A container currently arriving in Indonesia generally requires between five and six days to be cleared by Indonesian customs. The new rules will reduce this time to potentially a matter of hours by creating a “one point, one time” system for data submission and reducing the number of steps needed for customs clearance.

“This new program will insure goods reach Indonesian businesses and consumers more efficiently,” says US-ASEAN Business Council President Alex Feldman. “Better customs processes will increase trade and create jobs on both sides of the Pacific.”

This new Indonesian policy is an important step towards the creation of the ASEAN Economic Community and joint “single trade window”, which would enable goods entering into any ASEAN country to clear customs for all ten through a single submission of information. Six of ten ASEAN countries have written or are drafting improved customs rules with the aim of creating their own National Single Windows. Some six hundred million consumers live in the ASEAN region, and ASEAN is the United States’ fifth largest trading partner after Canada, China, the European Union and Mexico. The ASEAN Single Window Process has been supported by a grant from USAID.

President Susilo Bambang Yudhyono, along with other key government ministers, spoke at the official launch of the Single Window today at the Tanjong Priok Port. Indonesia purchased some six billion dollars worth of U.S. goods in 2008, and, as the fourth most populous nation in the world, is a key growth market for U.S. companies.

"We welcome Indonesia's National Single Window Launch," said Stuart Dean of General Electric. "Along with Indonesia's outstanding economic growth the last few years, the National Single Window makes Indonesia a very attractive destination for investment and trade."

A Council delegation representing 27 leading American companies visited Jakarta this week and committed to assist Indonesia develop better infrastructure to support its continued economic growth by launching a Council Working Group.

For more information about the Infrastructure Working Group and the full list of Companies on the delegation, follow this link: www.usasean.org/Press_Releases/2009/indonesiamission2010.htm.

More information about Indonesia's National Single Window can be found here: www.insw.go.id

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Currently celebrating its 25 th anniversary, the US-ASEAN Business Council represents over 100 major U.S. Corporations, ranging from those who have been active in Southeast Asia for over 100 years to newcomers looking to expand their presence in one of the world’s most dynamic markets. The Council’s sectoral working groups, including Customs, Defense & Security, Energy, Financial Services, Food and Agriculture, Health & Life Sciences, Information & Communications Technology, and Infrastructure, bring together the pre-eminent companies in their fields to enable high-level dialogues that help resolve issues and drive innovation and investment. With long-established personal and professional relationships in ASEAN and Washington, the Council is the most effective conduit between decision-makers on both sides of the Pacific.