Senior Minister on the tour with Paul Asare Ansah and the Commissioner of GRA, Kofi Nti
State agencies have lauded government’s new mandatory joint inspection of cargos at the country’s ports.
The agencies are Customs Division of the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA), Ghana Ports and Harbours Authority (GPHA), Bureau of National Investigations (BNI), National Security, Ghana Standard Authority (GSA), among others.
It would be recalled that the Vice President mooted the idea for the various agencies to jointly conduct the inspections to prevent delay in the processes at the ports.
Joint inspection of cargos by the various agencies can save the time of ship crews and improve cargo clearance, officials said. As a result, the total inspection time can be reduced from three hours to 45 minutes.
The new method can also prevent corruption by shippers, information sharing and coordination among official agencies and law enforcement. GPHA would work with other departments to promote the practice at the country’s ports.
The agreement was finalised upon a visit to the various agencies by the Senior Minister, Yaw Osafo Maafo.
He asked the various agencies to coordinate in the implementation of the policy to prevent delays at the port and reduce the time that importers spend in clearing their goods.
The Senior Minister was optimistic the move would go a long way to facilitate and boost trade in the country, since the agencies have been blamed for causing delays and loss of revenue to government.
According to him, government is determined to ensure joint inspection and deal with challenges to make Ghana’s two ports the preferred destination in West Africa.
The former Finance Minister appealed to all stakeholders to commit themselves to the pact and comply from September 1, 2017 in order to make the ports efficient and attractive.
The Director-General of GPHA, Paul Asare Ansah, appealed to the security services, especially the Ghana Police Service, to deal with the unnecessary stoppage of transit cargo trucks on the road although a ban has been issued to that effect.
He expressed readiness to help government achieve its aim at the ports and ensure the implementation of the new policy to prevent delay in the checking of documents and goods.
 From Vincent Kubi, Tema