Gov’t boosts Customs patrol vessels to help in campaign vs smuggling

The Departments of Finance (DOF) and of Transportation (DOTr) will create a technical working group (TWG) to work out the transfer of several patrol vessels to the Bureau of Customs to help strengthen the latter’s border protection and anti-smuggling capabilities.

Comprising four units of 24-meter vessels and one unit of 82-meter vessel, these patrol boats were acquired through loans from European banking institutions under the Philippine Port and Coast Guard Capability Development Project (PCG Vessels Project).

The International Finance Group (IFG) reported to Finance Secretary Carlos G. Dominguez III that the DOF, which had contracted the loan, has asked the DOTr to transfer some of the patrol boats to the Customs to help boost the bureau’s war against smuggling.

The Customs said earlier that the smuggling of vehicles, oil and cigarettes into the country has cost the government more than R50 billion in lost revenues.

A study done by the Washington DCbased research group Global Financial Integrity (GFI) reported that an estimated $90.25 billion worth of outflows were recorded from the Philippines from 2004 to 2013, for an average of $9.03 billion annually that it attributed to the illegal trade in goods or smuggling.

IFG told Dominguez that the funds for the PCG Vessels Project worth R5.9 billion or about 111.58 million euros was sourced from the unutilized portion of the Buyer’s Credit Facility originally for the Greater Maritime Access Ports Project.

The loan granted by the BNP Paribas Group and the Credit Agricole CIB was guaranteed by the French government, through Bpifrance Assurance Export, the export credit agency of the same. It is repayable in 12.5 inclusive of two-and-a-half years grace period, according to the IFG.

The four units of 24-meter boats are expected to be delivered next year while the 82-meter vessel is expected to arrive in February 2019.

During President Duterte’s official visit to Japan last year, Dominguez and Shinichi Kitaoka, the president of the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) formalized several agreements that would help improve the Philippines’ maritime safety capability.

Included in the deal is the 6.5 billion yen concessional loan covered by Tokyo’s Official Development Assistance (ODA) for the acquisition of two largescale patrol vessels for the PCG.

The agreement for the 16.5-billion yen loan is part of Tokyo’s continuing assistance to the PCG’s Maritime Safety Capability Improvement Project (MSCIP).

Equivalent to R6.8 billion, this JICA loan was extended at an interest rate of between 0.01 (consulting component) and 0.10 (non-consulting component) percent (per annum) with a maturity period of 40 years, inclusive of a 10-year grace period.