Ports ready to operate 24/7 by January 2010: Officials

Aditya Suharmoko, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta | Wed, 12/16/2009 9:28 AM

A load off my mind: Loading and unloading activities at Tanjung Priok port in Jakarta. State port operator PT Pelabuhan Indonesia (Pelindo) II plans to develop Tanjung Priok port into an international hub port with docks 18 meters deep, starting next year. JP/R. Berto Wedhatama

The government plans to start running Indonesia’s ports around-the-clock by early January to speed up customs clearance and reduce logistics costs, officials said Tuesday.

“All ports will operate 24 hours, starting from Tanjung Priok Port [in Jakarta],” said Edy Putra Irawadi, deputy in charge of industry and trade to the coordinating economic minister, and chairman of the preparation team for the National Single Window (NSW).

The NSW is an integrated public service system to give importers and exporters simpler access to services.

Launched in December 2007, the NSW is designed to shorten the time needed to verify the identity of importers to a maximum of seven-and-a-half hours, or one working day.

Importers previously had to wait several days for customs clearance.

The NSW has now been implemented at Tanjung Priok Port, Tanjung Perak Port in East Java, Tanjung Emas Port in West Java, Belawan Port in North Sumatra and Soekarno-Hatta International Airport in Banten.

Coordinating Economic Minister Hatta Radjasa said last week the fifth phase of the NSW would be launched in January 2010 to ensure the management of all imports and exports was integrated in one portal.

Anwar Suprijadi, the Finance Ministry’s director general of customs and excise, said his office was ready to work around-the-clock to support the ports’ new operating hours.

“The ministry regulation [on the operating hours] is up to the finance minister,” he said after a seminar with the Priority Businesses Association (APJP), which has 71 members prioritized to run export-import businesses.

Businesses have often complained that inefficient public services at ports push business costs up.

Finance Minister Sri Mulyani Indrawati said in her speech Tuesday that importers and exporters should help the government protect the ports by reporting any misconduct.

Economist Aviliani said the NSW would create greater efficiency cut costs and improve investment competitiveness.

“These conditions are expected to attract investors to Indonesia,” she said.

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