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Key government officials convened to advance concrete measures to resolve port congestion, address stakeholder concerns, and ensure the smooth movement of goods ahead of the Christmas season
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Agencies also committed to finalizing the draft joint administrative order, which aims to provide guidelines on port and container management, and transparency and regulation of shipping and logistics charges
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Among the agreed immediate measures are expanding container-yard capacity through identified sites and expediting the withdrawal of overstaying laden containers
Key government officials convened to advance concrete measures – including finalizing the proposed joint administrative order (JAO) on port and container management – to resolve port congestion, address stakeholder concerns, and ensure the smooth movement of goods ahead of the Christmas season, according to the Department of Finance (DOF).
The meeting was led by Finance Secretary Frederick Go, with Cabinet Secretary Benhur Abalos, Trade Secretary Ma. Cristina Roque, and Transportation Secretary Vince Dizon. Also present were Bureau of Customs (BOC) Commissioner Ariel Nepomuceno, Philippine Ports Authority (PPA) General Manager Jay Daniel Santiago, Philippine Reclamation Authority Chairperson Alex Lopez, and other representatives from concerned government agencies.
Go underscored the need for prompt resolution on concerns raised by stakeholders, emphasizing the importance of immediate and tangible results.
DOF said among the agreed measures are expanding container-yard capacity through identified sites, with BOC exploring an additional location in nearby areas, and expediting the withdrawal of overstaying laden containers. BOC also reported that 45% of these containers had been cleared as of November 9.
READ: Temporary yards, more sweeper vessels eyed vs Manila jam
BOC Office of the Commissioner deputy chief of staff Atty. Chris Noel Bendijo during a BOC event on November 5 said they are looking for properties to use as temporary yards, and that several private offers are still to be explored: a 100-hectare property in Bulacan, another in Cavite, and a third that would need extra clearing because of garbage issues.
Bendijo also reported that BOC-Port of Manila and BOC-MICP had called on owners to withdraw 3,598 containers in Manila port as of October 26. Of these, 1,683 had been released as of November 4, and importers committed to clear the remaining 1,915 in a week or two.
READ: Manila port congestion may take months to clear: BOC
Finalizing the JAO
DOF said the agencies also committed to finalizing the proposed JAO, which aims to provide guidelines on port and container management, and transparency and regulation of shipping and logistics charges. The proposed JAO aims to ensure efficient port utilization, transparency in logistics charges, collection of lawful revenues, and controlled temporary admission of containers.
It was targeted for signing months earlier.
READ: Joint administrative order on port congestion may be signed next week
The draft is a revival with a significant expansion of a 2019 proposal that aimed to regulate origin and destination charges imposed by foreign carriers and ease port congestion. It is also part of BOC’s proposed measures to address high yard utilization, particularly at Manila’s international terminals.
Nepomuceno earlier said the JAO “will start helping resolve the congestion issue” at Manila ports, while acknowledging that congestion is a “complex problem” the order alone will not fully resolve.
Nepomuceno also said Go has already signed the JAO. Other signatories include DOTr, DTI, PPA, Maritime Industry Authority, Bureau of Internal Revenue, and Philippine Competition Commission.
The JAO is also one of the long-term measures identified during stakeholders meetings led by Abalos since October. Stakeholders have been raising the issue of port congestion and the continued difficulty of returning empty containers.
Aside from the JAO, other measures discussed during the meetings were more frequent calls of sweeper vessels to evacuate empty containers clogging container yards, as well as measures to make truck movements move much freely such as lifting of truck bans, the truck anti-overloading policy, and pass-through fees that local government agencies impose on truckers.
Other long-term measures include new infrastructure outside Metro Manila that will result in a less “Manila-centric” flow of goods, and legislation to institutionalize solutions.
There are also measures already in place in anticipation of higher volumes during the Christmas season.
BOC has extended the schedule at designated examination areas in Manila and other congested ports from 8 a.m.–5 p.m. to 8 a.m. to midnight, effective immediately. In response to this, the Bureau of Animal Industry ordered the veterinary quarantine stations at the Manila International Container Port and the Port of Manila to operate round the clock.
The service provider of BOC’s Electronic Tracking of Containerized Cargo System also ordered 500 more electronic customs seals and committed two more people to arm the seals during the extended hours. The E-TRACC System tracks the inland movement of containerized cargoes during transit and transfer to other customs territories and facilities. All containers covered by the system are required to be affixed with an ECS–a GPS monitoring device–before being cleared to depart from the starting point or point of discharge for the voyage to the end point or point of destination.
