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Introduction
This paper contains an overview of the requirements of various governmental entities in trading across borders. These entities include ITAC (International Trade Administration Commission of South Africa), the NRCS (National Regulator for Compulsory Specifications), and SABS (South African Bureau of Standards). The shortcomings of the current LOA system are increasing due to its inability to regulate "dumping”, which causes a significant threat to fair trade and the safety of South African citizens. In addition, there is a general lack of control escalating due to ever-increasing imports against severe capacity constraints. Unfortunately, only a small percentage of products can be inspected, which is why the pre-approval LOA process, and its limitations should be evaluated. For example, between 2017/2018, NRCS detected and subsequently destroyed non-confirming products valued at more than R300 million. More concerning is that a substantial portion of NRCS levy income is spent on destroying non-compliant goods, hindering the opportunity to address capacity constraints.

Against this backdrop, this paper specifically addresses the mandate of these entities and how they operate and cooperate within the South African trading environment. This paper further tries to identify how these different entities can effectively link together by using a single integrated system to accommodate the industry better.

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