The Director-General of the Ghana Ports and Harbours Authority, Michael Lujuge has applauded efforts being made by government to expedite processes leading up to the realization of efficient multimodal linkages that would complement the ongoing massive developments in Ghana’s port infrastructure.

Speaking on Eye on Port on the Status of Ghana’s Ports and their readiness for African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), the DG of GPHA, indicated that the success of every country’s port system is not only seen in the availability of world class port infrastructure, but also the overall efficiency in its hinterland transport systems.

“Trade feeds on distance, time and cost. Connectivity is key. That is why the ideal situation is for you to have multimodal transport. That way, the trader is able to choose from these options the one that best suits him or her in terms of time and money,” he expressed.

He said it is now more needed than ever for Ghana to step up efforts in developing its rail networks and also develop its inland water transport systems to open up opportunities for increased trade as Ghana intends to lead the way in intra-continental trade.

Mr. Luguje explained that with a well-oiled rail system in Ghana, the time and cost of carting goods through the hinterlands would be significantly reduced as well as the traffic congestion on the country’s road networks which would make the cost of doing business for importers and exporters cheaper.

He cited the case of Tema Motorway interchange project which has seen phase 1 completed, where goods coming to and from the port are moving at a speedy rate which has relieved economic operators.

Mr. Michael Luguje said Ghana’s ports are well positioned to serve as leading trade and logistics hubs in the sub region and he is excited for the implementation of the African Continental Free Trade Area.

He revealed that with the completion of the phase 1 of the Terminal 3, the Tema Port is currently the biggest in terms of capacity of all ports in the West and Central Africa.

“We have the biggest container terminal within West and Central Africa. If you look at single terminal volumes that are handled, we were able to do 1 million TEUs at the close of 2018 and 2019. Barring COVID-19, our target was to cross the 1 million mark,” the DG asserted.

He said this is being complemented by ongoing expansion of the Takoradi Port which includes the upgrading of the dry bulk jetty with conveyor systems, construction of the multipurpose Atlantic Terminal, the completed liquid bulk terminal, and the pending oil and gas services terminal.

“The Liquid Bulk Terminal has the capacity to serve the whole liquid bulk industry for as many years to come” he said.

The Director-General of the Ghana Ports and Harbours Authority, also revealed that these are further boosted by the initiative to construct the Mpakadan Inland Port and the Boankra Integrated Logistics Terminal which will begin soon.

The Director-General of the Ghana Ports and Harbours Authority, Mr. Michael Luguje has projected that cargo traffic for the year 2020 in Ghana’s ports would not significantly depart from previously recorded statistics despite the impact of the coronavirus pandemic on the port and shipping business.

Speaking on Eye on Port, the GPHA Boss indicated that barring COVID-19, Ghana’s ports were expected to handle around 30 million metric tonnes of cargo which is a 3-million-ton improvement over the 27 million recorded in 2019.

“We were going to perform much better than 2019. Usually we look at between 5-10% growths per annum so definitely we would have been hitting close to 30 million by the end of the year.”

However, Mr. Luguje confirmed that the coronavirus pandemic affected cargo volumes handled in the country’s ports in some forms with the Port of Takoradi having been impacted more significantly.

According to the DG of GPHA, with the coronavirus pandemic affecting the oil and gas industry causing massive deflation in prices, many of the companies in the oil and gas exploration sector in Ghana ceased operations for some time.

This negatively impacted the port of Takoradi which has been serving as a hub to receive oil and gas related cargo to Ghana.

“All the oil explorations that were happening, a lot of them had to cancel contracts and pack bag and baggage and leave. As a result, that affected all the supply vessels related traffic into the port and the revenue we had to generate. That traffic alone dropped by 53%,” he said.

Mr. Luguje again revealed that the Takoradi Port saw a significant drop in export cargo traffic for the first half of 2020 as a result of about four-month long halt in manganese export through the Port of Takoradi.

