The Importers and Exporters Association of Ghana is one of such entities who have in a press release outlined concerns including some initiatives by a tripartite committee involving the Customs Division of the Ghana Revenue Authority, Ghana Shippers' Authority and the National Insurance Commission regarding the enforcement of an Insurance Act which calls for all Importers to purchase Insurance from Ghana instead of doing so from the origin of the imported cargo.

“If GRA, the Shippers Authority and their partner, the NIC decide to set up any monopoly in this country, so far as trade facilitation is concerned, they should not forget that, we have signed to certain international protocols, and we are not living in an island,” the Executive Secretary of the Importers and Exporters Association, Sampson Asaki contended.

The Executive Secretary of the Importers and Exporters Association claims that at the moment, if importers opt to take the risk and not insure their cargo, for the purposes of duty collection, Customs calculate insurance value based on the fixed rate of 1% of cost and freight value for air freight and 0.85% for sea/marine freight and this has been the preferred approach all this while.

“The law should be that, if my goods land without insurance, then they can apply this rate, but if I come with my value, they should accept it,” he added.

He however contends that importers are unhappy about ongoing discussions to have all importers purchase local insurance instead of allowing them the option to choose from purchasing Insurance or not or even the option to purchase from origin of the import or in Ghana.

Sampson Asaki even contends the long held practice of Customs calculating Insurance of fixed 0.85 percent and 1 percent on cargoes that are not covered by insurance, claiming that per international conventions, insurance rates are negotiable between clients and their insurance companies, so under no circumstance should Customs peg their own rates for the purposes of duty calculation.

“I have people even complain to me that, if you bring your goods to the port and customs may look at it and say it is not 0.875%, they will adjust it,” he lamented.

The Chairman of the Commission on Trade Facilitation at the ICC-Ghana, Joseph Agbaga explained that, during the calculation of duty value on goods, customs may decide to adjust the insurance rates to the pegged rate, when they raise suspicion from rates presented when they appear unreasonably low.

However, he urged importers to provide the necessary documents constituting the insurance policy and premium paid, in the event they seek to appeal such situations where duty rates become higher as a result of customs adjusting insurance rates.

“You can challenge Customs using the appeal mechanism. Looking into it, when everything is right, they will uphold your value and give you that transaction value and that settles it.”

Joseph Agbaga, who is also a former President of the Ghana Institute of Freight Forwarders, touched on the intention of the National Insurance Commission to fall on the local insurance law that says that all importation that comes to Ghana must take a local insurance.

He opined that the adoption of this law in the international shipping business in Ghana will defy international conventions. “Since we are doing international business, the internal trade business law will take precedence,” he asserted.

He advised the National Insurance Commission to thoroughly engage the trading public to present the benefits that lie within what they are proposing rather than imposing it.

“The NIC must educate trading public and prove that they can do better than what is being done out there,” Mr. Agbaga proposed.

The Executive Secretary of the Importers and Exporters Association, disclosed that, like many of the importing public, he is displeased with some shipping charges imposed on importers by the Shipping lines and called for some investigations that would lead to the scrapping of the charges.

The Tema Port Sector of Customs Division of the Ghana Revenue Authority with support from stakeholders in the Port and maritime industry, have bid farewell to Joseph Adu Kyei who has completed his tenure as the Sector Commander and now promoted to take the role of Deputy Commissioner of Customs in charge of Port Operations at the Customs headquarters.

He has been succeeded by Julius Kantum Aweya, who was the Assistant Commissioner, in Charge of Policy and Programs at the Customs Head Office. Joseph Adu Kyei became Sector Commander of the Tema Collection of Customs in 2019 after previously serving as 2ic from 2017.

According to Chief Revenue Officer in Charge of Communications and Public Affairs, at the Tema Collection, Dzinunya Mawuli, Joseph Adu Kyei’s experience in customs operations was evident during his one and half years’ tenure as Sector Commander, especially in the challenging year of 2020.

