Booming agricultural exports through Kim Thanh Border Gate (Lao Cai)

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Customs operations at Lao Cai International Border Customs Sub-department. Photo: Provided by the Sub-department.

Four-digit increase in export turnover

At 6:00 a.m. on July 10, 2023, Nguyen ThiTuyet Minh, an employee of Minh Hoa Import-Export JSC (Lao Cai), was present at the Kim Thanh II international border gate to carry out export procedures for her company's goods.

"Around 6:30 a.m., the Customs and relevant authorities at the border gate began their operations, so we arrived early to complete the customs procedures to ensure the swift clearance of our goods," said Minh.

On that day, Minh processed the procedures for 10 containers of exported agricultural products, primarily dragon fruits. With her years of experience in dealing with customs procedures at the Lao Cai International Border Customs Sub-department, she stated that agricultural exports, especially fresh fruits, always receive favorable conditions from the customs and authorities to facilitate quick exports and ensure quality. Regarding customs procedures, most of her company's shipments only require five to 10 minutes per truck.

Do Hoang Linh, an employee of ThanhPhong Trading and Services Co., Ltd. (Lao Cai), who regularly handles export procedures for fruits, stated that during peak days, his company exported around 15 containers of fruits, mainly dragon fruits, durians, and lychees. "Regardless of the quantity of goods or whether it's a regular day or holiday, the Lao Cai International Border Customs Sub-department always assigns an adequate number of officials to process our procedures, ensuring that the shipments are cleared on the same day, mostly in the morning," said Linh.

In discussions with the reporter, several businesses that have conducted import-export procedures through the Kim ThanhII International Border Gate (managed by the Lao Cai International Border Customs Sub-department) shared a common view that the export activities of agricultural products, especially fresh fruits, in the early months of the year had shown remarkable growth compared to the same period last year.

The actual data from the Lao Cai International Border Customs Sub-department revealed outstanding growth in the export activities of fresh fruits. Since the beginning of the year, around 20 types of fresh fruits have been exported through the area, including durians, lychees, bananas, pomelos, watermelons, longans, jackfruits, passion fruits, lemons, sweet potatoes, ginger, and turmeric. In comparison, during the same period last year, the variety was limited to only a few fruits such as bananas, mangoes, watermelons, lychees, jackfruits, and dragon fruits. During the first six months of the year, the total volume of processed fresh fruits at the Lao Cai International Border Customs Sub-department reached 266,444 tons, an increase of 428% compared to the same period last year. Moreover, the total export value amounted to more thanUS$211 million, a staggering increase of 1,122%.

Preventing cargo congestion

To facilitate export activities to the Chinese market, the Lao Cai International Border Customs Sub-department has placed special emphasis on administrative procedure reform, customs modernization, and strengthened coordination with relevant agencies to support businesses in exchanging, connecting, and enhancing cooperation to promote import and export.

With the goal of prioritizing citizens and businesses, and striving to achieve their satisfaction, the Sub-department maintains discipline, integrity, and professionalism in serving the people and businesses.

Furthermore, the Sub-department regularly organizes dialogues and advisory sessions to support businesses, following the principles of listening, understanding, sharing, and collaborating. Alongside these efforts, there is a focus on disseminating and popularizing laws to provide maximum support to businesses in complying with customs regulations and minimizing errors in import-export activities.