ICT in Trade Facilitation:
Expediting Cargo Movement & Customs Clearance
February 2014
The Trident Group, LLC

Sub-Saharan Africa could boost its annual GDP by $15 billion if time spent in Customs clearance is cut by 50%.
Additional $20 billion could be realized each year by improving transport infrastructure, getting goods into/out ports in half the time it currently takes.
If implemented, the combined effect would be even larger.
Source: International Trade Centre (ITC)

Entry/Exit Points:
+ Seaports
+ Airports
+ Borders
Inland
Transportation &
Logistic Systems
• High incidence of physical inspection by Customs
(limited data to support admissibility decisions )
• Poor cargo arrival, discharge & release planning
• Manual handling of import/export processes
• Limited regional cooperation & border mngmt
• Inadequate transport network... poor state where exist (road, rail, waterways)
• Poor cargo & asset transit monitoring
• Underdeveloped regional transport corridors
• Transportation providers are not well organized
Regulatory
Environment &
Compliance
• Inadequate/inconsistent policy regime (e.g. ETLS)
• Limited enforcement of trade regulations/practices
• High incidence of sharp practices & non-compliance

Community
T echnology
Organization
Trade &
Logistics
Existing
Infrastructure
Policy
Infrastructure
Adapted from: “Understanding Smart Cities: A Integrative Framework,” Chourabi, et al. (2012)
Rate of
Change
Fast
Surging
Slow

…one component at a time
Electronic Exchanges (Single Window)
• Port Community System
• Cargo Community System
+ Process Trade Documents
+ Improve Visibility
+ Improve Trade Services
Freight Traffic Management System
• Truck Control System
• Inland Transport/Corridor Management
Risk Targeting & Import Compliance Systems
• Customs Screening System
• Transit Access Monitoring
+ Eliminate Congestion
+ Manage & Control Assets
+ Manage, Track Cargo Movement
+ Improve Security
+ Enhance Import Compliance
+ Expedite Trade & Cargo
Clearance

Port Access Control: Congestion Mitigation
Truck Parking, Gating & Movement Systems
Cargo Movement: Transit Tracking & Monitoring
Border Transit & Regional Corridor Management

NAFITH : National Freight Information & Transportation Hub
 Began operation in late 2005
 Proven intermodal solution designed to optimize landside movement of cargo to/from ports and border crossings
 Enable port to “organize the chaos” around terminals & port gates
– creating a more efficient movement of cargo
 Interfaced with Customs, Terminals, Ministry of Transport etc
 TCS now mission-critical for logistics and trade communities
 The Freight Traffic Management System leverages the available information from multiple port stakeholders to:

Capture cargo status & truck movements/schedules

Perform validations for logistic data

Automate decisions such as truck dispatch & terminal access
 Provide cargo tracking & chain-of-custody
 Capital investment $20m; annual operating cost $4m
 Operated under a PPP Agreement with ASEZA

 Manages 24-hour freight transport operations for ports, terminals & Free Trade Zone
 Controls movement of trucks from 5 entry points on road network reaching 39 specific destinations including 13 terminals
 Over 200 trucking companies and more than
15,000 trucks use the system daily
 Several truck parks with capacities varying from
150 to 500 trucks
 Thousands of concurrent users requesting permits
& receive instructions from the system
 Extends use of existing infrastructure at terminals
(APM) & other destinations incorporated into TCS
 Uses low-cost RFID/GPS to collect data & monitor truck/rail movement
 Improved regional border transit & monitoring through document harmonization: Jordan-Syria,
Jordan-Saudi, Iraq-Kuwait
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2
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Ministry of
Transport
1
• Provide registry of trucks and trailers by company and cargo type (XML)
Jordan
Customs
(ASYCUDA)
2
• Provide Cargo releases
(XML)
3
ASEZA
• Provide other releases for cargo pickup, e.g. fuel, bulk
Trucking
Companies
• Apply for permits
(equipment, cargo, operation, route, driver, and other data)
• Receive approval
4
5
Truck Drivers
Nafith TCS
• Validate data
• Approve permits
• Capture events
• Manage capacity
• Provide reporting and alerts
• Support invoicing
Container
Terminal
Operators
• Use TCS to validate & schedule container pickup operations
8
7
• Receives entry ticket from trucking company
• Receive permit with all details on operation
Gate
Operations
• Oversee movement of trucks through ASEZ
• Receive instructions from TCS
• Provide event data to
TCS
6

Improved Efficiency/Productivity:
 Eliminate congesting around port, terminals & access roads
 Minimizing wait times for trucks and drivers
 Increased truck turns and cargo carried/truck/year
 Increased rail asset utilization
 Reduced pollution and wasted diesel
Better Managed Activities:
 Providing terminal and yard operators with advanced information on planned and in-progress truck/rail operations
 Providing freight forwarders with better information on cargo delivery status
Better use of Limited Infrastructure
 Spread loads over time
 Push sources of delay and chaos away from congestion
 Monitor operations & react to unexpected delays/emergencies
Increased Logistic Visibility & Data Collection:
 Extend control and visibility for public and private stakeholders
 Capture detailed operational data to support planning, investment & policy actions

Trucking
Company
Management
Truck/cargo status
Billing/payment info
INTERNET
Trucking
Company
Dispatchers
Request entry & route
Return Permit Number
Provide
Permit
Number
Verify truck, driver, route, cargo
Provide paper permit with routing instructions
Track truck enroute & waiting yards
Regulatory compliance and status reports
Government of
TCS IT Platform
Jordan
NXFTMS™
Record cargo pickup at terminal
Record truck exit

Truck Park

Entry / Exit Control

 Significant infrastructure deficit
 Many users had no prior IT experience
 Limited/sometimes unreliable communication & internet service
 No comparable system in use
 Measurable productivity & investment returns for trade & transport sectors
 Multiple stakeholders benefited

 A customs transit document which can be issued electronically or on paper.
 Example of a regional trade facilitation agreement in action.
 Information required for transit and receiver countries are included on the common consignment note when issued at origin.
 Successful pilot of transcontinental rail freight shipment from China to
Germany – 11,000KM distance in 18 days.
 Time spent at border crossings can be significantly reduced with corresponding reduction in transport cost.
 Idea can be extended to ECOWAS leveraging the successful regional transit corridor model in the Middle East.

