ITC to host first public-private consultations on National Single Window

Geneva-based International Trade Centre (ITC), in close collaboration with Sri Lanka’s National Trade Facilitation Committee (NTFC), is organising the first of four public-private consultations on the establishment of a National Single Window (NSW) in Sri Lanka.

The objective of these publicprivate consultations is to stimulate discussions and seek recommendations from border regulatory representatives and the business community on the implementation modalities of the NSW.

The event will be attended by over 70 participants representing more than 50 business associations, government agencies and trade operators.

The dignitaries attending the opening ceremony will include European Union Delegation to Sri Lanka and the Maldives Cooperation Head Libuse Soukupova, NTFC chairpersons, Ceylon Chamber of Commerce CEO and ITC Geneva senior officials.

Organised within the mandate of the EU-SRI Lanka Trade-related Assistance programme, this event will be held on April 5, at Cinnamon Grand, Colombo.

As one of the fastest growing economies in the Asia-pacific region, Sri Lanka has risen steadily to become a regional trade and logistics hub and is striving to make its economy more interconnected with regional and global markets.

In line with its vision to become South Asia’s logistics hub, Sri Lanka has ratified the World Trade Organisation (WTO) Trade Facilitation Agreement (TFA) and is legally committed to implement a series of reforms aiming at the simplification and modernization of cross-border formalities.

The implementation of a single window is one of the obligations under the TFA. It is also an important milestone in improving Sri Lanka’s business competitiveness in international markets.

The objective of the NSW is to setup a facility that allows parties involved in trade and transport to lodge information and documents with a single-entry point to fulfil all import, export and transit-related regulatory requirements. This will reduce time and costs currently spent by traders in preparing and submitting information and documents to multiple border regulatory agencies.