20000311

EPB, EU Trade

dept accord to

check forgery

in export quantity

MUZAFFAR QURESHI

KARACHI: The Export Promotion Bureau (EPB) is to sign on Saturday an agreement with the EU Trade department, for electronic transmission of details of export licences issued for textile quota exports to EU countries. The arrangement has been made to check forgery in the quantity of exports for which a licence has been issued by the EPB.

The agreement will be signed in Islamabad by Director of the Textile Department, EPB, and the Director General of Trade for EU Abebayo Babagide.

A spokesman of the EPB Textile Directorate told Business Recorder that under the arrangnments details of all export licence/visa issued by the EPB to any textile quota exporter will be transmitted to System Integred Gestion de Licence (SIGL) computer network in Brussels, which in turn would pass on details to the relevant authorities of the respective country of the EU.

In case of any discrepancy in the quantity or weight of the consignment mentioned in the export licence issued by the EPB and the one presented by the exporter's agent at the time of clearance, the SIGL will inform the EPB for necessary instructions about the clearance or otherwise of the export consignment which is in excess of entitlement of the consignee.

The arrangements for electronic transmission of export licences issued to the quota exporters in the country to the EU authorities would not only help in swift clearance of export consignments by the European Customs, but will also serve as check against any bid by the unscrupulous exporters to make shipments in excess of their entitlement.

Under the present system after issuing the licence the Textile department licence has no knowledge of the quantities of exports cleared by European customs until after the customs record is received from the importing countries. By the time the department knows about extra quantities shipped by an exporter the goods have already been cleared by Customs.

In a recent case of fraud, four firms of Faisalabad were found making shipment in excess of 100,000 kg over their entitlement. The firms which now face a stern action by the EPB forged the signature of an EPB regional officer and tampered with the licence issued by the textile department. The fraud came to light only after several months when the Customs record of EU were received by the EPB.