Duterte restores deal exchange in Mindanao
The ancient form of trade regulated by the government through President Rodrigo Duterte’s Executive Order No. 64
President Rodrigo Duterte issued an executive order institutionalizing barter trade in Mindanao and
creating 3 “barter ports” in Sulu and Tawi-Tawi to facilitate this type of trade.
Executive Order (EO) No. 64, Reviving Barter in Mindanao, also created a Mindanao Barter Council (MBC).
It signed by Duterte on Monday, October 29, and made available to media on Wednesday, October 31.
Barter is the trade of goods and services for other goods and services, without using money.
It an ancient form of trade practiced by many nations and cultures long ago. But barter, said the EO, continues to
“thrive and evolve as a living tradition” in Mindanao and in the larger eastern portion of Southeast Asia, or the Brunei
Darussalam-Indonesia-Malaysia-Philippines East ASEAN Growth Area (BIMP-EAGA).
Last September 11, Duterte said he would bring back barter trade in order to address soaring inflation in the country.
He had said then he would check if the “finance people” would agree to the plan.
How will barter trade work under the EO? The MBC to created will issue “comprehensive guidelines governing barter,”
including a mechanism to determine how goods to be valued.
Types of goods traded
The council will also create a list of what types of goods traded through a barter system.
To prevent smuggling and the flouting of existing customs laws, the MBC also ordered to come up with rules and regulations. It will accredit qualified traders who wish to engage in barter trade.
The MBC chaired by the trade secretary, while the Mindanao Development Authority chairperson and Bureau of Customs commissioner will serve as vice chairpersons.
Individuals from the chamber incorporate the Department of Finance, Department of Foreign Affairs, Department of Agriculture, Department of Trade and Industry under the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao, Philippine Coast Guard, and Philippine Ports Authority.
Where should bargain exchange be possible? The EO orders the making of 3 “trade ports,” to be certify by the MBC.
The 3 ports are to be in Siasi and Jolo in Sulu and Bongao in Tawi-Tawi. Trade ports set up somewhere else just upon the endorsement of the President.
No duties for a few products. A few merchandises to foreign and exchanged by means of a bargain absolved from obligations, following the ASEAN Free Trade Agreement and the ASEAN Trade in Goods Agreement (ATIGA).
Hence, these arrangements mean ASEAN nations don’t force duties on specific products exchanged inside the area, barring rice, corn, and sugar.
Further, among the MBC’s undertakings is to issue controls to permit qualified bargain dealers to profit of the zero-duty benefits under ATIGA.
