Development planners here are pushing for a more responsive and integrated sea transport system that will ensure the export competitiveness of Mindanao products and address present trade imbalances within the Brunei-Indonesia-Malaysia-Philippines East Asean Growth Area (BIMP-EAGA).
Participants to the BIMP-EAGA SME Conference 2003, which brought together key representatives of the four member countries to discuss pressing issues affecting the growth region's competitiveness, identified sea transport as a major area of concern for the sub-region.
Officials said there is a need to enhance cross-border trade by ensuring the more efficient movement of goods, services and people.
“Transportation has changed remarkably, usually making it far cheaper and easier to ship goods around the world,†noted Clemente Paylanco Jr, chief of the shipping negotiation division of the Philippine Shipper's Bureau, at the Conference.
Mr. Paylanco pointed out that the “explosion in international commerce†over the past several years -- as evidenced by lower trade barriers, access to the global economy, and falling costs of moving goods to markets -- have impacted significantly on a country's volume of trade and trading patterns.
Increased economic activity among nations across the globe, however, has resulted in “less transport intensity,†as manufactured goods become less bulky, as international multinational firms relocate their manufacturing plants to various parts of the world.
Paylanco explained that for an economic grouping like the BIMP-EAGA which exports mostly prime commodities, member countries should rely more on their comparative advantages and complement each other's exports.
In 1999 alone, Bitung's exports to General Santos totaled 4,721 MT, while the General Santos'exports to Bitung during the same period was a minimal 110 MT.
Subido explained that this situation exists primarily because most of the Philippine's cargo traffic is domestic bound. This lack of volume discourages international cargo vessels from calling on domestic ports.
Subido also noted the inability of Mindanao exporters to come up with the volume requirements of domestic and international markets, echoing the observation made by former Trade and Industry Secretary Manuel Roxas during the recent 5th Tuna Congress in General Santos.
For a foreign vessel to make one productive “run,†it needs at least 600 TEUs, a volume domestic shippers are finding difficulty complying with. “Without these volumes, it would be difficult to convince international vessels to service Philippine ports, especially those [ports] located in Mindanao.â€
Subido recommended that Mindanao exporters consolidate volumes in order to take advantage of the economies of scale and consequently, bring down shipping costs.
“Our local exporters could band together with their Indonesian counterparts to generate bigger volumes,†Subido said. He added that cargo-pooling should not only be limited to local exports but also to imports, as this will result in greater savings on the part of local importers.
In a related development, customs, immigrations, quarantine and security (CIQS) agencies from the Philippines and Malaysia recently met in Zamboanga City to discuss crucial issues affecting trade and investment activities between the two countries.
Specifically, the meeting sought to strengthen communication linkages between the CIQS agencies of the two EAGA-member countries -- with emphasis on port-to-port operations -- to facilitate the eventual harmonization of CIQS rules and regulations within the growth region.
Efforts to invigorate economic activity within the BIMP-EAGA received a shot in the arm when President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo identified the growth region's revitalization as among the national government's key development strategies.