“The manganese issue was about some challenges they had with government on taxes and others during the latter part of 2019, so they shut down. They were certain to come back by January-February but due to COVID-19, they didn’t come until June-July so we also saw some 50% drop in manganese exports,” he added.

In the Port of Tema, which is primarily an import-driven port, however, he said the impact of coronavirus was not seen in volumes of cargo received, but instead challenges associated with its clearance.

The Director-General of the Ghana Ports and Harbours Authority, explained that even though the President, Nana Akufo-Addo allowed the Port Authority and relevant institutions in the port clearance chain to continue to conduct the clearance of goods with accompanying health protocols, importers were largely reluctant to comply for obvious reasons.

Due to this, the Port Authority had to waive a lot of rent charges as well as collaborate with the shipping lines to waive demurrages that accrued over the lockdown period.

Mr. Luguje projected that the peak period prior to Christmas where the port experiences an influx of imports will see the port replenish what was lost to COVID-19.

He added that, that may come after the Presidential and Parliamentary elections following evidence from history.

“The business community has its own interpretations of seasons. It is normal. It always picks up very well in our country after the elections.”

Kenya’s High Commissioner to Ghana, His Excellency Eliphas Mugendi Barine has touted developments in the port sector of Kenya which are yielding significant results in the Eastern Central sub region of Africa and gradually positioning the country as a hub for intra continental trade.

Speaking on Eye on Port on the subject “Promoting Trade beyond Individual Borders of African Countries”, Mr. Barine revealed that the Mombasa Port infrastructure has been significantly augmented for the purpose of making it a transit and transhipment hub serving the Eastern and Central African Sub region.

“The Mombasa port serves a wide hinterland and it is doing well. There’s a lot of investment that is going into it for the last ten years, including dredging to have capability to receive ships that have huge tonnage,” he disclosed.

He also revealed that standard gauge railways have been constructed that link Kenya’s port to the capital of Nairobi, and subsequently to the neighbouring country of Uganda, and works are ongoing to connect through to South Sudan, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Rwanda, and Burundi.

This intervention he said, has significantly facilitated trade in the country as well as transit destinations in the area.

“Now, if you have cargo destined beyond Mombasa, you don’t need to come to Mombasa Port. We put everything on rail and transport inland. Since the standard gauge rail, it takes 4 hours for a distance of about 500km,” he revealed.

The Kenyan High Commissioner to Ghana, also touted customs’ interventions made by Kenyan authorities which have reduced bureaucracies in the port space in Mombasa and transit borders.

“Now, if we have goods going to the other countries, you clear your goods and make your payment in Mombasa port, and you have officers from countries sitting at the port of Mombasa doing their business there so you don’t have to go through all the further processes. All you need is a very elaborate tracking system,” he explained.

His Excellency Eliphas Mugendi Barine said while many trade facilitation interventions in Kenya have caused a few job losses, it has made doing business more efficient, reduced human congestion at the port environment, drastically reduced road accidents and opened up new avenues of employment.

“The real challenge however is with the people who have invested in trucking system. The railway has taken some of the business. It is faster and also cheaper to move goods by rail. For example, if it costed 1000 dollars from Mombasa to Nairobi by truck, by rail it costs 500 dollars,” he said.

He continued to say that, it is in this vein, Kenyan authorities are redirecting its training programs to build up enough local capacity to suit emerging trends in industry like ship building and repair, rail management, etc.

Mr. Eliphas Barine, also disclosed Kenya’s desire to seek partnership for the development of a vibrant cruise industry that would feed into making Mombasa a tourism hub.

He revealed that Kenya is also reviving its shipping line sector so it can complement infrastructure developments made at port of Mombasa in Kenya.

The Kenyan High Commissioner to Ghana encouraged increased supply of investment into African airlines such as Kenyan Airways so as to serve intra-African trade.

“It is an area that the African continent needs to look into- Whether we need an airline in every country or we can plug in to build big airlines that would be competitive and be able to serve the continent better,” he said.

Kenya’s High Commissioner to Ghana, His Excellency Eliphas Mugendi Barine, has urged countries in the African continent to create economic policies that would support consumption of locally manufactured goods in their respective countries.