The Chief Revenue Officer in Charge of Preventive of Customs, Joseph Oppong Aboagye added that Joseph Adu Kyei’s unrelenting approach to duty leaves a high standard for all officers to emulate.

The Director of the Port of Tema, Sandra Opoku said collaborations between her outfit and Tema Collection of Customs led to both the Port of Tema and Tema Customs exceeding targets set for the year 2020.

“2020 was a very challenging year for the whole world but we were fortunate in the maritime industry. Customs was able to meet and exceed its target and GPHA, at the Port of Tema, we were able to exceed our 2019 throughput,” she said.

The Head of the Tema Branch of the Ghana Shippers Authority, Monica Josiah, thanked the outgoing Sector Commander for keeping his doors opened to address the concerns of her outfit in the interest of shippers.

Other stakeholders in the port industry also shared their experiences working with Joseph Adu Kyei while spurring the incoming Sector Commissioner on to greater heights.

The outgoing Sector Commander of the Tema Collection of Customs, Joseph Adu Kyei, expressed gratitude to the various stakeholders working in the port.

“To all the stakeholders, I doff my hat to you for supporting customs! COVID-19 and ICUMS came with its challenges, but because we were determined, we made Tema a haven,” he said.

The incoming Sector Commander, Julius Kantum Aweya embraced the call to duty and promised to take customs operations at the Tema Port, a notch higher.

“He is leaving on a high note. I do not intend to bring the note down, but I intend to raise it up.”

Players in international and maritime trade are advising a tripartite committee involving the National Insurance Commission, Customs Division of the Ghana Revenue Authority and Ghana Shippers' Authority to tread cautiously in seeking the enforcement of the law that mandates importers to purchase Ghanaian Insurance Policies for all imported cargo except personal effects.

Speaking on Eye on Port, President of the Ghana Union of Traders Association, Dr. Joseph Obeng, said the law leaves much to be desired and in order to provide a win-win situation for traders and local insurance companies, the trading public has to be thoroughly engaged and obtain inputs for parliament to make the necessary amendments before enforcement of the law in question.

“The law has already been enacted, but what we are asking is that, we sit down again, to make some inputs so it can be workable, because as it stands it isn’t. It is structured only to benefit the local insurance companies, where our interest is not captured,” he said.

According to the President of GUTA, marine insurance is a service provision by the insurance companies and can therefore not be imposed on businesses through legislation.

He said while the trading community supports the campaign to grow local insurance companies, they disapprove of the method being adopted.

“We don’t have any problem when local industries are enhanced but this is services, and services should not be imposed,” he argued.

The GUTA President explained that over 80% of goods imported into the country are insured by suppliers from origin because most of it are acquired on credit, making it incumbent upon supplier to purchase insurance cover because they bear the most risk.

“We do not have custody of goods until they have arrived to our destination and we have paid all our debts to suppliers. In this regard, our suppliers are very much involved in the documentation process and they seek to protect the worth of their goods.”

According to him, because of such business dynamics, a lot of work has to go into convincing suppliers to cede insurance responsibilities to buyers especially where goods are being purchased on credit.

On his part, Chairman of the Commission on Trade Facilitation at the ICC-Ghana, Joseph Agbaga explained further the trading dynamics that lead to suppliers having more insurable interest in imported cargo.

“If my seller is giving me, the buyer goods on credit for 180 days, even though I have paid the duty, his insurable interest in the goods is still paramount. Because if I do not pay him, it means he is at a loss.”

Joseph Agbaga advised that the focus of local insurance companies should be to explore effective means of courting importers to negotiate with their suppliers to relinquish the insurance component of transactions to buyers, who can then procure local insurance rather than make it mandatory.

“They must assure the trading public that they are going to solidly stand by them so that they would also have that cushioning effect to go back to their suppliers to express the desire to let Ghana partake in the insurance component of the international trade,” he articulated.

