HCMC - As around 1,000 container trucks full of farm produce are being stuck at the Tan Thanh border gate in the northern province of Lang Son, the provincial government has proposed the prime minister suspend the transport of goods to the border gate for 15 days to clear the huge backlog.

Under the Lang Son government’s proposal, the Tan Thanh border gate is expected to suspend receiving container trucks to speed up the customs clearance of the backlog at the border gate. The proposal is also aimed at ensuring the efficiency of Covid-19 infection prevention and control efforts. The province asked the prime minister for approval to stop receiving cargo container trucks from April 16. The province said that due to the coronavirus pandemic, the Chinese side has tightened control over the import customs clearance process. The time for customs clearance at the Tan Thanh and Coc Nam border gates has been slashed to five hours per day on weekdays. Meanwhile, goods exchange has been suspended at the Binh Nghi border gate, the local media reported. These new moves have hindered import-export activities at the province’s border gates and slowed the customs clearance process, according to the provincial government. Even though the province has written to the ministries of Agriculture and Rural Development and of Industry and Trade as well as the authorities of many provinces and cities urging them to direct firms and exporters to reduce their transport of goods to the northern border gates, the number of container trucks transporting goods to the gates remains high. Data from the province showed that as of April 13, over 2,600 container trucks loaded with farm produce had not been able to cross the province’s border gates, including 1,000 at the Tan Thanh border gate. Meanwhile, only 50 container trucks pass through the border gate to China each day.