KUALA LUMPUR: Asean needs to accelerate its pace of work to fully implement trade facilitation in particular and give priority to efforts to reduce and eliminate non-tariff barriers (NTBs).
Minister of International Trade and Industry, Datuk Seri Mustapa Mohamed, who is on a working trip to Laos, said with tariffs on substantially all products currently at zero within the region, the Asean Economic Ministers (AEM) are now giving high priority to NTBs.
“There is the need to accelerate the pace of work to fully implement trade facilitation initiatives, namely the Asean Single Window, Asean Trade Repository, Asean Self-Certification and Asean Customs Transit System as soon as possible.
“These initiatives will contribute to the efficient movement of goods across the region as well as ensure the costs of doing business will remain competitive,” he said in a statement yesterday.
Mustapa is attending the 48th AEM, 30th Asean Free Trade Area (AFTA) Council and 19th Asean Investment Area Council Meeting from Aug 3-7, 2016 in Vientiane, Laos.
During this first formal AEM meeting after the establishment of the Asean Economic Community (AEC), the Ministers underscored the need to sustain economic growth in the region by continuing to deepen regional economic integration and work towards removing impediments to free flow of goods, services and investments, said Mustapa.
He said Malaysia had reiterated that the monitoring and evaluation needed to be given priority in order to fully realise the AEC. — Bernama
Last Updated 2016-08-05 11:02:41 by Fauziah Osman