Africa-Press – Eswatini. The SADC Electronic Certificate of Origin (e-CoO) is set to significantly reduce fraud at border posts owing to its security features such as online e-CoO authenticity verification and the optical watermarking technology.
As part of the ongoing efforts to increase seamless flow of intra-regional trade, support regional industrialisation and ultimately, accelerate the regional economic development, the Southern African Development Community (SADC) launched the SADC Electronic Certificate of Origin (e-CoO). The SADC e-Certificate of Origin is an electronically processed and issued by an issuing authority attesting that goods declared by an exporter conform to specific rules of origin as per the criteria provided in the SADC Protocol on Trade. It was launched last year September and it is expected that all member States will implement the e-CoO by 2024.
According to the latest 43rd SADC Summit brochure, the e-CoO, which replaces the manual SADC e-Certificate of Origin issued by the issuing authority in the country of origin of the goods, will help the trader to apply online, trace the application and gets the response on the submission digitally, thus infusing efficiency in the process. With the SADC eCoO, issuance of certificates is done through a system, and the authorisation process, which includes registration of exporters, stamps and signatures, is done in an electronic format. The electronic system will allow manufacturers, producers and exporters to electronically register their products for preferential treatment and apply for certificates of origin whenever there is an export shipment. Furthermore, the system allows customs officers to approve the system electronically.
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