Mar 10, Colombo: Sri Lanka Customs operations will be fully online by 31st March 2013 and trade to be ready to carry out operations online, the Director General of Customs Jagath Wijeweera has said.

The Customs is fully implementing the ASYCUDA World (AW) system and is in the final stages of automating its processes to ensure that the trade is facilitated with no operational delays at a minimal cost, the Director General has assured.

Addressing an awareness seminar, organized by the Sri Lanka Shippers' Council, the apex body for shippers together with ICT division of Sri Lanka recently, the Customs Chief has presented detailed information of the process and the concept of the operating system.

The seminar has covered areas from keying in customs declaration up to the end of the operation. Some of the main areas included the progress and problems of AW Connectivity to the ASYCUDA WORLD related issues, SLPA Manifest requirements and limiting the errors, E payments, Implementation of the Manifest, Import/Export Cargo Examination and Boat note passing and Import/Export CusDec submission and limiting input errors.

The participants comprising importers, exporters, freight forwarders, shipping lines, banks and other customs and port users discussed issues and operational problems during the panel discussion.

In the past year by implementing the ASYCUDA system Sri Lanka has reduced the time to export and made trading across borders easier.

ASYCUDA (Automated SYstem for CUstoms Data) is a computerized customs management system developed in Geneva by the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) to cover most foreign trade procedures. The software system handles manifests and customs declarations, accounting procedures, transit and suspense procedures.