• GUTA has raised concerns over the increment in freight charges at the port
• The Association said the move is unacceptable as it will worsen the plights of the trading community and consumers
• They are calling on the Customs Division of the Ghana Revenue Authority to go back to charging the standard price
Importers and several others in the trading community have described the recent increase in freight charges at the port as a harsh treatment meted out on them and consumers at large because they (consumers) will have the rippling effect of this new charge.
They indicated that it is unacceptable for the Customs Division of the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA) to adopt the new shipping freight into their duty calculations.
President of the Ghana Union of Traders Association (GUTA), Dr Joseph Obeng, in an interview with GhanaWeb’s Ernestina Serwaa Asante on BizTech programme called on the Customs Division of GRA to revert to the collection of old charges.
He explained that the price difference from the standard price is too high.
“The freight charges that customs decided to input into the duty calculation should not be introduced and that we should use the standard prices… The old freight charge should be used and that is fair,” he said on BizTech.
Dr Obeng, however, pointed out that the hike in price is a global problem attributing the increment to the outbreak of coronavirus.
He said, “This increment is just transitional. We deem it as artificial…They are saying that the reason is when they send these goods from China to Europe and America, the same is not being returned because of low productivity on the other hand of the globe.”
A 40ft container that was previously pegged at $3,400 is now costing $8,400.
Other topics discussed in the interview were the implementation of the African Continental Free Trade Area, feedback from some Ghanaian companies who partook in the first phase when AfCFTA was rolled out in January this year and traders ordered to insure locally before embarking on any trading activities.
