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The Ghana Shipper’s Authority (GSA) has urged shippers to speed up actions to clear their cargo from ports in time.
This follows the closure that was lifted on April 20 of this year by President Akufo-Addo.
In a recently released statement, Benonita Bismarck, GSA CEO, said it was important to remind all shippers that any delay in cargo clearance at ports would not be covered by the recently announced exemption, adding that “the authority continues committed to providing and protecting the interests of all shippers in Ghana. ”
The GSA statement mentioned that “following the announcement of movement restrictions in some parts of the country by the President of the Republic of Ghana to reduce the spread of Covid-19, several shippers were unable to clear their cargo in time, although The movement of goods was exempt from restrictions.
“The Minister of Transportation requested that all applicable time-related penalties, ie, stay / detention charges and rental of storage in cargo dispatch in ports as a result of restrictions induced by Covid-19 be removed in effective from March 30, 2020 to April 19, 2020. ”
The Head of Freight and Logistics, Fred Asiedu Dartey, in an interview with the media, explained: “What our requirement means is that if the goods remain in the ports without liquidation before March 30, the accumulated delay until that date still accumulates. Now, between March 30 and April 19, the stay does not apply. From April 20 until today, as we speak, if you have not authorized, the delay applies. The agreement we are currently making is for those who have to bear most of the additional cost due to the blockade. And if your products arrive after closing, you obviously don’t qualify for this exemption. ”
Explaining the situation further, he noted: “There was a lot of turmoil and fortunately the Minister of Transport stepped in and said that we should inform service providers to waive the rent and storage delay accordingly. And so we compelled, but after Of that, we had some compromises with shipping agents and shipping lines. And we had some advice on the fact that they had to consult with their managers in order to clear or cancel the delay. The other problem they had was that there was not enough clarity in the initial communication we gave. And so they held a virtual meeting on the 24th where all these issues were clarified and consequently the Ghana Sender Authority issued a new letter to clearly communicate what we were looking for communicate in the initial stages.
“I am very pleased to announce that after Maersk Ghana Limited, which is the market leader in the liner shipping industry in Ghana, has issued a customer notice informing all of its customers that the delay for a specific period has been suspended. It is also important to note that the Ghana Ports Authority, after our letter, has also issued some directives to all terminals and I am pleased to note that MPS, for example, has waived rent during the period and for those who have paid, refunds are being worked out. ”
The industry custom is that when products arrive, importers have seven days off to make arrangements and dispatch their products.
—- Daily guide
