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Shippers’ lobby says trials on new cargo clearance system impressive
A new regional cargo clearance system, presently being piloted at the Mombasa port, has raised hope in the fight against undervaluing of goods and illegal imports.
A shippers’ lobby termed the initial results from the ongoing trials on the Advance Cargo Shipment Information (ASHI) System as impressive.
“We will use the information that we are receiving from shippers to analyse their experience. If positive responses outweigh the negatives we will lobby to have Kenya adopt it,” Mr Gilbert Langat, the CEO of the Shippers Council of East Africa, told Shipping & Logistics.
The system, also referred to as Electronic Cargo Tracking Notes (ECTN), is envisaged to reduce congestion at the port and cut operation costs resulting from demurrage and storage charges for imports.
The system is also meant to improve efficiency and curb revenue leakage.
Cargo heading to Kenya will be covered by Electronic Cargo Tracking Notes or Cargo Shipment Information – a maritime document issued by the shipper at the loading port providing information including its flows to destination country.
The document will also include details of the shipper, description of the cargo including its value, country of origin, weight, freight rate and other additional charges.
“The pre-declared information will be visible to Kenyan customs officials before the cargo arrives at the port, making it possible for government agents to do clearance and intervention long before the cargo arrives at the port while also making it difficult for anyone to make illegal changes on the electronic document,” he said.
The shippers’ council has partnered with Antaser Afrique, a Belgium-based company, for the system dry run.
Shippers are required to fill maritime documents on the Antaser Afrique website to provide details of the shipment while attaching necessary documents as per the requirements of the local regulatory and intervening agencies in charge of clearing the goods.
The information is then verified upon which an ASHI/ECTN number for the cargo is provided.
After verification, the regulatory and clearing agencies will receive the information within 48 hours after loading from the port of origin.
The shippers’ council says the information will then be available to local regulators and agencies like the Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA), Kenya Ports Authority (KPA), and Kenya Bureau of Standards (Kebs) readying the goods for pre-clearance.
Tests on the system were rolled out on March 18 and involve exporters, importers, government and regulatory authorities, service providers, interveners and shipping lines.
Mr Langat said users are at the end of the two month window expected to provide feedback on the performance of the system to help decide on whether to adopt it or not.
Member countries of the East African Community (EAC) are currently operating a joint cargo clearing system known as the Single Customs Territory (SCT) to help beat tax cheats.
The SCT system allows joint collection of customs taxes by the EAC. Under the SCT deal that began in 2014, clearing agents within EAC have been granted the rights to relocate and carry out their duties in any of the partner states as part of a strategy to improve the flow of goods and curb dumping.
Kenya, Rwanda and Uganda were the first to take up the SCT arrangement on a phased pattern starting April 1, 2014, with Tanzania joining the scheme two months later.
The system is expected to be fully implemented by June 2016. Importers of commodities covered under the SCT are required to lodge import declaration forms in their home country and pay the relevant taxes to facilitate the export process.
The tax authorities in the respective countries then issue a road manifest against the import documents submitted electronically by the revenue authority of the importing country.
An audit of the SCT showed it is already yielding fruits for traders who are saving up to $300 (Sh30,000) per transaction through more efficient joint clearance of cargo at Mombasa port by EAC partner states.
The study further showed that cargo clearance time at the port has dropped to an average of four to six days, from 18 to 22 in 2013.
“Customs documentation requirements have been reduced by over 50 per cent and one customs agent is required to clear goods right from the Port of Mombasa or Dar-es-Salam to the Ugandan destination,” the Uganda Revenue Authority revealed in a performance update.