Speaking on the Eye on Port program, he revealed that the government of Kenya has put in place a policy that requires 30-40% of procurements by public institutions to be locally sourced.

“That itself is an encouragement to industry. This is a deliberate policy by government to ensure goods particularly produced in the country are given priority,” he said.

This initiative, according to Mr. Barine should be adopted and even bettered by African countries as it would go a long way to boost private sector confidence in the local market, create jobs and generate increased revenues for the state.

“We want to encourage investors to come in and be able to produce and be assured of a supportive market environment,” he explained.

The Kenyan High Commissioner also revealed that in his country’s economic agenda, the government of Kenya has identified four (4) special areas to invest in and develop which would serve as a springboard to meet its target of becoming a substantial middle income country in the world by 2030.

He said that health services, tourism, textile industry, and beverage production are key areas Kenya is putting all available resources to add value and promote for intra-continental and intercontinental trade.

Lamenting the historical incidence of African goods being often traded in primary form, Kenya’s High Commissioner to Ghana expressed his keen desire on value addition of African products and outlined its accompanying benefits.

“We have been producers of coffee, tea, timber, scrap metal, and others but most of this has been leaving in primary form, including our cotton. What we are doing now is to encourage the private sector and investors to come into the country and begin to add value.”

He called for inter-institutional collaborations among private sector groups in African countries that would create the synergy necessary to diversify product range to meet the international demand.

“For instance, if you want to produce a motor vehicle, you can collaborate and pull resources together using the comparative advantage. Ghana may have one product; we could also have another product which would be able to feed into it for the full production,” he cited.

Eliphas Mugendi Barine, also urged governments to organise adequate capacity building programmes that seek to enhance the quality standard of products ahead of the commencement of the Continental Free Trade Agreement.

Mr. Eliphas Barine expressed much optimism for the African Continental Free Trade Area, and urged all non-ratifying countries to expedite processes and ratify before the January 1 implementation.

Kenya’s High Commissioner to Ghana, His Excellency Eliphas Mugendi Barine, has called for inter-institutional collaborations among private sector groups in African countries that would create the synergy necessary to diversify product range to meet the international demand.

Speaking on Eye on Port, the Kenyan High Commissioner to Ghana, explained that because the various countries are endowed differently in terms of resource, it is important for private sector groups in African countries to be in close cooperation with their counterparts in other countries to enjoy the full benefits of a liberated market.

“For instance, if you want to produce a motor vehicle, you can collaborate and pull resources together using the comparative advantage. Ghana may have one product; Kenya could also have another product which would be able to feed into it for the full production,” he cited.

He said the African Continental Free Trade Area will break away the colonial economic boundaries that have divided Africa for so long, and give every African state premium access to each other for trade and this needs to be fully taken advantage of.

“I am not sure we have harnessed to the levels that is required. We should be able to have Kenyans or any other citizens from the continent working with the people from those countries to put together enough resources to for example set up factories that would come up with globally competitive products,” he articulated.

Eliphas Mugendi Barine, also urged governments to organise adequate capacity building programmes that seek to enhance the quality standard of products ahead of the commencement of the Continental Free Trade Agreement.

“We need to have programmes that would reach out to the producers for some training on standards and quality of the products. We really need to build capacity,” he said.

He also urged governments to properly organise small scale companies and provide them useful incentives as a means to boost their capacities to produce in large quantities.

“If we organise those individuals that are producing depending on the various sectors, they would be able to bring their wares together, you are then able to easily sort them out, determine which meets the quality standards, then train on warehousing and marketing for example,” he added.

Eliphas Barine expressed much optimism for the African Continental Free Trade Area, and urged all non-ratifying countries to expedite processes and ratify before the January 1 implementation.

He said the AfCFTA is one of the fastest negotiated agreements of such magnitude but expressed a word of caution to implementers to properly iron out the rule of origin component for success to be achieved.

