ATTN: SHIPPING & LOGISTICS EDITORS
HAFFA TACKLES CHALLENGING YEAR HEAD ON
Hongkong Association of Freight Forwarding and Logistics Limited (HAFFA) Chairman Ir Dr Paul Tsui outlined the achievements of the past year and current strategies to address industry challenges at the Association’s Annual Spring Dinner held at the Kowloonbay International Trade and Exhibition Centre on March 21, 2013.
While highlighting the positives, including a milestone meeting with Mr. C.Y. Leung, Chief Executive of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government, Ir Dr Tsui also spoke of the considerable challenges facing the changing logistics industry today.
HAFFA members continue to rally together to address relevant issues, but Ir Dr Tsui admitted the industry’s defining resilience was tested in 2012, especially as related to the slackening international economy. Although cargo throughput at the Hong Kong International Airport increased 2.2 per cent over 2011 to four million tonnes, seaports handled only 23.1 million TEUs, a decrease of 5.2 per cent over the previous year.
Ir Dr Tsui lauded several milestones, including HAFFA’s role in IATA’s decision to submit a proposal to the IATA / FIATA Consultative Council in February 2013 to exempt Hong Kong IATA cargo agents from Annual Financial Review (AFR) implementation, a proposal which was endorsed and will be recommended to IATA Cargo Services Conference for final approval.
Last year, IATA also officially recognized the HAFFA VTP Airfreight Module 1 and Module 2 accreditation, and members can now present their certificates for IATA Cargo Agent accreditation or renewal.
Addressing the issues facing the industry, at the highest level was a milestone meeting with Mr. C. Y. Leung, HAFFA’s first-ever meeting with a Chief Executive of the Hong Kong SAR Government. HAFFA presented a detailed view of the cargo industry, while outlining HAFFA’s position on major issues, including global security compliance, facilitation of information flow via an e-platform, the need for a transshipment ordinance, and co-location customs clearance for customs brokerage for import cargoes to Mainland China.
Amongst a number of practical measures to resolve both the hardware screening facilities and software e-platform proposal, was a proposal by HAFFA urging the government to facilitate investment in an airfreight CFS warehouse facility at the airport island. HAFFA is committed to voicing the industry’s concerns during the various stages of this project. On a broader spectrum, the global movement towards e-freight and international requirements under the World Customs Organization (WCO) prompted HAFFA to submit a proposal to the Chief Executive to urge the Government to consider a Common e-Platform to facilitate trade information flow throughout the entire supply chain.
A milestone meeting between HAFFA and the Hong Kong Shippers’ Council, with representatives from the U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) and the Consulate General of the United States of America, included a briefing on the Customs-Trade Partnership Against Terrorism. This was the first-ever direct dialogue between the CBP and HAFFA, and the Association is confident this will facilitate future communication on security compliance issues between the HAFFA and the USA.
Security remains a top priority issue for the industry. Since 2008, HAFFA has been working with the Civil Aviation Department (CAD) to review existing Regulated Agent Regime (RAR), and is required to implement new enhancements to the RAR from July 15, 2013. While amendments to RAR were anticipated, HAFFA is working to ensure that changes result in the minimum disruption to the flow of trade and cargo operations.
In light of the new changes to the requirements for shipping lithium batteries by air, and Hong Kong experiencing Dangerous Goods (DG) incidents, HAFFA jointly hosted a seminar alongside CLG and HKSC, which was supported by the Civil Aviation Department and the Hong Kong Logistics Development Council (Logscouncil) in order to raise the safety standards of the aviation industry. Ir Dr Tsui thanked the industry for its enthusiastic support, which saw more than 360 participants attend the seminar and participate in the valuable question and answer session. In response to Members’ requests, HAFFA and CLG have established DG best practice guidelines and a FAQ document, both of which are available from the HAFFA website.
Addressing Operations Best Practices, HAFFA has created a single trading conditions document to cater to all services provided by Members. The Logistics Service Agreement template, which includes operation within four-walls only, was finalized and uploaded to the HAFFA website in March.
Education remains a priority for HAFFA, and as part of its ongoing commitment to provide a structured training programme for industry newcomers, the first class of Airfreight M3 began last November. This follows the success of Airfreight and Seafreight M1 and Airfreight and Seafreight M2. HAFFA is currently developing M4 modules with the entire training programme expected to be developed this year.
In summary, Ir Dr Tsui spoke of the hot topics that have affected the logistics industry over the past 12 months, including the EU debt crisis, the instability of the US economy, high fuel charges, inflation and new security compliance measures, as well as the best ways for HAFFA to serve its members. Ir Dr Tsui concluded the evening with a rallying cry for unity, support and participation as HAFFA works to further demonstrate the importance of the freight forwarding and logistics industry as an economic engine for Hong Kong.
The evening was officiated over by guests of honour Mr. Joseph Lai, Permanent Secretary for Transport & Housing (Transport), the Honourable Frankie Yick, Legislative Council Member for Transport and Mr. Norman Lo, JP, Director-General of Civil Aviation and was attended by over 600 members of the industry.
The Hongkong Association of Freight Forwarding and Logistics Limited was established in 1966, and is responsible for setting industry standards as well as providing educational courses which enhance the professional standards of the freight forwarders and logistics providers in Hong Kong.
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March 25, 2013
Issued on behalf of the Hongkong Association of Freight Forwarding and Logistics Limited by PR Plus Limited. For further information, please contact Melanie Ho on telephone 2575-6995 or email .