moscow, 22-23 november 2004 peter wilmott, uk experience, slide 1 sitpro simplifying international...

SITPROSimplifying International Trade

Moscow, 22-23 November 2004

Peter Wilmott, UK experience, slide 1

National PRO committees The UK Experience

Peter WilmottBoard Director

SITPRO




What is SITPRO?

• SImpler Trade PROcedures• A government-funded pressure group, constituted

as a private company, but with the government as sole shareholder

• An organisation with a foot in both the public and the private sector

• A centre of expertise on trade facilitation for more than thirty years




Organisation

• A Board of non-executive Directors, with unpaid volunteers from the private sector and representatives of DTI and Customs

• A full-time CEO, with executive responsibility• A permanent staff of around ten, drawn from the

public and private sectors• An annual budget, provided by the DTI, currently

around £1 million




Mission

• Make international trade easier– Simplify border processes and procedures– Reduce the costs that formalities impose on

business– Make access to international trade cheaper and

easier– Make the supply chain work more efficiently




Targets

• Government bureaucracy and inefficiency– Border processes (customs, tax, health, security,

statistics, agriculture, etc)

– UK, EU and global rule-making

• Supply chain efficiency– Information handling (design of forms and control

routines, business processes, etc)

– Ancillary services (banking, insurance, brokerage, etc)




Working methods

• Private-sector based working groups• Pilot projects (UNeDocs; Interact project; etc)• Policy positions (eg on WTO trade facilitation

agenda, security issues) and behind-the-scenes networking and lobbying

• Conferences, seminars, road-shows and publications




Achievements

• Probably the most widely known and respected PRO organisation in the world

• Aligned documentation procedures, in UK and Europe

• Major contributor to work of CEFACT in UN




Analysis

• Major advantage to have a single-focus organisation, with advocacy skills based on in-depth knowledge and experience

• Essential to have legitimacy with UK and global business (ie be of the private sector), but full understanding of government values and processes (ie be with the public sector)




Analysis

• UK model is successful in a plural democracy with government prepared to pay an organisation to criticise it

• This model is less likely to succeed in economies with a less tolerant or more volatile political environment




Alternatives

• French model (ODASCE) is self-funded and business-based– More independent, and fully legitimate with

business– Less influence on government, and more fragile

financially and politically (ie vulnerable to pressure from the administration)




Alternatives

• Chambers of Commerce– Perhaps too narrowly based, with issues of

legitimacy with both government and business and risks of conflicts of interest

– Varying degrees of freedom from the State may affect independence and ability to influence policy and practice




Recommendations

• Function is more important than form• Trade facilitation crosses boundaries –

public/private; inter-ministerial; cross sectoral in private sector – and a holistic view is key to success

• Without political will, backed by concrete government action, trade facilitation will not happen




Recommendations

• Some mobilising force is required to keep governments on track

• A forum for dialogue is essential, within government, between government and the private sector, and within the private sector

• These are the key PRO committee functions




Recommendations

• Form is less important, but funding and organisational details must give independence to the PRO body if it is to be credible, legitimate and effective

• Focussing on concrete initiatives leads to greater trade facilitation than abstract debate; these can be regional or sectoral in nature, in order to make quick initial progress and gain support




Conclusion

• PRO organisations can bring focus and expertise to both the policy and practice of trade facilitation

• Their benefits can far outweigh their costs, and their function is more important than their form

• For countries to gain from creating PRO bodies, they must be independent, strong, expert, financially resilient and persistent

moscow, 22-23 november 2004 peter wilmott, uk experience, slide 1 sitpro simplifying international...

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