Single Window Systems

In the OIC Member States

In terms of governance, two important aspects have to be kept in mind. The first is that Single

Windows are whole-of-government efforts and require cross-organisational collaboration. The

second is that there needs to be a strong leadership to drive the necessary reform process. The

most common approach is to design a governance structure that involves all relevant

government agencies at equal level. A specific government department / Ministry or the Head

of Government office presides the governance structure.

Often Single Window initiatives are driven by a specific organisation. In some countries it is

the customs services, in others it is the Ministry of Trade or Economy, the Chamber of

Commerce, or the Port Authority. The governance model is an instrument for mobilising and

committing other government agencies and stakeholders to the project.

The management model impacts the efficiency and autonomy of the Single Window and also

sends a strong signal with regards to the stakeholder collaboration. One approach is to entrust

the development and management of the Single Window to a government department,

commonly the customs services. This approach is attractive because customs services are

often advanced in terms of IT resources and skills, have an independent budget, and control all

trade transactions. The challenge of this approach is to ensure involvement of other agencies

and a strategy design that not only caters to the efficiency of the customs clearance process but

also to the objectives of other government departments, i.e. the physical movement of goods

and food and sanitary control.

Another approach is to set up a new entity for the Single Window operations that is neutral

and specifically tasked to develop and manage the Single Window. Such an entity can take

different legal forms and can be of public or private or mixed capital ownership; i.e. non-profit

public company, or for profit company. Governments transfer the development and operation

to such an entity through different means: through a contractual Private-Public Partnership

(PPP) arrangement, or adopt a special enactment.

The financial and management model are closely related to each other. In the public model, the

initial investment is government funded, and the operational expenses may be funded through

the regular government budget, or through the revenues from the Single Window fees. This

funding method is adopted for Single Windows that are part of the government of Single

Window operators that are companies under private law but not for profit companies.

In the private-public model, private sources, alone or in combination with equity from the

government, fund the investment and operation. In such a scenario the Single Window

operators tends to be a joint-venture company set up as vehicle for the PPP contract. These are

For-profit private companies. The company retains the Single Window revenues as profit and

operational and investment budget. In some PPP contracts, the Single Window operator

receives an annual payment from the government for providing the Single Window service.