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Customs And Excise Department, Dominica Introduces Tradestream

The Dominica Customs & Excise Division is leading the implementation of the TradeStream project, an initiative designed by Digitised Solutions Ltd to bridge technological deficiencies with ASYCUDA, a program primarily focused on customs operations.
This approach incorporates the functionalities of various border regulatory agencies associated with import, export, and transit processes. TradeStream, an economical and user-friendly web-based solution, offers a unified platform for the electronic submission of data and scanned ancillary documents needed by Border Regulatory Agencies (BRAs) for processing Licenses, Permits, Certificates, and other relevant documents (LPCO). Interoperable with ASYCUDA-World, TradeStream extends the following data exchange services:

1. LPCO validation and write-off
2. Implementation of National Risk Criteria and Assessment
3. Electronic access and release of cargo information during and after inspection by BRAs
4. Provision of trade statistics
5. Performance measurement
6. Coordinated cargo release, ensuring complete decision-making.

TradeStream’s agility empowers cargo inspectors with mobile technologies for routine tasks, eliminating the necessity for cumbersome paper-based documents. Though the cargo clearance process has seen incremental advancements since ASYCUDA World’s introduction in 2010, a significant technology gap persists in other agency functions, which remain heavily reliant on manual, paper-driven processes. Through agile methodology, the TradeStream project aims to bridge these gaps by scrutinizing current practices, identifying redundancies and sub-optimal procedures, and subsequently redesigning these into more streamlined and efficient processes via phased TradeStream rollouts. Over the last eight months, the Customs team, in collaboration with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, International Business, Trade and Energy and the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries, Blue and Green Economy- Plant Protection and Quarantine Unit, has initiated a pilot project. This project involves integrating the Trade Import license procedures and the Plant Quarantine inspection procedure onto the TradeStream platform. The Plant Quarantine division’s role in the approval process for importing Irish potatoes showcases TradeStream’s single submission feature, where required information and documents are processed by multiple agencies based on a workflow that necessitates mutual approval before customs declarations are evaluated.