Officials of the Georgetown Chamber of Commerce and Industry (GCCI) are to meet late next week with the Customs and Trade Administration (CTA) to discuss a menu of measures aimed at ensuring that such bottlenecks as may exist to the timely and efficient clearance of goods imported for the local market to meet the seasonal demand.
When Stabroek Business telephoned GCCI President Komal Ramnauth for a comment on the mood of the urban commercial sector ahead of the customary heightened seasonal commercial activity, he said he would speak only after his scheduled November 25 meeting with the CT. This meeting has become an annual feature designed to ensure that the wheels of the customs clearance process are sufficiently well-oiled to ensure no undue delay in the clearance of goods.
Meanwhile, responses to Stabroek Business’ customary seasonal telephone interviews with business houses indicate that the clearance of containers may have already slowed down on account of the increased volume of arriving cargo. “We have seen an increase in arriving cargo for several weeks now. The period between the beginning of November and Christmas passes quickly. The meeting with the Chamber of Commerce and the Customs should have taken place at least a month ago,” a water street retailer said.
Of the 13 Georgetown retailers interviewed by Stabroek Business nine said they doubted that the planned meeting between the Chamber and the Customs would make a difference to “what already exists” at Customs. One businessman, who imports curtain fabric and ornaments for retail during the pre-Christmas shopping period told Stabroek Business that “whatever agreement they reach Customs often applies only on paper. Clearing your goods is a different thing.” Four of the 13 said they had their own “system” for engaging the Customs. “You really cannot afford to depend on things to happen. This is Christmas we’re talking about and if you miss out it’s like missing out on the whole year. You have to be sure you know what is happening with Customs,” one of the four said.
Meanwhile, eight of the 13 businessmen said they were more concerned about the threat posed by the seasonal crime spree—mostly armed robberies—rather than with Customs bottlenecks. They suggested that while they believed that they could handle customs clearance issues they had no control over the crime situation. Other issues which the businessmen said were important to them during the pre-Christmas period include urban traffic congestion, pavement vendors trading in front of established business houses, container congestion and shoplifters.
