(DTIS) Update, Volume 1 – Main report - Enhanced Integrated ...

ii. designing a program of action on customs tariffs and valuation;iii. implementing a customs reform program to conform to international obligations;iv. Finalizing an accord on trade facilitation, in consultation with donors; andv. Facilitating the digital exchange of data between agencies involved in trade facilitation.It is apparent that interventions prioritized in the first Action matrix related mostly to customsand border management. Since then, some significant progress was made in implementing the matrix,as far as trade facilitation is concerned. Some of the notable achievements were the following: A trade facilitation action plan was prepared that makes a clear distinction between whatBurundi can do alone and what it has to work on with its neighbors, especially at the ports ofDar es Salaam and Mombasa-Mpulungu. Cooperation has concentrated in particular onimproving road corridors and the creation of one-stop border posts. The issues of transit andmovement of goods are now treated in the framework of regional integration within the EACand COMESA. Burundi is taking part in a regional pilot on customs bond guarantee; A computer system has been designed for data exchange, including data sharing betweenBurundian customs and revenue authorities of neighboring countries, especially with Tanzania; A program is being implemented to harmonize customs revenue services and to provide forsingle collection point at the ports of entry; The Burundi Revenue Authority (OBR) was created in 2009 as an autonomous public institutionthat collects all government revenues; and Reforms of customs valuation are being pursued within the EAC, which since 2004 adopted thesystem of customs valuation based on the WTO Agreement on Implementation of Article VII ofGATT 1994. In November 2010, the EAC Secretariat developed a manual on valuation to allowcountries to follow the same assessment procedures. Burundi now uses the EAC manual.Besides customs and border management, several other components of trade facilitation andlogistics matter. A weakness in any dimension of logistics can neutralize the benefits expected fromother potentially useful interventions. This appears to be the case with the experience of Burundi in thisarea. A valuable assessment tool for measuring the logistics performance of a country is the LogisticsPerformance Index (LPI) published by the World Bank. The latest LPI data, published in May 2012,show that Burundi’s logistics performance is the lowest in East Africa (Figure 5.1), and is in fact thelowest of all the 155 countries surveyed across the world. Burundi came out last with a score of 1.61 outof a possible maximum of 5. Burundi’s logistics performance is low across all six dimensions covered bythe LPI (Figure 5.1): customs, infrastructure, quality of logistics services, international shipments, abilityto track and trace shipments, and timeliness. The LPI is a useful starting point to explore where and howBurundi could improve its logistics performance, in order to underpin and support its tradecompetitiveness.Even though Burundi has been implementing various reforms relevant to improving tradefacilitation, LPI results for the country show that performance has in fact deteriorated between2007 and 2012 (Figure 5.2). Overall score went down from 2.29 to 1.61 out of 5 over this period. Thedeclines in performance were particularly acute in the quality of logistics services, internationalshipments and infrastructure. It is worth noting, however, that the LPI score can reflect also theimprovements made in other countries, especially those that are Burundi’s major trading partners. Assuch, if Burundi’s improvements trail those of its main partners, then its LPI score will show a decline.As a landlocked country, it is important for Burundi to continuously improve its trade facilitation andlogistics environment, at least as fast as its neighbors.Clearly, countries have greater control over the first three dimensions of the LPI through decisions theymake on investments in infrastructure, customs and border management systems, and regulation of91 / 153