Players in the International Trade and Maritime Industry have called on local insurance companies to make available attractive offers in order to woo the trading public to purchase their policies when engaging in the importation of goods through Ghana’s ports.

Speaking on Eye on Port, President of the Ghana Union of Traders Association, Dr. Joseph Obeng, advised that Ghanaian insurance companies should focus on building their capacities, and make available attractive offers for importers and exporters.

“They have tried to sell their products to us, but they are not succeeding because they overprice the premium. Also they claim that there are some of the items they can’t provide insurance covers for. Sometimes, they simply do not have the capacity,” the GUTA President recounted.

This comes in the wake of propositions by a tripartite committee involving the National Insurance Commission, Customs Division of the Ghana Revenue Authority and Ghana Shippers' Authority to encourage the enforcement of the law that mandates importers to purchase Ghanaian Insurance Policies for all imported cargo.

According to Dr. Obeng, in attempts to build faith with the trading public in Ghana, local insurance companies should consider a form of insurance that would insure goods on land from the port to the destination of the goods, so that they can build a niche in the area before advancing the arguments of insuring all imports.

He explained that, upon successful implementation of such onshore insurance activities, importers will now have confidence in the local insurance to procure their policies even for their offshore transactions.

On his part, Chairman of the Commission on Trade Facilitation at the International Chamber of Commerce-Ghana, Mr. Joseph Agbaga disputed the notion that local insurance companies have exceptional interest for Ghanaian businesses beyond those abroad, emphasizing that such argument cannot be the basis for making all traders purchase insurance policies from local vendors.

“Whether you insure in Ghana or offshore, the insurance language is the same. It is about risk,” he emphasized.

He admitted to the argument that purchasing local insurance policies will grow the National Insurance Industry and Ghana's economy generally, but believes there is work to be done, to encourage the trading community to patronise local Insurance policies.

“They must assure the trading public that they are going to solidly stand by them so that they would also have that cushioning effect to go back to their suppliers to express the desire to let Ghana partake in the insurance component of the international trade,” he articulated.

Mr. Joseph Agbaga who is also a former President of the Ghana Institute of Freight Forwarders (GIFF) agreed that, with the concept of the NIC setting a fixed proposed premium of 0.55% lower than the 0.875% on sea freight, and 1% on air freight used by customs during the calculation of duty for goods without insurance.

He opined that, that can serve as an incentive for importers to patronize local insurers. “That would be a good way to market yourself to the local trading public for growth,” he expressed.

The Customs Division of the Ghana Revenue Authority has attributed majority of the plight that befall importers at the ports of Ghana to ignorance of customs laws and procedures at the ports of Ghana.

According to the Chief Revenue Officer, in Charge of State Warehouse, George Tettey, this can be significantly mitigated if importers approach customs for the necessary information.

He lamented that unfortunately many only approach Customs when they have ended up in trouble or are reeling the consequences of inappropriate or non-compliant procedures and usually that is at a point where the situation cannot be salvaged.

Mr. Tettey called on importers to make use of Customs client services desk at the various customs offices to make all the necessary enquiries when unsure of certain requirements under the various customs regulations.

The Chief Revenue Officer in Charge of State Warehouse, who was speaking on the Eye on Port program, made this appeal when addressing the issue of an aggrieved importer who claimed his container had been stolen at the Tema Port in an interview with broadcast journalist, and video blogger Kofi Adomako, on Kofi TV.

The said importer lamented that although he had paid duties twice, his container was not available for his retrieval when he went to the Tema Port. Upon investigation, it was revealed that this importer forfeited his goods after non- payment of duties within the stipulated 21 days’ grace period given general goods for clearance in the section 53 of the Customs Act 891.

The said importer also said he had bought an auctions’ chit from someone in an attempt to retrieve his confiscated cargo.

