Aug. 25 - The Asian Development Bank (ADB) is helping countries in the Mekong region implement a single customs clearance service to facilitate free movement of goods by 2010.

It has already conducted workshops on the subject in the Greater Mekong Subregion countries that include Cambodia, China, Laos, Myanmar, Thailand, and Vietnam.

Laos, Vietnam and Thailand are scheduled to implement the service by the year's end.Currently, each country in the region has their own customs checkpoints that requires each truck going into the country to be inspected. The regulations only serve to hamper the transport of goods across the region and does not promote free movement of trade.

ADB hopes that a single customs clearance service will enable customs officers and transport officials from all the member countries to check and issue customs clearance bills as a collective.