The Executive Secretary of the Joint Association of Port Transport Union, (JAPTU), Ibrahim Musah has appealed for government to consider the reduction of taxes on haulage vehicles and their parts so they can be easily acquired to replace the dilapidated ones, often being used by many hauliers in Ghana.

Speaking on Eye on port on the Contribution of Haulage Transport to Transit Trade, Ibrahim Musah said the introduction of different forms of vehicle renewal schemes that would cushion hauliers, is a sure way to help them improve vehicle resilience especially now that they intend to position themselves well to compete and take advantage of a liberated market.

“We think one of the things that can help is when government institutes a scheme that has maybe a 10-year revolving arrangement where a certain stock of vehicles in very good shape can be brought in, where we receive as a union, give to our members, to operate, while there is an arrangement for these funds to be recovered,” he explained.

The Executive Secretary of JAPTU also lamented the seeming discoordination of sub-regional stakeholders on transport related policies such as the axel load regime which is providing unfair competitive advantage and increased risk for noncompliant players and called for immediate attention in that area.

Ibrahim Musah recounted the many challenges that transporters associated with the port business in Ghana faced as a result of their initial fragmented state.

He seized the opportunity to praise efforts made by the Ghana Ports and Harbours Authority and the Ghana Shippers' Authority in reforming the Transport Unions operating in the Port business and added that, it is the best way to making the sector competitive for effective trading on the corridor.

“The reformation just happened at a time where there is growing multilateralism and the best way to go is by coming together; especially as a continent, we are exploring the opportunities of a free market,” the JAPTU Executive Secretary said.

The Project Logistics Manager at Jonmoore International, Frank Oppong, also contributing on the panel discussion, urged government to expedite processes for the provision of rail infrastructure that would give Ghana’s corridor a further boost in efforts to woo more transit business to its corridor.

He said this is crucial as Ghana needs more than its geographical advantage and improved port infrastructure to win the transit market over competing countries who are already making use of effective rail systems.

“We stand at a disadvantaged point where we are the only Anglophone country among the neighbours of Burkina Faso so we need to do more to receive more transit trade. For example, if you go to Ivory Coast, there is a railway that goes straight into Burkina Faso. But we are on the verge of getting to that point,” the Project Logistics Manager at Jonmoore International articulated.

Frank Oppong also suggested that technology should be heavily leveraged on, as Ghana make significant strides to provide efficient and secure modes of transport services for the sub regional market.

He also called for the introduction of incentives from shipping lines and port operators in order to encourage hauliers to position themselves to serve the larger continental market.

“For example, a container supposed to go on transit, you have 21 demurrage-free days. Demurrage fees ought to be looked at. Also if they can do insurance instead of container deposit, that would also help” he proposed.

Frank Oppong, the Project Logistics Manager at Jonmoore International Limited, has proposed that security officials who are involved in the transit trade, including the Police, Customs and Immigration be trained in the French language in order to bolster their abilities to communicate effectively with transit economic operators and truck drivers who are mostly Francophone.

Speaking on Eye on Port, the Project Logistics Manager of the international haulage company, specialized in out of gauge cargoes, and project cargo, said with the availability of bilingual security officials at their various check points and offices on the transit corridor, the transit trade will be simplified and alleged incidents of extortions with accompanying delays and misunderstandings caused by the obvious language gap will be minimized drastically.

“Just imagine a truck driver getting to a check point where he does not have any clue of the English language and our team over there can only speak English, it leads to delays and then the next thing is the alleged extortion,” he expressed.

Mr. Frank Oppong said, “a some of our police men and customs men need to be trained so they can assist, especially now that we are going into the African Continental Free Trade Area.”

Also speaking on the same platform, the Burkina Faso Chamber of Commerce Representative in Ghana, Sherif Ouedraogo corroborated the thoughts of Mr. Oppong and said language barrier is the main hindrance to business relations between Ghana and its Sahelian regional neighbors.

He said his outfit would like to collaborate with the Ghana Chamber of Commerce for the establishment of bilingual schools for use by businesspersons in both countries which would go a long way to improve intra-regional business relations.