Again, the Chief Revenue Officer revealed that this is not acceptable behaviour within customs regulations and that could lead to falling prey to fraud.

He emphasized that cargoes that are not cleared at the ports of Ghana within the stipulated 21 days for general goods and 60 days for vehicles, are by law forfeited which imply that they are the property of the state and not stolen by anyone as its been assumed.

According to him, when forfeited cargoes are confiscated, examination and valuation is done for about a 3-month period where after, goods are enlisted and gazetted for public auction.

He said within this period, an importer who has lost his uncleared cargo to the state, could apply to customs via the Commissioner General of the Ghana Revenue Authority to make considerations based on the assessment of the importers’ plea.

The importer in this case may be granted the opportunity to either begin the clearance process again to clear his cargo where he would have to satisfy the fees of the various service providers in the clearance chain.

Alternatively, in the case where duty payments have been made after forfeiture of goods, he could be given a replacement of other forfeited goods of equivalent value.

The said importer at the point of his interview, had not written to the Commissioner General to plead for a chance to retrieve his cargo.

According to George Tettey, if the said importer had approached customs on what to do on time, he would have more favourable options to himself.

The Customs Division of the Ghana Revenue Authority has emphasized that cargoes that are not cleared at the ports of Ghana within the stipulated 21 days for general goods and 60 days for vehicles, are by law forfeited which imply that they are the property of the state.

Speaking on Eye on Port, the Chief Revenue Officer in Charge of the State Warehouse, Customs Division of GRA, George Tettey said importers are to become conversant with this law, embedded in Section 53 of the Customs Act 891 in order not to suffer its negative consequences.

He advised importers to ensure that all necessary requirements such as fees and charges including import duties as well as the fees of the various service providers in the clearance chain are satisfied on time so that their goods are not enlisted in the Uncleared Cargo List or UCL.

George Tettey educated that in the case of uncleared goods confiscated under the state warehouse regime, it is within the remit of Customs to deploy the various legal means of retrieving the revenue inherent for the state including through auctioning.

According to him, when forfeited cargoes are confiscated, examination and valuation is done for about a 3-month period where after, goods are enlisted and gazetted for public auction.

He said within this period, an importer who has lost his uncleared cargo to the state, could apply to customs via the Commissioner General of the Ghana Revenue Authority to make considerations based on the assessment of the importers’ plea.

The importer in this case may be granted the opportunity to either begin the clearance process again to clear his cargo where he would have to satisfy the fees of the various service providers in the clearance chain. 

Alternatively, in the case where duty payments have been made after forfeiture of goods, he revealed that the Importer could be given a replacement of other forfeited goods of equivalent value.

He detailed these processes in an attempt to help the trading public understand the appropriate procedures involved after they have failed to clear their goods within the legally prescribed duration.

This was also an attempt to lay to rest the claims of an aggrieved importer who claimed his container of goods had been stolen at the Tema Port in an interview with broadcast journalist, and video blogger Kofi Adomako, on Kofi TV.

The said importer lamented that although he had paid duties twice, his container was not available for his retrieval when he went to the Tema Port.

Upon investigation it was revealed that this importer forfeited his goods after non- payment of duties within the stipulated 21 days’ grace period given general goods for clearance in the section 53 of the Customs Act 891.

George Tettey attributed majority of the plight that befall importers at the ports of Ghana to ignorance of customs laws and procedures at the ports of Ghana and explained that this can be significantly mitigated if importers approach customs for the necessary information.

The Customs Division of the Ghana Revenue Authority has debunked assertions that containers can be stolen at the Ports of Ghana.

This follows an assertion by an aggrieved importer in an interview with Kofi TV that his container has been stolen at the Tema port, even though he had paid duties twice.

But speaking on Eye on Port, the Chief Revenue Officer in Charge of State Warehouse at the Customs Division of the Ghana Revenue Authority, Mr. George Tettey rejected the claim of the importer, stating that it is virtually impossible for containers to be stolen at the Port under such circumstances described by the importer.

