The re-opening came more than three years after Malaysia closed its border with southern Philippines sometime in April 2016 after Abu Sayyaf terrorists kidnapped four Malaysians off the Sabah coast.
“We want this economy to be formalized in order for them to dock at the formal ports and they will be taxed accordingly. It’s about making the ‘informal trade’ formal,” Dagala said. Aside from creating the guidelines, the council is also tasked to review existing policies, rules, and regulations of government agencies that affect all aspects of barter trade and submit recommendations to the President and Congress.
Traded goods under the barter system will enter the Philippine territory only through the barter ports. For systematic and streamlined processing of entry and exit of allowable goods, offices of BOC and Bureau of Internal Revenue shall be established within the MBC-accredited ports.