Exporters urged to join Reserve Bank pilot project

The South African Reserve Bank has called for more participation by exporters in Phase 2 of the Electronic Monitoring and Matching of Exports (EME) pilot project. Addressing members of the Johannesburg chapter of the Exporters’ Club of South Africa last week, senior manager of the Reserve Bank, Queen Mogane, called on exporters to sign up for the project, aimed at phasing out Form 178. “Signing up to this project has much benefit for the exporter as it not only allows for a more streamlined process, but sees the entire process being simplified and computerised. It is part of the initiative to do away with paper-based and manual forms,” said Mogane. “The Reserve Bank is charged with ensuring value does not leave the country without being recompensated. It is therefore important to match the physical flow of goods (exporters) out of the country with the flow of funds (export proceeds or receipts) into the country resulting from the exports.” Mogane said the project already had several exporters on board but there was much benefit in more exporters joining the pilot project. “There have been challenges in the process as many exporters have been hesitant to apply for the project as they are struggling with the Unique Consignment Reference (UCR) number and therefore have not wanted to participate.” Closing the information gap and explaining how the process worked to large numbers of exporters such as the Exporters Club, she said, was one way of putting the message across. “Our aim is for exporters to understand the benefit of joining the project but also to explain how it works.” The EME project is based on the UCR number, which must correlate at all times. “The SARB uses the unique number to link the physical export of goods with the receipt of payment for these exports. This unique number must be used when goods are cleared through Customs and exactly the same number must be used when receiving payment for these goods via the banking system. It therefore follows that the correct and accurate use of these unique numbers is critical to the electronic matching of exports with receipts,” said Mogane. To participate exporters need to enter into an agreement with the Reserve Bank, said Mogane. “A signed copy of this agreement between the exporter and the bank must be submitted to the bank via the authorised dealer with other documentation.”