According to him, robust and rigorous procedures are deployed at the country’s ports by his outfit in collaboration with key institutions, hence, making it impossible for such an attempt to be feasible.

“We have Customs Preventive presence at that terminal, we have GPHA security presence at that terminal so to say that containers get stolen at the port it is just below belt,” he said.

He said while he empathizes with the said importer and many others in similar predicaments, the reporter's assertions are a clear indication of a lack of proper understanding of customs processes and regulations.

The Customs Official revealed that the importer in question like many others forfeited his goods after non- payment of duties within the stipulated 21 days’ grace period given for general goods for clearance in section 53 of the Customs Act 891.

“Many importers think that because vehicles are given 60 days to sit at the Port, all other goods also have 60 days and that is not the case,” he said.

George Tettey, who is also a lawyer advised importers to become conversant with Section 53 of the Customs Act 891 in order not to suffer its negative consequences.

The importer also said he had been given an auctions’ chit from someone in an attempt to retrieve his confiscated cargo.

But, the Chief Revenue Officer revealed that such practice of acquiring auction chits anywhere aside the assigned Customs Head Office is not acceptable in customs regulations and that could lead to falling prey to fraud. 

“The only place one can obtain an auction chit is from the auction department at the Customs head office and it is only one person, for now, who issues the chit and signs it,” he explained.

The Chief Revenue Officer advised the said importer to write to the Commissioner General of his predicament to see what could be salvaged from his situation.

The Ghana Ports and Harbours Authority has dismissed some disturbing assertions made by one aggrieved importer that his cargo was stolen at the Tema Port.

The said importer, unnamed, lamented that although he had paid duties twice, his container was not available for his retrieval when he went to the Tema Port.

Speaking in an interview with Broadcast Journalist, Kofi Adomako, on KOFI TV, the said importer held the Port Authority culpable for his alleged missing container.

Setting the record straight in an interaction with Eye on Port, the Marketing and Public Affairs Manager of the Port of Tema, Abena Serwaa Opoku Fosu, revealed that the said container of goods was not under the supervision of the Ghana Ports and Harbours Authority, after it was enlisted under the Uncleared Cargo List (UCL), after failure to clear by the importer within the stipulated 21 days by law.

She explained that such uncleared goods, when listed under UCL, by law, are transferred from GPHA’s terminals to the domain of Customs who have them confiscated under the State Warehouse regime.

“The container was received at the Golden Jubilee Terminal on the 3RD of February 2020 and by law general goods go on UCL, on the 21st day while for vehicles it is 60days, where customs writes to us to do the transfer. Customs wrote to us to transfer the container to Atlas on the 24th October 2020,” she revealed.

The Marketing Manager in Charge of Tema Port, GPHA, emphasized that at that point, all supervisory responsibilities are handed over to the Customs Division of the Ghana Revenue Authority who decide on the necessary legal procedures required to retrieve revenues on such cargoes including auctioning.

In this particular case, she confirmed that the cargo in question, upon request by Customs, was transferred to the Atlas Terminal, which is not under the purview of the Ghana Ports and Harbours Authority.

“From there it had left the responsibility of the Port Authority so whatever happens there is between the agent and GRA, Customs,” she said.

Mrs. Abena Serwaa Opoku Fosu, said in the event of successful auctioning, some little monies are allotted to the Port Authority as recompense to lessen the impact of the rent charges and other terminal fees lost to the uncleared cargo.

She advised importers to be timely in satisfying the necessary fees payable to the Port Authority, Customs and all other service providers in the import clearance chain so as to not suffer the agony of forfeiting goods to the State who by law can choose to auction them to retrieve its due revenues.

The Marketing and Public Affairs Manager of the Port of Tema, also recommended that the aggrieved importer visits the Customs Division of the Ghana Revenue Authority, to explore his options to solve his predicament.