“Burkina Chamber of Commerce is a public institution and we can get some form of agreement with Ghana Chamber of Commerce who we have a good relationship with, to create a school where the Ghanaian can learn French and the Burkinabe, English.”

Sherif Ouedraogo also called for the setting up of a CFA Bank to reduce the cost of doing transit business in Ghana which would also go a long way to woo more transit economic operators to use Ghana’s ports and corridors.

“At the high level talks are ongoing to get this CFA Bank to improve trade in Ghana’s corridor,” he revealed.

He however praised improvement in valuation, automation of port processes and port infrastructure development taken place in Ghana as interventions that the transit business is benefitting massively from.

The Project Logistics Manager at Jonmoore International Limited, Frank Oppong also praised significant strides made to improve port infrastructure in the country, in efforts to make Ghana the gateway for maritime trade in the sub region.

“Ghana has positioned itself for the AfCFTA. With the expansion at our ports, we can handle vessels with 16m draft and we are also now able to receive more volumes,” he said.

He urged government to expedite processes for the provision of rail infrastructure that would give Ghana’s corridor a further boost in efforts to woo more transit business to its corridor.

“We need to do more to get more transit trade,” he emphasized.

Mr. Frank Oppong said this is crucial as Ghana needs more than its geographical advantage and improved port infrastructure to win the transit market over competing countries who are already making use of effective rail systems.

“We stand at a disadvantaged point where we are the only Anglophone country among the neighbours of Burkina Faso so we need to do more to receive more transit trade. For example, if you go to Ivory Coast, there is a railway that goes straight into Burkina Faso. But we are on the verge of getting to that point,” the Project Logistics Manager at Jonmoore International articulated.

The Ghana Police Service has been called out to, as a matter of urgency, eliminate the incidence of unnecessary police checks on transit truck drivers on the transit road corridor in order to facilitate transit and regional trade.

Transit cargo handled through Ghana’s ports in 2019 alone was One Million, three hundred and sixty-three thousand, eight hundred and ninety-two (1,363,892) metric tonnes, generating greater revenues for the nation.

Speaking on Eye on Port, some stakeholders in the transit trade suggested that the Ghana Police Service, should do all it can to readjust its activities towards transit trucks in order to complement interventions by the port industry players to attract some significant business unto the Ghanaian corridor.

“We think the Police Service can do a greater job in making sure that their efforts rather complement the bigger investment that agencies like GPHA and GSA are making into opening our ports, and educating stakeholders to grow traffic,” thee Executive Secretary of the Joint Association of Port Transport Union, (JAPTU) Ibrahim Musah said.

He disclosed that the several police checkpoints on the corridor and the accompanying harassment and extortions has made the corridors expensive for transit business.

“We have had several reports of the issue of checking of cargo which has been used as an opportunity to harass, extort and create unnecessary delays,” he bemoaned.

He questioned the intent behind the numerous police checks on transit truck drivers on the corridor and expressed that the police are capitalizing on petty to zero situations of infractions to create the opportunity to harass hauliers.

He noted that the GPHA load-worthy initiative inside the port is an additional security intervention in addition to road-worthy checks by the Drivers and Vehicle Licensing Authority, hence some of the checks done by the police are needless.

Ibrahim Musah said initial efforts made by the then IGP and his high rank police officials failed because there is a disconnect between the policy initiative at the top level from the implementation on the ground.

“You will find it difficult to understand why a police officer would not understand a directive which is as clear as what was stated by the then IGP,” he continued.

Also speaking on the same platform, the Burkina Faso Chamber of Commerce Representative in Ghana, Sherif Ouedraogo, called for the drastic reduction of police checkpoints to facilitate movement as some significant level of security has been initiated through collaborations between the Customs, SIC and his outfit to safeguard goods and drivers as soon as clearance is done through the ports.

“We have a contract already with Customs, and with SIC who give all the documentations to Burkina Faso Chamber of Commerce to clear the goods,” he said.

