Project Brief Investment Climate | World Bank Group 90699 Modernizing Trade Logistics in Colombia Project At A Glance Results and Impacts Country/Region COLOMBIA/LATIN AMERICA & CARIBBEAN • New online clearance system for Product TRADE LOGISTICS traders saves significant time in processing transactions. The Colombia trade logistics program began in 2008 with the goal of reducing the time and cost involved in exporting and • Time to import cut from 20 to 13 importing goods by streamlining trade procedures. The program days and to export from 24 to 14 focused on the improvement of a Single Window for Foreign days since 2008 (Doing Business 2013 Trade and the design of a National Cargo Risk Management policy report). for Colombian ports. • Direct cost savings estimated at $3.5 million for a midsize firm as system changes reduce carrying charges in transit and decrease inventory Context holdings. Merchants trading in Colombia faced obstacles and delays to clearing customs and importing goods into the country. The import process • Project impacts expected to required 20 days in 2008; exporting, 24 days, according to the World contribute to trade growth within Bank Group’s Doing Business 2008 report. After signing Free Trade two years. Agreements with regional partners, including the United States, the Colombian government faced pressure to elevate its trade logistics to a world-class level. In 2004 the president issued a decree establishing an ambitious reform agenda, including an online payment system In Partnership with NORWAY, SPAIN, USAID World Bank Group and risk-based inspections. However, gaps emerged in management was identified as another key area for the implementation of these reforms, and the automated improvement. The project helped design and implement system was neither integrated nor user-friendly. a risk-based inspections approach for the country’s main ports whereby customs administrations and border control agencies develop cargo risk profiles that direct them to Our Role inspect only riskier cargo physically. The first pilot of the Investment climate teams of the World Bank Group risk management framework took place in the Barranquilla assisted Colombia in reducing time and costs for traders. port. The new system hosts all five technical control This support included two main components: improving agencies that inspect cargo, allowing for coordinated and the single-window system for customs clearance, and transparent management of cargo. For example, at the introducing a new cargo risk management policy for use in Port of Cartagena, cargo now passes through a centralized all major Colombian ports. facility to simultaneously satisfy four physical inspections. The single-window system includes the following features: • It enables electronic submission of all necessary customs documents. Traders can complete a single form when registering in the system and requesting permits. • It allows a private company or individual to issue and sign a certificate of origin on behalf of the Ministry of Trade for locations outside Bogota. The Bank Group also recently helped optimize the established automated clearance system by integrating 19 technical agencies into the single window system. They also addressed gaps and limits in the system by introducing a Business Process Management platform for seamless interoperability. Introducing world-class trade logistics standards (as stipulated by Free Trade Agreements), required the government to automate trade logistics services. Risk The investment climate team has supported more than 30 trade-related improvements since 2008. It has also supported a Single Window Steering Committee, including high-level government staff from 19 technical control government agencies, as well as private-sector In the past 25 years the process of unloading representatives. Members will meet twice a year to review and inspecting 100,000 bags of coffee could single-window statistics, developments and challenges. This take a month, now it can take only one day.” will help foster a transparent dialogue and ensure ongoing involvement of top officials. A similar sustainable strategy Jorge Javier Sanchez Coffee Inspector will also be employed for the risk management component Café de Colombia of the program. Contact Lazar Ristic | Associate Operations Officer | Investment Climate Email: Lristic@ifc.org | TEL: 1-202-473-5768 | www.wbginvestmentclimate.org