao government have started the business review process and will possibly be re-engineering it in the near future. “We hope to have everything completed this year, which will open more opportunities for modernizing public services,” he added.
Source:
http://www.worklivelaos.com/laos-moves-towards-single-window-customs-system/
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