Mr. Ouedraogo added, “I agree that security is important but we have to reduce the checking points to facilitate the movement across the corridor.”

He proposed that the security interventions by the Ghana Police across the transit corridor to be like that of the practice in Burkina Faso who are not stationary but run patrols in the protection of lives and properties.

“We have the security who move and not stay at one place,” he indicated.

Adding his voice to the calls for improvement in police activity on the corridor, Frank Oppong, the Project Logistics Manager at Jonmoore International, a haulage company specialized in out of gauge cargoes, said haulage companies should endeavor to ensure drivers engage in appropriate safety practices in order not to become vulnerable bait for police extortions.

“Drivers should be educated. If they are in the right personal protective equipment, and for example seatbelt on, no police can harass them,” he advised.

He also advised stakeholders to rely upon monitoring schemes available to track trucks and cargo movements.

President of the Republic of Ghana, Nana Akufo-Addo, has cut sod for work to commence on the US$330 million Boankra Integrated Logistics Terminal project, popularly referred to as the Boankra Inland Port Project, which has been on the drawing board for about eighteen years.

The concept of the Boankra Inland Port has been a common discussion in the port industry of Ghana. It is an initiative of the Ministry of Transport acting through the Ghana Shippers’ Authority.

The Concessionaire, Ashanti Ports Services Limited, a joint venture of Afum Quality Limited of Ghana and DSS Associates of the Republic of Korea, is expected to design, engineer, finance, procure, construct, operate, and maintain the project, and transfer title to the Government after a thirty (30) year period.

The Boankra Integrated Logistics Terminal project is intended to augment the positioning of import and export services closer to the doorstep of shippers in the Northern part of Ghana, improve the operational efficiency of the existing seaports in Tema and Takoradi, and facilitate greater intermodal linkages with Ghana’s landlocked trade partners in Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger.

The CEO of the Ghana Shippers’ Authority, Benonita Bismarck, said significant employment opportunities would be created through the inland port’s supply chain, including export processing, warehousing, transportation and receipt and delivery operations.

The Minister of Transport, Kwaku Ofori Asiamah said when completed, the 413-acre port facility space would automatically create a commercial hub in the middle belt of Ghana through the establishment of logistics and supply chain system around the terminal.

“It will also promote technology and skill transfer to strengthen the local resources for our development and to create the much needed employment opportunity for the people of country,” he expressed.

The Minister for Railway Development, Joe Ghartey, indicated that the Boankra inland Port would be served by a new modern standard gauge rail network.

The President of Ghana, Nana Akufo Addo said the massive project which would be delivered within a 3-year period, is a part of government grand plan to develop an efficient intermodal framework that spurs Ghana’s transport sector onto world class levels.

“An important aspect of Ghana’s agenda for development in the transport sector is to establish intermodal framework where rail, road, port, riverine and other pipeline transport projects complement each other.”

The Upper West Regional Police Commander, DCOP Francis Aboagye-Nyarko, has given his word to the transit community, to bring an immediate stop to the incidence of harassment and extortion by police officers on drivers using the transit corridor within his jurisdiction.

He made this vow, during a working visit of a GPHA team who embarked on a problem-solving mission on the transit corridor to minimise the reported harassment and extortion on the corridor.

“I assure that within my jurisdiction from today, there would be significant improvement,” he said.

DCOP Francis Aboagye-Nyarko said in addition to holding his officers more accountable, he would collaborate with the various regional commands to ensure the holistic and effective approach to end the problem of police harassment on the corridor.

He added that, he has also instituted an escort regime that is intended to provide security to transit drivers and cargoes during their use of the corridor against crime.

“So I found out and realised that because the environment is vulnerable there is a need to police them to the barrier and handover to our counterparts at the other side.”

David Songotu, the GPHA Representative to the Sahelian countries, expressed optimism that the Regional Commander’s efforts would be a successful one that would eliminate the discomfort transit drivers feel using the corridor.

He also said initiatives such as the escort regime would go a long way to woo more economic operators in the Sahelian countries to use the country’s ports.