The new index of the Transnational Alliance to Combat Illicit Trade (TRACIT) that was recently presented to the Department of Finance showed the Philippines ranking 69th out of 158 countries in terms of addressing illicit trade.
In the study, the Philippines scored 51.1 out of 100, which is just barely above the global average of 49.9.
Notably, it performed below average in two of six categories: criminal enablers of illicit trade, and sectoral illicit trade indicators. In the former, which evaluates how effectively countries design and enforce policies to counteract corruption, organized crime, and money laundering – all key criminal activities that facilitate illicit trade – the country only scored 46.5, which is well below the 53.6 average.
Corruption was the main concern as it undermines controls designed to prevent illicit goods from crossing borders and compromising law enforcement efforts to detect and disrupt illicit trade.
According to TRACIT, there is a need to beef up measures to criminalize corruption-related offenses, increase punitive actions for corrupt practices that facilitate illicit trade, and adopt an all-of-government approach.
As far as sectoral illicit trade is concerned, the Philippines scored even lower, with its 31.2 way below the global average of 44.6.
Nonetheless, the country did register above-average scores in taxation and economic environment; as well as performed better in the trade, customs, and borders category; as well as in terms of regulatory framework and enforcement and supply chain intermediaries.
TRACIT said illicit trade remains a widespread and persistent challenge, affecting both advanced and developing economies. “While some countries demonstrate relative strength in regulatory frameworks and enforcement, systemic vulnerabilities remain prevalent across the globe,” it said.
It is not surprising that the Philippines is just average, compared to the rest of the world, when it comes to combating illicit trade, as we have a long way to go, particularly when corruption is concerned. Perhaps we should consider it good news that we managed to remain within the average, and not fall to the below average group.
However, our government has to take this ranking seriously and focus on the shortcomings, where there are low hanging fruits that, if maximized, can result in improvements which must then be sustained if our effort against illicit trade is going to be taken seriously.*
