Promoting Customs Cooperation and Trade in East and Central Asia

MANILA, PHILIPPINES (29 October 2002) - Governance, institutional capacity and regional cooperation will be strengthened among customs organizations in the East and Central Asia (ECA) Region through a US$28 million equivalent package approved today by ADB.

The package will also promote regional trade among the ECA countries, which comprise Azerbaijan, People's Republic of China (Xinjiang Province), Kazakhstan, Kyrgyz Republic, Mongolia, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan.

Two loans, two technical assistance (TA) grants, and a regional TA grant will support the East and Central Asia Regional Trade Facilitation and Customs Cooperation Program (RTFCCP).

The RTFCCP is a major pillar of ADB's overall East and Central Asia economic cooperation program, designed to better integrate the transitional economies into the world trading system.

Kyrgyz Republic will receive a loan of US$15 million equivalent and technical assistance of US$500,000 equivalent.

Tajikistan will receive a loan of US$10 million equivalent and technical assistance of US$500,000 equivalent.

A regional technical assistance grant of US$2 million will address core issues affecting cooperation at the regional level, aimed at establishing efficient customs systems to facilitate foreign trade and investment.

The loans will:

• Strengthen governance and transparency, improve institutional capacity of customs organizations
• Strengthen the legal and regulatory framework for customs in line with international standards and conventions
• Improve operational efficiency of customs organizations to facilitate trade and enhance revenue collection; and
• Develop an effective mechanism for good regional cooperation among customs organizations in Central Asia and the PRC and Mongolia. This will be achieved by harmonizing regulations and procedures, improving the flow of information, and stepping up surveillance to meet the challenges of drug trafficking and illegal flow of money and goods.

The loans come from ADB's concessionary Asian Development Fund and have a term of 24 years and an interest charge of 1% per year during the grace period of eight years and 1.5% per year for the remaining period.

The technical assistance grants will assess the funding needed to modernize the customs services and support policy and institutional reforms under the RTFCCP.

They will come from the Japan Special Fund, financed by the Government of Japan. The regional technical assistance will be funded from ADB's TA program.

The program will be implemented over five years. The Ministry of Finance will be the executing agency and State Customs Inspectorate the main implementing agency in the Kyrgyz Republic. The Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of State Revenues and Duties will be the executing and implementing agencies in Tajikistan.

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