KINGSTON, Jamaica— Some 20 State entities that facilitate imports and exports are earmarked for digitisation under the Jamaica Electronic Single Window for Trade (JSWIFT) initiative.

The JSWIFT is the one-stop facility designed to provide fully automated services to enable a single portal for access to the services of all cross-border regulatory agencies.

This was stated by Minister of Industry, Investment and Commerce, Audley Shaw,  while making his contribution to the 2021/22 Sectoral Debate in the House of Representatives on May 11.

Shaw said that the Trade Board Limited was the first border regulatory agency to pilot the full-scale implementation of JSWIFT, with the integration of export facilitation services on Monday, June 22, 2020, followed by the incorporation of import facilitation services on Monday, July 20, 2020.

He noted that the Trade Board’s launch of JSWIFT augurs well for efficiency and the agency is now able to turn around approximately 50 per cent of permit applications within a 24-hour time frame.

“This is an improvement on the standard service guarantee of two to three working days,” the Minister said.

Shaw explained that since JSWIFT’s implementation, more than 24,000 permits have been submitted and processed, including the import aspect of the Plant Quarantine and Produce Inspection (PQPI) Branch of the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries.

He added that the integration of several other agencies is targeted for completion before year end.

 “We have also tasked the Jamaica Customs Agency, which houses and manages the JSWIFT, to fast-track the onboarding of other border regulatory agencies that have components that are ready for digitisation,” the Minister said.

He pointed out that these flagship programmes and initiatives have been identified as key drivers for increasing the country’s competitiveness, “as we recover stronger and faster”.