On the initiatives of Federal Board of Revenue, the Directorate General of Training & Research (Customs), Karachi (DGTR) arranged an interactive and informative seminar on Afghan Pakistan Transit Trade Agreement, 2010 on 04 January, 2010 at its regional Directorate of Training and Research (Customs), Islamabad (DOTR).
Member (Customs), FBR, Islamabad, Munir Qureshi graced the occasion as the guest of honour. The seminar was attended by Sarwat Tahira Habib, Director Customs Intelligence/Collector of Customs, Islamabad, Izharulhaq Ahady, Head of Economic Section, Embassy of Afghanistan in Islamabad and other delegates, members of Chambers of Commerce & Industry of Islamabad, Rawalpindi & Peshawar, members of Clearing Agents' Associations of Islamabad/Rawalpindi & Peshawar, Transporters of Afghan transit goods and officers and staff of Pakistan Customs from across the country.
M. Junaid Jalil Khan, Additional Director Incharge, DOTR (Customs), Islamabad was the mediator of the ceremony. The seminar formally commenced with welcome address of the Director General, DGTR (Customs), Karachi, Rubina Wasti. This was followed by the speech of the guest of honour, Munir Qureshi who emphasised the importance of new APTTA 2010 for strengthening of trade and multilateral relations with Afghanistan and Central Asian Republics. Terming the old Afghan Transit Trade Agreement (ATTA) 1965 as having lost its utility in the backdrop of emerging realities of the commercial world, the chief guest highlighted a few important differences between the two old and new versions of the agreement. Having being part of the final rounds of negotiations, he briefly explained how consensus was reached in case of few contentious issues between both sides, leading to the final draft of the agreement. He noted with satisfaction that due to effective legal and enforcement measures contained in the agreement, the menace of leakages through smuggling across the transit journey will be duly addressed. He hoped that proper implementation of the agreement will usher us in an era of trade development and its rightful enhancement in the region. He commended the efforts of DGTR (Customs), Karachi in arranging two back to back seminars on APTTA 2010 at Karachi and Islamabad and suggested replication of such seminars at Lahore, Peshawar and Quetta as well. The guest of honour and the Afghan delegate were presented with bouquets by the Director General as gesture of thanks, which was followed by a photo session and refreshments. The second and the main session of the seminar was handled by two eminent resourse persons, Najeeb-ur-Rehman Abbasi, Collector of Customs, Lahore, and Syed Ahmed Tanveer Additional Collector of Customs Exports, Karachi, both of whom have actively remained part of the Pakistan government's negotiating team of for finalising the agreement. The session started with the presentation of Ahmed on salient features of the agreement. He talked at length on financial securities/guarantees covering the goods/transport, dispute resolution mechanism, national treatment to transport of other countries, impact of agreement on smuggling, transport/goods tracking system etc.
The next presentation was made Abbasi on the general agreement and its articles. He elaborated upon international conventions mandating provision of transit facilities to landlocked and neighbouring countries, differences between the old and new of transit trade mechanisms, the inbuilt security mechanisms, goods examination procedures and the requisite transit documents. He stressed, interalia, that customs procedures have been revamped and incorporated into the new paradigm of APPTA 2010. The last presentation was by Syed Tanveer Ahmed on the Agreement's Protocols.
The seminar was interspersed with interactive question-answer sessions, which helped in dispelling doubts and ambiguities of the stakeholders about the agreement. The participants termed the seminar as a facilitative, informative, constructive and lively event, necessary for all stakeholders to be able to implement the agreement successfully.-PR