SEARCA releases policy brief and policy paper on smuggling

These papers were prepared by SEARCA as milestone deliverables of the project funded by the DA-BAR titled, An Assessment of Smuggling on Selected Agricultural Commodities in the Philippines. The policy brief presents policy prescriptions requiring legislative actions, administrative orders at the level of the Cabinet Secretaries and Bureau Directors, and procedural changes at the field level. The policy paper describes the dynamics of smuggling in the Philippines, specifically addressing the nature and the extent of smuggling in the country; the effectiveness of existing policies to address smuggling; the channels of smuggling in selected agricultural commodities; and policy implications to mitigate the problem of smuggling. Moreover, it identifies and analyzes the five major issues on smuggling in the Philippines, namely: policies and procedures on imports, tariff rates, extent of smuggling, value of smuggling, and effectiveness of anti-smuggling policies. Specific recommendations for operational policies and legislative actions mentioned in this paper were based on the findings of the study on smuggling on selected agricultural commodities in the Philippines. This paper includes an introduction which provides the context of smuggling in the Philippines, a detailed analysis of the five main issues in smuggling, and recommendations for operational policies and legislative actions.