The MSC 2-member team of Mr.Erwin Tunas from Indonesia and Mr.Raymond Er from Malaysia (from left to right) busy checking AETS documents at Office of the Rubber Replanting Aid Fund (ORAFF) in Rayong Province, Thailand

25 February 2009

The first exercise on the monitoring and surveillance of the implementation of the Agreed Export Tonnage Scheme (AETS) in the tripartite countries of Thailand, Indonesia and Malaysia was carried out between 17-20 February 2009.

Three 2-member teams of the Monitoring and Surveillance Committee (MSC) went onto the ground to evaluate and assess the mechanism put in place by the three countries since 1 January 2009 and their compliances with the AETS quantum for the month of January itself.

In addition to briefings and discussions with the respective National Tripartite Rubber Council (NTRC) in overseeing the implementation of the measure in their respective countries, the teams also visited exporters and warehouses to ascertain the implementation and reporting system complied with the requirements of the MSC and International Tripartite Rubber Council (ITRC).

Whilst some improvement could be made to the reporting system for ease of computation and in time submission, preliminary reports on exports for January indicated that all the 3 countries are within their limits.

As was agreed at the 14^th ITRC Meeting in Bogor, Indonesia on 12-13 December 2008, the three countries will withhold supply into the export market under the AETS by a total of 270,000 tonnes in the first quarter of 2009. The amount was part of a total of 700,000 tonnes targeted for the whole of 2009. This is one of several measures undertaken by the tripartite cooperation to counteract the decline in natural rubber prices due to the ongoing global economic crisis.

Mr.Erwin Tunas from Indonesia and Mr.Raymond Er posing with officials in front of the Rubber Control Act Section, ORAFF, Rayong Province, Thailand