In order to supervise, coordinate and review the implementation of the CEPT Agreement, the AFTA Council was created. The Council is a Ministerial body composed of representatives from each Member Country and the Secretary-General of ASEAN. The Council will meet as and when necessary, but at least once a year. The Council is mandated to report to the ASEAN Economic Ministers (AEM).
The ASEAN Senior Economic Officials Meeting (SEOM) supports the AFTA Council in carrying out its mandate. SEOM meets quarterly to coordinate the implementation of the CEPT Agreement in each Member Country.
SEOM is in turn supported by an Interim Technical Working Group on CEPT for AFTA (ITWG). The members of the ITWG consist of representatives from various government agencies de with the implementation of the CEPT Agreement, e.g., officers of the customs departments and officers from the ministries dealing with trade.
The ASEAN Secretariat provides the support to the AFTA Council, SEOM and the ITWG. To carry out its functions, the ASEAN Secretariat monitors the progress and impact of the CEPT Scheme. At the same time, the ASEAN Secretariat serves as a custodian of all the documents related to the implementation of the CEPT Scheme.
The private sector is encouraged to provide Inputs in the implementation of CEPT/AFTA through the ASEAN Chambers of Commerce and Industry (ASEAN-CCI). The ASEAN-CCI is invited to consult regularly with the AEM and SEOM. The agenda for SEOM is circulated to the ASEAN-CCI in advance to enable the ASEAN-CCI to provide its response during the ASEAN Senior Economic Officials Meeting.
The structure of the institutional arrangements for the implementation of the CEPT Scheme is given in Figure 2.
October 3rd, 2012
