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E-Flash No 42 - 23 March 2012 A look inside the 2012 FIATA
Headquarters Session held in Zurich, Switzerland from 16-18 March FIATA would like to thank all delegates
who attended the HQ session and hopes they had a wonderful stay in Zurich.
The FIATA Headquarters Session hosted a record setting of 261 active
participants from 61 countries around the world. We believe this is a
good sign in anticipation of record numbers in Los Angeles this fall. The session was engaging,
allowing attendees to meet between and after meetings to discuss
pressing topics. Many of the attendees made favorable comments on the lively
approach they heard in the deliberations and appreciated some additional
services provided at the venue such as free internet.
FIATA unveiled its new E-learning
platform at this year HQ Session. The platform aims to host and support
FIATA’s Association Members as they implement their training programs in an
online environment. The demonstration provided in Zurich emphasized the ease
of usability of the platform and the benefits for all Associations who adopt
this approach of learning. A new dedicated web domain will be announced
in the coming weeks to enable worldwide outreach. FIATA will be enrolling interested
Association Members in an 8-week online training course that will teach Association
Members how to utilize the platform. Additionally, we will create test
accounts that will provide new users with access to all the functionality on
the FIATA platform. For Associations members interested in receiving training
or simply wishing to have access to the platform please contact Bassil Eid at
eid@fiata.com.
On 14 March 2012, the Validation
Committee of the Advisory Body Vocational Training (ABVT) successfully
validated or re-validated the training programmes of the following
Association Members: • Bulgaria (NSBS) – Bulgarian
Association for Freight Forwarding, Transport and Logistics The training material, which is primarily
based on the 14 modules of the FIATA Minimum Standards (FMST), need to be
submitted every four years to ensure that programs remain current and meet
the standard requirements of the industry. FIATA’s Advisory Body Vocational Training
(ABVT) invites those Association Members that have validated training
material to come forward for Re-Validation where applicable. The ABVT also
encourages other Association Members to have their training material
validated in order to offer the FIATA Diploma within their respective
countries.
The meeting, chaired by Mr Thomas Sim
(SLA, Singapore), touched on numerous subjects. It started with Mr Ivan
Liptuga, Deputy Chairman ABVT, focussing on general activities of ABVT,
Regional Training Centres and planned cooperation on training with
international organisations. The meeting continued with a presentation
on E-learning followed by a demonstration of the FIATA E-learning platform.
In closing the meeting, Mr. Bill Gottlieb provided further information
on the ICAO FIATA dangerous goods training program.
On 17 March 2012, Mr Frank Huster chaired
the meeting of the Advisory Body Dangerous Goods (ABDG) at the FIATA HQ
Session 2012, where he highlighted the adopted proposals of the ADR/RID 2013
(land transport of dangerous goods) at the UNECE (United Nations Economic
Commission for Europe), i.e. its specialised Bodies WP.15 and Joint
Meeting. The Chairman also advised the delegates
on the status of the regulatory work programme of Telematics (electronic
monitoring of Dangerous Goods transports) and outlined further steps. Mrs Christine D’Arcy, Deputy Chairperson
ABDG outlined the changes in the Air mode IATA DGR, 53rd Edition, ICAO-TI,
Edition 2011/2012. She gave an important presentation on carriage of Lithium
batteries by air and highlighted the changes coming into effect from 1st
January 2013. The delegates were also provided further information regarding
the ICAO-FIATA Dangerous Goods by Air Training Programme. Regarding Sea mode, Mrs D’Arcy pointed
out that IMDG Code (Amendment 35-10) only came into mandatory effect from the
1st January 2012 and could continue to be used up to and including the 31st
December 2013. Certain States would adopt IMDG code 36-12 from the 1st
January 2013, but others might wait until its use becomes mandatory on the
1st January 2014. Experts from ABDG will attend the next
Joint Meeting (19 - 23 March 2012, in Bern, Switzerland) and the UNECE WP.15
Session (8 - 10 May 2010, in Geneva, Switzerland)
The Multimodal Transport Institute
meeting, chaired by Mr Chris Gillespie, focused on policy changes in China’s
tax structure that was enacted by the Chinese State Council. A Value Added
Tax Program (VAT) has been implemented, with Shanghai being chosen to be the
pilot city for this VAT reform. This new regulation requires all registered
companies to issue VAT invoices for all services provided. The VAT rate for
the Logistics and International Freight Forwarding industry is 6%. Market information is that some freight
forwarders have introduced 6% VAT on their export invoices from 1st January
meanwhile other firms have not. The practice of charging VAT on export is not
common in the international trading community with emerging information
suggesting that an export shipment should be rated zero. It should be noted
that the VAT reforms are simply a pilot test and things could change in the
coming months. CAI – Customs Affairs
Institute The meeting provided an opportunity for
delegates to recap the work undertaken by CAI. The CAI Chairman, Mr. Steve
Morris, highlighted the need to have a clear distinction between transport
and information on trade transaction. FIATA tightened its standpoint on the
Dual Filing for Advance Security Declaration and proposed deflections
regarding the single filing system. More WCO initiatives with emphasis on
security and safety were also discussed and taken into consideration.
The AFI meeting noted encouraging
movements in improving relationships with IATA. This was highlighted through
a recent meeting between FIATA’s Immediate Past President Mr Jean-Claude
Delen and the IATA’s CEO and Director-General, Mr Tony Tyler. The meeting stated that FIATA received
confirmation given by IATA’s Director General in favour of IATA’s Global Head
of Cargo, Mr Des Vertannes in order to pave the way into a renewed
partnership.
The RAME delegates expressed their intentions
to become more actively involved in the Advisory Bodies, Institutes and
Working Groups of FIATA. The meeting followed with a presentation regarding
the next RAME field meeting to be held in Johannesburg, South Africa on 25
and 26 June 2012. The Chairman, Issa Baluch, was happy to
announce that Egypt would be putting forth an extremely qualified candidate
for the Young Freight Forwarder of the Year. The meeting concluded with an
announcement that the selected country for the next train-the-trainer (TOT)
course would be Tanzania.
The 6th field meeting will be held at the
Pullman Bangkok King Power Hotel on June 12, 2012. The field meeting will be
held in conjunction with UNESCAP meetings giving delegates an opportunity to
combine neighboring interests. FIATA encourages all delegates from the
region to attend the meeting, as it is an opportunity to address specific and
relevant regional topics. If interested in attending or wishing to know more
information, please contact Daniel Bloch at bloch@fiata.com.
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