ZAMBOANGA CITY — The Zamboanga Export and Import Confederation is streamlining its importation and exportation plans after the Bureau of Customs were able to invite and convinced the Regional Container Lines to serve traders in this city of their import and exportation needs.

BoC Zamboanga City district collector Segundo Barte Jr. said that the RCL will start serving Zamboanga City to Singapore on Friday, with the arrival of their maiden voyage, the M/V Danu Bhum at the Zamboanga City International Port.

Barte added that the RCL is the first international container shipping lines to serve the city, Region 9 and Basilan, Sulu and Tawi-Tawi provinces and disclosed that the service rotation of RCL will cover the port of Cebu City-Cagayan de Oro City-Zamboanga City-Bintulu-Singapore.

Meantime, the Industrial Group of Zamboanga — makers of canned sardines — and Southern Philippines Deep Sea Fishing Association Inc., president Engr. Jaydrick Johnson Yap lauded the BoC for their success in achieving a breakthrough after many years of calling for direct international service from Zamboanga City to Singapore.

Yap revealed that the RCL owns and operates about 49 giant container vessels covering 69 destinations in Asia, India, the Indian subcontinent, and the Middle East and it provides traders from the Zamboanga peninsula and BaSulTa provinces direct access to international trade starting 11 November.

"On Friday, 11 November, traders will start exploring new avenues for new business opportunities in the world markets," Barte said, adding that the entry of RCL in this city is expected to spur socio and economic development for the city and the adjacent provinces.

The BoC district office, on the other hand, said that traders from the ZamPen or Region 9 and those from BaSulTa will no longer have to bring their cargoes to Cagayan City of General Santos City to transport them to other countries, they can transport them to other countries from this city via Singapore Port.

RCL Group general manager Marlon Isah de Guzman is confident that the new service will open up the market and provide vast opportunities for Zamboanga City traders, considering that the city is the Philippines' gateway to the Brunei-Indonesia-Malaysia-Philippines East ASEAN Growth Area or BIMP-EAGA.