Kumasi, Oct. 5, GNA - President John Agyekum Kufuor has expressed the Government's concern about reported acts of serious misconduct and activities bordering on criminality on the part of some shippers and their public sector collaborators at the ports. Some of them are said to collude with freight forwarders and Customs officials to evade customs duties while others conceal narcotics and stolen vehicles in containers and gave wrong description of consignments to dodge taxes.
President Kufuor was addressing the Fourth National Shippers Day Celebration at the Georgia Hotel in Kumasi on Wednesday. The theme was: 93Recognising the Contribution of Import and Export Shippers to National Economic Development.=94
President Kufuor said the Government was counting on the Shippers and other private sector service providers to be law-abiding in their operations so as not to undermine the giant strides being made in the trading sector in particular, and the macro-economy in general. Additionally, they should operate at a high level of efficiency and dispatch to meet international standards and deadlines. He said it was in acknowledgement of this and to help enhance their competitiveness that the Government's policy over the past six years had focused on improving trade and transport infrastructure and the business environment in general.
President Kufuor said to help to rapidly handle the increasing cargo, plans for resuscitation and expansion of the country's outmoded and virtually abandoned rail system was now receiving urgent attention. Their implementation to connect with the inland port currently under construction at Boankra, near Kumasi, he said, would serve the country and its landlocked Sahelian neighbours to great economic benefit.
He said he was impressed with some innovations introduced by the Ghana Shippers Council including the establishment of the first Shipper Information Centre in Takoradi and the situation where importers and Shippers could now access sailing schedules on their mobile phones. President Kufuor said the Government would continue to work in partnership with the Shippers to turn the country into a modern and attractive trading hub of the West Africa Sub-Region.
Professor Ameyaw-Akumfi, Minister of Ports and Railways said, some of the concerns facing the Ports were the increasing cost and delays associated with transacting business at the sea port and cautioned unscrupulous clearing agents, whose activities were scaring away businesses through the Ports of Ghana and advised them to desist from such practices before the law caught up with them.
He gave the assurance that the Government would ensure that Ghanaian exporters and importers were not ripped off by service providers in the industry.
Professor Ameyaw-Akumfi appealed to the various associations in the industry to expose and eliminate deviant elements within their midst, while Shippers must also be prepared to join the fight to rid the industry of sub-standard practitioners.
He charged Shippers to show keen interest in the clearance; and must insist on genuine receipts before making payments for any service purported to have been rendered in the clearance process. The Minister told the Shippers to use the celebration to come out with concrete proposals that would help to address the problems in the maritime industry.
Mr Kofi Mbeah, Chief Executive Officer of Ghana Shippers' Council, said the Council would not relent on its efforts at providing quality service that would ensure efficiency of shipping operations, drive down cost and make Shippers more competitive.
He, however, mentioned cumbersome cargo clearance procedures and the proliferation of charges at the Ports as some of the problems facing the industry.
Mr Mbeah said th e Council was seeking a revision of the law that established it to strengthen the mandate of the Council to better protect and promote the interest of importers and exporters. He called on all stakeholders in the maritime industry to work together and take bold initiatives and direct their sectoral energies to create the appropriate synergy for the accelerated development of the country. Alhaji Asoma Banda, Chairman of the Antrak Group of Companies, who chaired the function, called for the establishment of a maritime bank in Africa to provide financial support to shippers and ship-owners. He also expressed concern about the cumbersome clearing procedures at the country's Ports, which he said, was making the nation to lose between 20 per cent to 25 per cent of imports and urged the Government to take immediate steps to check them in order to win Shippers' confidence and also reduce the smuggling of goods into the country. 5 Oct. 06
