KINGSTON, Jamaica — The Ministry of Industry, Commerce, Agriculture and Fisheries, today signed an advisory agreement with the International Finance Corporation, a subsidiary of the World Bank, for the implementation of a national trade portal for trade at the ministry’s New Kingston offices.

The initiative, which was spearheaded by the Trade Facilitation Task, will serve to implement the portal with the purpose of making all regulatory trade-related information and other trade information useful to Jamaican importers and exporters, investors and potential investors easily and readily available in a single integrated website.

In his remarks at the signing ceremony Portfolio Minister Karl Samuda welcomed the agreement as one whose “time has come” and which would serve to improve the doing business ranking of the country, thus facilitating a more coordinated and competitive process of trading.

Several divisions of Samuda’s ministry directly impact trade facilitation.

The trade portal is intended to increase transparency and predictability of trade procedures and, in doing so, increase the compliance level and reduce the cost of doing business through trade.  

To this extent, the portal will house information on the laws governing trade; facilitate tariff enquiries for commodity codes and other measures and procedures; list permits, licences  and certificates required for imports and exports; indicate steps required for obtaining permits, licences  and certificates required for imports and exports; list restrictions and prohibitions related to trade; lists the Government agencies involved in import and export and list the fees and charges associated with trade in Jamaica.

When implemented, Jamaica will satisfy Article 1 of the World Trade Organisation Trade Facilitation Agreement, requiring parties to ensure that trade information is public and available.