Customs Commissioner Rey Leonardo B. Guerrero facilitated the 4th Meeting of the National Single Window – Technical Working Group (NSW-TWG) on May 12, 2022, pursuant to the role of the Bureau of Customs (BOC) under Executive Order No. 482, s. 2005 “Creating the NSW Task Force for Cargo Clearance.”
The 4th NSW-TWG Meeting was attended by representatives from 54 Trade Regulatory Government Agencies (TRGAs) that are responsible for the issuance and approval of import and export permits, including the operation and maintenance of information technology (IT) instruments. Department of Finance Undersecretary Antonette C. Tionko was also present as the Permanent Alternate to the Chair, NSW Steering Committee (NSWSC).
The meeting highlighted the progress of activities and programs of the NSW-TWG in implementing the National Single Window (NSW) and the ASEAN Single Window (ASW) initiatives, as reported by Ms. Rhoan P. Escarmosa, Lead Secretariat of the NSW-TWG. The report also presented the activities of the NSW-TWG Clusters under the assigned Cluster Chairs from nominated TRGAs. These include the 3rd Meeting of the NSW-TWG Chemicals, Oils, Minerals, Environment, Drugs and Dangerous Goods (COMEDDG) Cluster chaired by STMO Director Atty. Luis Manuel M. Catibayan on December 13, 2021; the 3rd Meeting of the NSW-TWG ASEAN Single Window (ASW) Cluster chaired by DOF Director Angelica I. Sarmiento on March 10, 2022; and the 2nd Meeting of the NSW-TWG Ecozones and Freeport Zones Cluster chaired by PEZA Director General BGen Charito B. Plaza on March 17, 2022.
The Anti-Red Tape Authority (ARTA), NSW-TWG Vice-Chair for Onboarding Matters, reported the status of 21 TRGAs that are onboarded into the TRADENET platform – 4 of these are using the live environment, while 17 TRGAs are onboarded in the staging environment.
In addition, Deputy Commissioner Allan C. Geronimo, NSW-TWG Vice Chair for Technical Matters, provided an intervention covering the activities in implementing the Framework Agreement on Facilitation of Cross-border Paperless Trade in Asia and the Pacific.
The NSW-TWG further agreed to endorse the implementation of the proposed activities and international technical assistance from the USAID ASEAN Project Implementation (API) Project, and the UN Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP) to the NSWSC during its next meeting.
In his closing address, Commissioner Guerrero expressed the BOC’s commitment in leading inter-agency collaborations among participating TRGAs through the NSW-TWG and encouraged all members to work together in resolving technical and operational challenges