The Senior Staff Union of the Ghana Ports and Harbours Authority at the Port of Tema, has donated to the Shekinah Home, an orphanage in Dawa, in the Greater Accra Region of Accra.

The Union donated food items like bags of rice, maize and gari, toiletries, detergents, sanitizers among others as their token of love to the Children’s home in the month of February.

The Secretary of the GPHA Senior Staff Union in Tema Port, Benjamin Narh said the donation forms part of their commitment to alleviate poverty and relieve the distress of the homeless.

“This donation is in line with the Millennium Development Goals 1, 2 and 3 which talk about alleviating poverty, zero hunger and good health and wellbeing respectively,” he said.

The Chairman of the GPHA Senior Staff Union in Tema, Henry Kuivi said they are inspired to make such donations as a means of helping create decent livelihoods for the underprivileged in Ghana.

“It is our intention to bless the children so that whatever purpose the owner of this orphanage has we support her to achieve that. He called on other corporate entities to emulate such gestures which would go a long way to help alleviate streetism and delinquency among the youth of the country. I will advise other corporate entities that they should also take up this challenge to locate other orphanage home and extend support to them,” he said.

The Chief Executive Officer of the Shekinah Home, Ellen Annan expressed gratitude for the helping hand lent by the Senior Staff Union of GPHA which would reduce her burden in efforts to give the children quality care. She also affirmed her commitment to ensure such contributions do not go to waste but instead push her outfit to develop these children towards reaching their full potential.

“From where we get these children which is the street it’s not an ideal place for any child to be. So our expectation is for them to come here and grow to reach their full potentials,” she said.

The General Manager in Charge of the Health Services Department of the Ghana Ports and Harbours Authority, Dr. Vitus Victor Anaab-Bisi, has revealed that no staff of Ghana’s Ports and Harbours Authority has died from COVID-19 related complications in spite of they being at the front line service and even worked during the nationwide restrictions on movements of persons while receiving visitors from all over the world engaged in international trade.

Assessing the Growing Numbers of COVID-19 vis-à-vis Port Business, on the Eye on Port program, the Head of Health Services Department of Ghana’s Port Authority attributed the positive news to God’s grace manifesting in the committed efforts of the Port Authority to mitigate the impact of the pandemic on the port community.

Dr. Anaab-Bisi praised the Authority’s Management for being prudent in their dealings with the COVID-19, citing their readiness to make the necessary investments very early in 2020 despite a tight budget.

“The Authority did not relent, even though they did not have budget for it. They gave us all that we asked for,” he emphasized.

He said the efforts by GPHA went a long way to not only provide the sufficient personal protective equipment for staff and health personnel, but also provided adequate sensitization of the port community to brace themselves in the wake of the pandemic.

The General Manager of Health Services Department of GPHA said the Port Authority also has been very apt in its policy direction with respect to activities in and around the port environment to ensure that the ports and its constituents remain safe.

“The seaports never shut down the entire period of last year and has been opened to business. Sea men were not allowed to come out of their vessels. If they are not sick, they remained on their vessels while the goods were discharged,” he cited.

He said the Authority, in strong collaboration with key stakeholders in the port community such as the Port Health Unit of the Ghana Health Service has been very cautious in its interactions with vessels’ crew doing business at the country’s ports and have been extremely complaint with protocols during crew changes at the port.

Dr. Vitus Victor Anaab-Bisi said that in the event of infected persons within the port community, effective case management, contact tracing and treatment were applied to ensure that the virus is confined and more importantly lives are not lost.

He disclosed that the GPHA Clinic in Tema since the advent of the coronavirus has taken 3,599 samples with 597 confirmed positive cases representing 18% of the tests conducted.

He also revealed that GPHA will in the month of February 2021 begin testing for COVID-19 at its health facilities as an effort to bolster the Authority’s available resources in gate keeping of the country’s ports against the importation and spread of the virus.