Crossing borders quickly and safely

AS BARRIERS to trade continue to tumble and the flow of people and goods across borders quickens, governments are looking to smoothen the process of cross-border movement while ensuring that security is not compromised. As such, border management and customs agencies around the world are working towards simplifying the processes and reduce costs for cross-border trade to bolster the economic attractiveness of their countries.

There is also a significant cost linked to delays in moving goods across borders. At the US-Mexico border, delays in freight movements in 2006 was estimated to result in US$6 billion worth of economic losses and the loss of 51,000 jobs.

"With tremendous and growing volumes of goods crossing borders, the impetus is on border management and customs agencies to expedite the clearing processes for the import and export of goods," said consultancy Frost & Sullivan in a report.