NAFITH has developed new services around the core process for TCS;
 Dispatching for oil tankers, ferry and other distinct transport operations
 Logistics management for bulk cargo, grains discharge and delivery
 Electronic marketplaces for truck freight to and from terminals
 Empty container management framework
 Integration with Weighbridge for axle weight enforcement
 Integrated vehicle & cargo tracking services with virtual routing using mapping & location based services (LBS)
 Mobile interfaces using customized cell phone apps
 E-Payment & E-Waybill services
 Expanding operations to Kuwait and Iraqi ports and border crossing for grain movement

Trade Information Gateway, Real-Time Exchange: Pakistan
Initial areas of focus:
 Karachi Ports access control
 International transit corridor management
(Afghan-Pakistan)
 Electronic marketplaces for truck freight to/from terminals
 Nationwide databases of registered equipment, drivers and companies
 Integrated vehicle and load tracking services with virtual routing management
 Mobile interfaces using customized cell phone applications






• Risk Targeting Solution (RTS) automates the processes needed to objectively evaluate risks, vulnerabilities, threats, assumptions and uncertainties about cargoes arriving at our ports and borders
• Provides Customs agencies at Ports (Sea & Air) & Border Crossings with ACTIONABLE information used in determining which cargo should be manually inspected or cleared. The RTS is designed to provide inspectors with uniform, actionable information needed to:
• Facilitate Trade & Expedite import clearance by reducing manual inspection (dwell-time)
• Improve Security through enhanced threat/vulnerability assessment capability to support the WCO Safe
Framework
• Improve the detection of declaration fraud and import violations
• Increase volume of products reaching markets at lower cost
• Improve Revenue through enhanced valuation

trade, increase revenue and improve supply chain security
• Leverage Open Source and other intelligence to find risky products before they arrive in country (Pre-Arrival Intelligence)
• Separate high from low risk imports to give entry reviewers more time to evaluate the higher-risk lines and automatically “may proceed” the low risk imports
• Evaluate each entry line-item on the basis of a wide range of risk factors derived from a wide set of data sources
• Provide automated queries to multiple databases and integration with third party data sources
• Produce a consistent applicable agency-wide entry examination process
• Tightly integrates with Customs systems like ASYCUDA etc

 Statistical analysis of importer & exporter combination
 History of involved parties: manufacturer, shipper, origin, transit info, consignee etc
 Cross references with external trade databases
 Open source intelligence about
Customs fraud
 Expert intelligence from Customs field offices
 Geospatial analysis of addresses and locality
 FOB value analysis for improved fraud detection
 Purposeful errors in filed information
 Data anomaly analysis of value to quantity ratio
 Correlation with other elements on the declaration form
 Seasonality of product
 Text mining of declaration contents
 Identification of multiple importer identities

Automates processing for risk screening and targeting
External Parties Science Regulatory Operations
Importers
Customs Brokers
Office of
Science
Sciencebased rules
Office of
Regulations
& Policy
General Infobased rules
Entry
Reviewers
Field
Examiners
Facility
Inspectors
Labs
CUSTOMS
• ASYCUDA
• Other Systems
Import Declaration
Forms & Supporting
Documents
Decisions
PREDICT
Static, Disjoint
Risk Targeting
System
NXRTS
Entries
&
Line
Items
Line
Items
Facilities Samples
FACTS
Field Activities & Compliance Tracking
System
Field Experiencebased rules

 Reduction in manual/secondary inspection
Fewer items are held for inspection
 Significant reduction in cargo “dwell time” at ports of entry
 Improvement in revenue collected by customs
 Enhancement in valuation process and fraud detection
 Higher number of violations found:
Increased detection of risky cargoes and import violations
 Significant reduction in false positive hits
 Higher productivity for custom personnel
Same number of inspectors can process higher number of entries
 Tighter collaboration between customs & other agencies
 Enormous return on investment for the agency
Saved $M per year in operational cost

 Intelligent Trade & Logistics Systems multiplies impact of other investments and efforts
 Time is right – ICT infrastructure now in place
 High impact & Low cost
 Rapid deployment
 Addresses a range of challenges in developing regions

 Delivers solutions to automate & accelerate Trade, Logistics, Security and other verticals to improve operational efficiency
 Serves several US agencies and other national/regional governments & regulatory authorities
 Deploys & manages logistic operations in US, South Asia, Middle East &
Latin America. Our operations;
 Captures & analyzes data on over 80% of global container cargo movement
 Supports operational risk targeting, surveillance and enforcement of imports involving over 20 million transactions daily for Customs & regulatory agencies
 Monitors & manages over 3000 truck operations daily for 200 trucking companies in a 375 sq. km. area around a seaport to mitigate congestion, facilitate cargo clearance, track inland freight movement & border crossings
 Support air cargo screening for US Transportation Security Administration

Email: michaeli@tridentgrpllc.com
Tel: +1 240 494 6691
+234 706 617 8563