DA, Customs ink data sharing on agriculture trade

MANILA, Philippines — The Department of Agriculture (DA) and the Bureau of Customs (BOC) have signed a data sharing agreement (DSA), which aims to strengthen their coordination on various inspection and control procedures on traded agricultural commodities.

In a statement, the DA said the DSA, signed on Jan.27, would facilitate the exchange of data on traded agricultural commodities, primarily on unfair trade practices and surge of imports.

The DSA, which is governed by the country’s Data Privacy Act, is among the initiatives forged between DA and BOC to ensure that local agri-fishery products will remain competitive with imported counterparts.

“Through this initiative, critical and intelligence information can be shared and acted upon by each agency promptly,” the DA said.

According to the DA, the DSA strengthens the coordination of the two agencies on various inspection and control procedures to ensure food safety and collection of the right amount of custom duties, among other mutual benefits.

Agriculture Secretary William Dar lauded the initiative as information and communication technology is the way forward.

“Credible and timely information is crucial in crafting policies, especially in this digital age,” Dar said.

“I have been very firm in my stand on transparency and I will do everything in my power to implement this along with our partner-agencies, as it is our moral duty to safeguard the welfare of our agricultural frontliners – our farmers and fisherfolk,” he said.

For his part, BOC Commissioner Rey Leonardo Guerrero assured that the BOC would be a reliable partner in ensuring that the implementation of trade remedy measures on agricultural goods is backed by solid and timely data.

In October, the DA and BOC forged an agreement to create a technical working group (TWG) to review the 15-year-old guidelines and procedures on handling imported food items.

Stricter second border inspection and control procedures will be implemented by the agencies to ensure that all imported agricultural commodities will be monitored for food safety.

The inspection will also include investigation of misdeclared goods.