FAOBSEC Trade Facilitation Project Seminar Series Bulgaria

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FAO/BSEC Trade Facilitation ProjectSeminar
Series Bulgaria

• Policy Recommendations
• for
• Agricultural and Food Trade Facilitation
• in Bulgaria
• David Sedik
• Chief, REUP, FAO
• david.sedik_at_fao.org

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In most of the BSEC Member States, there is a
clear understanding of the importance of trade
facilitation!

• Bulgaria is among the front-runners in BSEC trade
  facilitation efforts - still, the assessment and
  the survey have shown potential for improvement
  
• The purpose of the project was to produce
  findings and policy recommendations for BSEC
  members as a whole.

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Two sets of recommendations have been derived
from the project

• First, a set of priority areas for BSEC member
  states.
  
• here, only those particularly applying to
  Bulgaria will be presented
  
• Second, a set of actions for the BSEC
  Organization.

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Policy recommendations for agricultural and food
trade facilitation in Bulgaria
selected priority areas Bulgaria
recommended actions BSEC PERMIS
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(1) Make trade facilitation a clearly stated
(agricultural) policy priority

• Bulgaria should devise a national trade
  facilitation strategy that lists priorities and
  timetables for policies designed to
  
• simplify export/import procedures and make them
  more transparent,
  
• improve training, equipment and the monitoring of
  officials involved in regulation of trade.
  
• An important source of trade distortions in
  Bulgaria is agricultural policies, such as
  
• Before 1997 farm state support characterized by
  intensive price control and state crediting of
  inefficient farms
  
• After 1997 important liberalization, but the
  financing of WTO green box measures remained a
  low priority
  

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(2) Simplify and deregulate national agricultural
policies

• This recommendation mainly applies to the
  non-EU-candidate BSEC Members
  
• Bulgaria will/has to adopt CAP-type agricultural
  policies (incl. structural operations) which are
  relatively complex
  
• However, EU-Member States have a certain degree
  of flexibility in implementing parts of the
  agricultural policy
  
• Example Structural policies/SAPARD (part of
  agricultural policy)
  
• Scope of measures proposed/supported in NRDP
• Definition of beneficiaries
• Application/Funding requirements
• Guidelines for applicants
• Documentation requirements

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(3) Streamline operational rules and procedures
governing trade

• The survey has shown that this is of particular
  importance to Bulgaria especially in the fields
  of
  
• Tax and accounting system administration
• Policy uncertainty and inconsistency of
  implementing regulations
  
• Standards, certificates and requirements towards
  documentation
  
• Customs regime application
• Sanitary rules
• Currency exchange rules
• Rules and procedures pertaining to the intra- and
  international trade in agricultural and food
  products should be made as simple as possible
  while ensuring the proper execution of fiscal and
  trade policies!

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(4) Harmonize and coordinate trade procedures and
formalities across BSEC Member States

• Bulgaria, as future EU-Member, will have to
• adopt the set of trade regimes (rules regs) of
  the EU
  
• orient it's trade formalities to those of the EU
  Members
  
• However, BG can benefit from using the BSEC
  platform to support the convergence of trade
  formalities among its non-EU (BSEC) neighbors to
  those of the EU-Members
• Effect for Bulgarian producers/traders maintain
  demand for Bulgarian products among non-EU
  trading partners, because
  
• traders accustomed to procedures and formalities
  in one country can draw on this experience when
  dealing with others
  
• economies of scale in creating infrastructure and
  training personnel among non-EU BSEC Members can
  be realized (e.g. joint laboratories)

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(5) Train customs officials

• Customs officials require training if they are to
  implement modern technologies (computers and
  automation). Expensive, but valuable
  investment.
• Costs of training reduced by taking advantage of
  economies of scale in joint training
  
• for Bulgarian customs officials joint training
  with other EU Members advised and already
  implemented (Twinning Programme)
  
• for Bulgarian traders, positive effects can be
  realized if BG supports joint training for
  customs authorities of non-EU BSEC Members
  
• Benefit eases convergence and harmonization in
  trade procedures and formalities and increases
  communication.

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(6) Establish a trade legislation information
center at BSEC Organization

• If member states support it, a trade legislation
  information center could be established at BSEC
  PERMIS Organization to register all changes in
  trade regulations in the BSEC Member States
• If promptly updated, it increases transparency
  among BSEC Members
  
• Reduces losses and inefficiency due to unpleasant
  surprises for traders at national borders of
  other BSEC Member States.
  
• Limits scope for discretion and corrupt behavior
  on the part of customs officials.
  
• Recommendation mainly focused on non-EU BSEC
  Members support by Bulgaria by providing
  information can, however, facilitate BG trade
  with non-EU BSEC Members

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environment to agricultural and food trade and
its implications for trade facilitation in
Bulgaria
selected priority areas Bulgaria
recommended actions BSEC PERMIS
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The core recommendation to the BSEC Organization
is

• to facilitate the continuation of the
  initiative started by the project on a BSEC-wide
  level

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This could be started by

• If member states support it, a trade legislation
  information center could be established at BSEC
  PERMIS Organization to register all changes in
  trade regulations in the BSEC Member States
• Outline a strategy for the integration of trade
  facilitation tasks into the BSEC Organization's
  administrative structure, a Trade Facilitation
  Action Plan
• Back it up by providing the human and financial
  resources needed
  

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Further efforts could concentrate on four key
areas

• The BSEC Organization could concentrate on
• four key areas to build up capacity for trade
  facilitation
  
• Institutional strengthening (e.g., facilitate
  joint training for member states customs
  officials)
  
• Trade facilitation legal framework (e.g.,
  standardization)
  
• Other trade facilitation measures
• Centralized provision and distribution of
  legislative information