Container trucks carrying agricultural products were congested at Tan Thanh Border Gate in January 2022. (Photo: SGGP)
Mr. Le Van Thang, Head of the Management Board of Dong Dang Border Gate Economic Zone in Lang Son Province, said that in about a week of the Lunar New Year holiday, the total number of remaining container trucks waiting for export at three border gates of Huu Nghi, Tan Thanh, and Chi Ma of Lang Son Province had reduced to only 474 vehicles. From February 3 to February 6, about 300 vehicles passed customs clearance. However, from February 7 to now, the number of container trucks carrying agricultural products to the province began increasing as China resumed customs clearance earlier than planned. By the afternoon of February 9, the total number of trucks waiting for import-export procedures at the three border gates of Tan Thanh, Huu Nghi, and Chi Ma had risen to more than 1,600 vehicles, excluding more than 800 vehicles at Coc Nam Border Gate in Lang Son Province. Ms. Be Thi Thu Hien, Deputy Director of the Plant Quarantine Sub-Department of Region VII under the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, on February 9, said that border gates for importing and exporting goods and agricultural products in Lang Son Province, such as Tan Thanh, Huu Nghi, and Chi Ma, had all reopened after a temporary closure. Before the Lunar New Year, the Chinese authorities announced the suspension of customs clearance and plant quarantine for Vietnamese fruits and agricultural products for about 14 days before and after the Tet holiday. However, border gates have reopened from the third day of the Lunar New Year. However, according to Ms. Be Thi Thu Hien, the speed of customs clearance of agricultural products through border gates in Lang Son remains extremely sluggish, only about 60-100 vehicles per day, because China still tightens control on the Covid-19 pandemic. Faced with the above situation, Vice Chairwoman of the People's Committee of Lang Son Province Doan Thu Ha recently chaired a meeting with units at the border gates, discussing solutions to remove difficulties in import and export activities and pandemic prevention in the area. Due to the low capacity of customs clearance of Huu Nghi, Tan Thanh, and Chi Ma border gates, Ms. Ha suggested that the Management Board of Dong Dang Border Gate Economic Zone and relevant authorities hold talks and exchanges with the Chinese authorities to agree on the delivery and receipt methods of goods between the two sides as soon as possible, as well as agree to restore customs clearance activities at other border gates; build a reasonable vehicle regulation process at each border gate and ensure transparency in regulation; establish a buffer zone to maintain a safe green zone for the border gate areas. Enterprises need to set up and manage a team of specialized drivers; calculate the storage capacity of yards, parking lots, and parking areas to avoid congestion. The People's Committee of Lang Son Province also requested the relevant authorities to promptly notify localities to temporarily stop sending container trucks to the border gates to avoid the recurrence of truck backlog like at the end of December last year and the beginning of January.
The General Department of Vietnam Customs said that it had deployed the warning function against congestion of vehicles carrying import and export goods at general border gates on the national one-door portal for enterprises to actively monitor and regulate import and export goods. Businesses and users only need to access the website at https://www.vnsw.gov.vn to monitor the real-time Vehicle density map. Vehicle status at border gates is displayed in four levels, including red for more than 5,000 vehicles, orange for 1,000-5,000 vehicles, yellow for 500-1,000 vehicles, and green for under 500 vehicles.
