CORE-Observatory

La solución de ventanilla única de Zambia y Zimbabwe para impulsar el comercio entre los países africanos, The Guardian (CORE2008)

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Resumen

El reportaje de The Guardian resume los beneficios y desafíos de la ventanilla única, ubicada en el cruce fronterizo de Chirundu cruzando el río Zambezi entre Zambia y Zimbabwe. En el puesto fronterizo, funcionarios de ambos países inspeccionan solo el tráfico de entrada, por ejemplo, autoridades de Zimbabwe controlan solo el tráfico entrante a Zimbabwe. Gracias a esta disposición de ventanilla única, camiones y barcazas están obligados a detenerse únicamente una vez y se someten a un solo conjunto de trámites fronterizos. El sistema de ventanilla única ha acelerado el cruce fronterizo enormemente, desde dos o tres días de espera hasta 30 minutos. Por otra parte, la rapidez de los trámites fronterizos se ha traducido en un mayor tráfico en el puesto fronterizo (de 2000 camiones al mes cuando inició a 14000 en la actualidad) y mayores ingresos fiscales y arancelarios asociados a este incremento. Pero lo más importante, la agilización y simplificación de los trámites fronterizos ha facilitado el comercio de muchos comerciantes a pequeña escala, quienes comúnmente comercial pequeñas cantidades de alimentos, ropa y otros bienes de consumo. Hoy en día, estos pequeños comerciantes se enfrentan a menos retrasos, trámites engorrosos y medidas arbitrarias y pagos que deshonestos funcionarios pueden imponer a sus bienes. Este progreso ha traído muchos comerciantes informales, quienes antes utilizaban el contrabando para sus mercancías, y ahora han vuelto a la esfera de la economía formal. Aún así, el contrabando sigue siendo un problema importante en África: el artículo sugiere que hay rutas de contrabando establecidas para que camiones de 30 toneladas las utilicen para evadir los controles aduaneros, y que esta economía informal de contrabando representa un asombroso tercio del producto interno bruto (PIB) del África. El artículo sugiere que la proporción de la economía informal podría reducirse aún más mediante la consolidación de bloques comerciales africanos (ya hay varios), la armonización y simplificación de trámites fronterizos y el reforzamiento de la agencia de cooperación en frontera. El reportaje está disponible (en inglés) en: http://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2012/may/29/zambia-zimbabwe-intra-african-trade.

Reseña por Toni Männistö.

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Full review

This Guardian article showcases a great example of successful border agency cooperation in Africa. The CORE WP12, the “demonstrator Schipol” focusing on shipping of fresh cut flowers from Kenya to the Netherlands, might choose to study this African one-stop border concept in more detail. Closer analysis may reveal key success factors and obstacles that characterize the border agency cooperation in Africa. Also CORE’s WP19, that produces material for training and education, may use this African one-stop border as an illustrative example of border agency cooperation in developing countries. The CORE’s risk and IT clusters might need to explore this case in more detail to understand technical aspects of this one-stop border post concept.

Reference

The Guardian, Zambia and Zimbabwe’s single-stop solution to boosting intra-African trade, the Guardian, 29. May, 2012. Retrieved from http://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2012/may/29/zambia-zimbabwe-intra-african-trade

CORE2008

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Trade and money laundering uncontained (the Economist, May 2014, CORE2006)

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Summary

International trade is becoming one of the main instruments for cross-border money laundering aside common bank transfers, remittances and cash smuggling. The ”trade-based money laundering” disguises illegal trading as seemingly legitimate commercial transactions. The most common technique is mis-invoicing in which fraudsters undervalue imports or overvalue exports to repatriate ill-gotten money from abroad. For example, official records show that Mexican exports to US are much higher than the US imports from Mexico, a discrepancy that signs fraud by Mexican criminals, most likely drug cartels. In general, the trade-based money laundering offers new financial tools for a broad range of drug traffickers, arms smugglers, corrupt politicians, terrorists and evaders of taxes, duties and capital controls. Review by Toni Männistö (CBRA)

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Full review

International trade is becoming one of the main instruments for cross-border money laundering aside common bank transfers, remittances and cash smuggling. The ”trade-based money laundering” disguises illegal trading as seemingly legitimate commercial transactions. The most common technique is mis-invoicing in which fraudsters undervalue imports or overvalue exports to repatriate ill-gotten money from abroad. For example, official records show that Mexican exports to US are much higher than the US imports from Mexico, a discrepancy that signs fraud by Mexican criminals, most likely drug cartels. In general, the trade-based money laundering offers new financial tools for a broad range of drug traffickers, arms smugglers, corrupt politicians, terrorists and evaders of taxes, duties and capital controls.

