Fred Asiedu-Dartey (far left) and Isaac Ackwerh (3rd from right)
GOVERNMENT’S PAPERLESS Port Project (PPP) and intensive sensitisation of shippers has saved millions of cedis which would have been paid as demurrage at Ghana’s ports.
In 2017 alone, over $75 million was reportedly paid as demurrage at Ghana’s ports with an estimated GH¢48 million paid over the same period as port rent.
These were disclosed by the regulators in the country’s shipping industry at a day’s seminar organised for importers and exporters in Ashanti, Bono, Bono East and Ahafo Regions in Kumasi recently.
The programme sought to discuss container demurrage, fees paid by importers when their import containers are not cleared and remain under the control of the shipping line beyond the stipulated seven days due to delays, which is so critical to their competitiveness and continued survival in the import/export business.
Fred Asiedu-Dartey, head of Freight and Logistics at the Ghana Shippers’ Authority (GSA), in a speech read on behalf of Benonita Bismarck, Chief Executive Officer of GSA, said the seminar was a follow-up to a series of nationwide demurrage campaigns.
The participants included the Ghana Union of Traders (GUTA), Ship Owners and Agents Association (SOAAG), the Customs Division of the Ghana Revenue Authority and the Ghana Institute of Freight Forwarders (GIFF).
Speaking on the theme “How to Avoid Demurrage”, Asiedu-Dartey said, it was imperative to underscore the fact that demurrage was an avoidable cost, adding, “If your profitability and competitiveness within the market space is to be guaranteed in the medium to long term, then this must be one of the major targets to focus on.”
He indicated that efficiency in port operations and the entire transport logistics chain was critical to delivering value to consignees, insisting that delays in the shipping industry were costly.
“In the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, the global shipping industry has taken a huge hit, with shortages of containers and shipping capacity across the major shipping routes. Freight rates have also skyrocketed to over 600% on some routes. The impact of these is a sharp rise in shipping costs,” he stated.
He said it was in the light of this that very pragmatic actions had to be taken to ensure that the situation was not further aggravated by a plethora of avoidable costs, such as demurrage.
To sustain the success of such interventions, he said all stakeholders needed to show commitment to delivering efficiency at their various sections along the value chain.
He assured the shippers of GSA’s continued support to promote and protect their interests which include throwing ample light on the dark spots and slippery turns within the industry, through regular sensitisation programmes to help their businesses navigate carefully to safety.
Presentations by Resource Persons selected from GRA Customs Division, Maersk Ghana Limited and the Ghana Institute of Freight Forwarders drew practical steps that would help shippers deal with the issue of demurrage.
FROM David Afum, Kumasi