National Trade Facilitation Committee Sri Lanka
The National Trade Facilitation Committee (NTFC) in Sri Lanka was established in June 2014, as required by Article 23.2 of the WTO Trade Facilitation Agreement (TFA). The NTFC is chaired by the Director General of Customs & Co-chaired by the Director General of Commerce.
Composition of the NTFC Twelve (12) Government Agencies and Seven (7) Private Sector Chambers.
Government Agencies Director General Sri Lanka Customs Chairman Director General Department of Commerce Co- Chair/Member Director General Department of Agriculture Member Director General Department of Trade & Investment Policy Member Director General Health Services Department Member Director General Sri Lanka Standards Institute Member Director General National Intellectual Property Office of Sri Lanka Member Controller General Department of Import and Export Control Member Controller of Exchange Department of Exchange Control Member Chairperson Sri Lanka Export Development Board Member Chairman Airport & Aviation Services (Sri Lanka) Ltd Member Chairman Sri Lanka Ports Authority Member
Members representing Trade & Chambers Secretary General The Ceylon Chamber of Commerce Member Secretary General Federation of Chamber of Commerce & Industry Member President National Chamber of Commerce Member Chairman The Ceylon National Chamber of Industries Member President National Chamber of Exporters of Sri Lanka Member Secretary General Chamber of Young Lankan Entrepreneurs Member Chairperson Women's Chamber of Industry & Commerce Member
Mandate The NTFC is established to coordinate interagency activities associated with implementation of the TFA and other trade facilitation initiatives in Sri Lanka through the participation of all cross-border trade public and private sector stakeholders.
NTFC Secretariat NTFC is supported by a Secretariat, which ensures effective coordination & implementation of the TFA & other trade facilitation initiatives. Located in the Head office of the Department of Customs Sri Lanka. In full operation since May 2017.
Secretariat s tasks Preparing, organizing and following up on Committee meetings ; Carrying out the instructions of the Committee; Preparing detailed implementation plans; Providing technical and training support; Controlling, monitoring and reporting on implementation; Preparing, updating, controlling and filing project documentation
Frequency of meetings At least quarterly or at shorter intervals as required. Frequency of the regular meetings is decided by the committee depending on the tasks to be performed. Secretariat coordinates the meetings.
Obstacles Difficulty in arriving at decisions at the meetings as some of the agencies are represented by alternate nominees. Few agencies do not send regular nominees to meeting and their knowledge on subject matters is limited Do not have allocated funds for the NTFC
Progress. Focal Point from each member organization to ensure the information sharing & decision making process. Use of the Box application for communication and file sharing between the Secretariat and the member organizations. Private sector and other stakeholders who take part in other associations/forums on trade facilitation inform the NTFC on any important operational issues faced by the trading community.
In the Process of.. Obtaining the cabinet approval, for the NTFC and NTFC Secretariat Terms of References to formalize the accountability mechanisms. Notifying the B & C category commitments to the WTO Developing a detailed Action Plan for the implementation of the WTO-TFA with the assistance of WB together with the ITC.
In the Process of.. A communications plan, including branding and Website development. Implementation of the Trade Information Portal and the National Single Window Blueprint.
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