The new methods for cross-border money laundering and tax evasion concern most CORE demonstrations, especially those involving international cargo movements. The emerging risk of trade-based money laundering calls for new and more effective enforcement of trade transactions. CORE is developing new solutions (e.g., data pipeline and system-based supervision) for capturing and sharing trade information across logistics operators and law enforcement agencies. The new solutions likely improve law enforcement’s capability to detect suspicious trade transactions that may have something to do with the trade-based money laundering. However, building such capability requires IT integration (e.g., interoperability), risk awareness and education and training. CORE consortium addresses these complementary activities in work carried out in risk, IT and educational clusters.

Reference

Trade and money laundering uncontained, the Economist, May 3rd 2014

CORE2006

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Drug trafficking in the Caribbean – the Full circle (the Economist May 2014, CORE2005)

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Summary

Anti-drug officials report rising cocaine imports into the US through the Caribbean islands. The officials ascribe the increasing popularity of the Caribbean route to the strengthened enforcement of alternative trafficking routes. The South American cocaine smuggling routes have displaced several times over the years due, and now again the Caribbean route is the same one than traffickers used two decades ago. The new wave of trafficking through is expected to increase violence and undermine anti-corruption efforts in the Caribbean.

The drug traffickers move significant amounts of their cocaine from Colombian coca farms and laboratories to Venezuela by jungle trails, riverboats and small aircraft. From the Venezuelan coast, the contraband is smuggled to Caribbean islands by speedboats, planes, sometimes hidden inside commercial cargo. The cocaine traffickers use then yachts, mules, cruise ships, fast boats and commercial cargo vessels to smuggle the illegal drugs into the US and Europe. The new wave of trafficking through is expected to increase violence and undermine anti-corruption efforts in the Caribbean. Review by Toni Männistö (CBRA)

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Full review

Anti-drug officials report rising cocaine imports into the US through the Caribbean islands. The officials ascribe the increasing popularity of the Caribbean route strengthened law enforcement of alternative trafficking routes. Because traffickers prefer smuggling routes that offer the highest profit-to-risk ratios, the South American cocaine smuggling networks are evolving constantly. Routes have displaced several times over the years, and now the route is again the same than two decades ago.

Today, traffickers move again significant amounts of their cocaine from Colombian coca farms and laboratories to Venezuela by jungle trails, riverboats and small aircraft. From the Venezuelan coast, the contraband is smuggled to Caribbean islands by speedboats, planes and sometimes hidden inside commercial cargo. The cocaine traffickers use then yachts, mules, cruise ships, fast boats and commercial cargo vessels to smuggle the illegal drugs into the US and Europe.  The new wave of trafficking through is expected to increase violence and undermine anti-corruption efforts in the Caribbean. The new wave of trafficking through is expected to increase violence and undermine anti-corruption efforts in the Caribbean.

Trends of international drug trafficking often influence intensity of law enforcement efforts in global supply chains. Thus, changes in South American drug trafficking may affect also the two CORE trade lanes that import goods from the region into Europe, (1) imports of fresh cut flowers from Colombia to the Netherlands (WP11) and (2) imports of coffee and cocoa beans from South America to Europe (WP13). These trade lanes may become subject to more intense anti-drug controls over the following years. Besides the CORE demo cluster, also the CORE risk cluster benefit from the insight this article provides on the recent trends in routes, volumes and methods of the South American drug trafficking. This information may be useful for CORE’s activities that are developing educational and training material.

Reference

Drug trafficking in the Caribbean – the Full circle, the Economist, May 24th 2014

CORE2005

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