June 16, 2021
Carlos G. Dominguez
Secretary of Finance
Secretary Arthur Tugade; fellow workers in government; development partners: Good morning.
Thank you for making time for this first meeting of the Philippine Trade Facilitation Committee.
Among the vital factors that will aid our economic recovery is the expansion of our trade markets. It is therefore crucial that we continuously strive towards a modern and 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.
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.
Harmonizing our trade processes and modernizing major customs operations will bring forth dramatic reforms. These will allow us to thrive in the digital economy. Modern customs operations will make transactions cheaper, more efficient, and transparent. These will enhance revenue generation and allow us to pinpoint sources of administrative inefficiencies and corruption.
A streamlined, transparent, and efficient customs administration will result in a more conducive trading environment for all our businesses. This is expected to increase our trade volumes and reduce costs for consumers and producers.
The spillover effects to other industries will create more jobs, bring in more possible investments, and help advance the skills and capabilities of our workers and local entrepreneurs. All these will support the sustainable and long term growth of the economy.
We will begin our task today by formally accrediting the agency representatives constituting the Committee.
We also invited representatives from the World Bank to brief us on the role of the national trade facilitation committees. The Bank will likewise share the best practices of other countries so that we can learn from their experiences, and possibly even improve on them.
I look forward to a lively, energized, and a productive discussion today.
Thank you.
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