. /.RESTRICTEDWORLD TRADE
ORGANIZATIONG/C/W/232
20 October 2000
(00-4358)
Council for Trade in Goods Original:  English
TRADE FACILITATION
Recent trade facilitation measures taken by the Maldives Customs Service
The following communication, dated 18 October 2000, has been received from the Ministry
of Trade and Industries of the Maldives.
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1. Background
As an effective response to the continuous gr owth in the economy and increasing volume of
trade, the ASYCUDA++ software developed by UNCTAD has been introduced successfully by the
Maldives Customs Service.  This initiative has radically changed and simplified customs procedures
and documentation by streamlining the system, resulting in continuous improvement in facilitation of
trade.
2. Introduction of EDI/DTI Services
- The introduction of the Electronic Data Interchange Service (EDI) and Direct Trader
Input (DTI)  Service on 25 May 2000 has been a big boost to aligning the services to an
international standard.  Eighty percent of the declarations submitted to the Customs Air Cargo
are processed through the DTI Centre (broker service) resulting in fast clearance of cargo.
Consequently the human resources reserved for this job have been reduced in order to
strengthen customs procedures.  In addition, this has contributed to a quick clearance serviceto the benefit of traders.
- The DTI Centre established at the passenger terminal eases the clearance process for
passengers carrying dutiable items.  Initially the clearance of items processed through the
Customs Air Cargo is processed at the Centre located at the passenger terminal, thusproviding an easy and quick service to such passengers.
- The EDI Service  has been provided to frequent traders in order to facilitate clients'
submission of Customs Declaration Fo rms for clearing Sea and Air Cargo.
- The Wide Area Network (WAN) developed by means of modern hardware, has enabled us
to build a centralized data base that helps to monitor and maintain the integrity of the system.
Hence, it creates a flexible environment from which transactional details can be generated and
so facilitate trade.  This WAN between the Customs regional office, at S.Gan and the
Customs Head Office, was established on 14 October 2000 and facilitates generation oftimely and up-to-date statistics for Customs, and provides a service to clients in Male and in
S.Gan.  Furthermore, it provides the technical infrastructure to extend EDI services in the
future.G/C/W/232
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3. Implementation of the HS Tariff Nomenclature
Customs tariffs were fully revised on the basis of the Harmonized System, the
implementation of which was concluded on 29 May 2000.  The new system has proved to be of
considerable assistance to clients and raised our classification system to international standards.
4. Launching of Customs Website
The Maldives Customs launched a website on 24 August 2000 (www.customs.gov.mv) to
provide potential clients access to information regarding external trade regulations and an overview of
the customs service as a whole.
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