The Department of Trade and Industry (DTI), in collaboration with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Regional Integration Supported by European Union (ARISE), held a three-day national workshop on the process of non-tariff measures (NTM) identification, classification and upload on trade repositories. This was held on 22-24 March 2017 at the City Garden Grand Hotel, Makati City.
Initiated by the DTI-Bureau of Import Services (BIS), the workshop aimed to revisit key concepts, guidelines and processes for uploading trade-related information on the Philippine National Trade Repository (PNTR), particularly data related to NTMs. NTMs are policy measures which can affect international trade of goods.
“Though PNTR can easily be viewed live, there are still a number of elements that need to be enhanced,” DTI-BIS Director Luis M. Catibayan explained.
The workshop also intends to provide trade regulatory agency officials in the country with practical knowledge on web-linking the contents of the PNTR to the ASEAN Trade Repository (ATR).
“This is important to promote greater transparency on rules and regulations related to trade,” ARISE Institutional Strengthening Expert Paolo R. Vergano said.
Representatives from DTI and non-DTI agencies attended the workshop. These include DTI bureaus/ offices namely, the Bureau of Philippine Standards (BPS) and Fair Trade Enforcement Bureau (FTEB) as well as other agencies such as the Bureau of Animal Industry (BAI), Bureau of Plant Industry (BPI), National Meat Inspection Services (NMIS), Food and Drugs Administration (FDA), Sugar Regulatory Administration (SRA), Optical Media Board (OMB), Maritime Industry Authority (MARINA) and Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP), among others.
Experts from several government and non-government institutions shared their knowledge on different topics:
- Mr. Paolo R. Vergano facilitated the training on ATR, PNTR and NTM Identification and Classification Disciplines;
- Director Luis Catibayan tackled the PNTR, particularly its development and its current collection;
- Manila International Container Port District Collector Vincent Phillip C. Maronilla briefed the participants on the Customs Regulated Import List (CRIL).
- To conclude the three-day workshop, the agencies laid down their concerns and current needs of the PNTR Technical Working Group to identify the additional assistance to be provided by ARISE.
The PNTR is an online portal which contains comprehensive and updated information on trade related matters. It was established as part of the country’s commitment to the ASEAN Trade In Goods Agreement (ATIGA). An Ad-Hoc Technical Working Group headed by BIS set-up and maintains the portal, accessible through https://pntr.gov.ph
ATR is the region-wide version of the online portal, which consolidates trade-related information from all member countries.
ARISE is a technical cooperation facility that supports the implementation of key initiatives under ASEAN integration.