Members of the Union of African Shippers’ Councils (UASC) have been charged to boost intra-African trade by co-operating with other sister Councils especially on competitive advantage basis for the benefit of the Union and shippers.
The 19-member Council was also encouraged to vigorously pursue the objectives of the Continental Free Trade Area (CFTA) which are aimed at achieving a comprehensive and mutually beneficial trade agreement among member states of the African Union (AU).
These were contained in the State of the Union Address by the Chairman of the UASC and CEO of Ghana Shippers’ Authority (GSA), Ms Benonita Bismarck, at the 11th General Assembly of the Union held in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso from February 6-9, 2018.
Ms Bismarck also noted that the Union’s goal of extending its membership to the whole of the African continent must be given special attention to consolidate efforts that have been made.
“My dear colleagues, for our Union to stand the test of time and to be relevant in our various countries, we must be seen as the only reference point for the protection and promotion of our shippers who are very important to the economies of our countries.”, she stressed.
Ms Bismarck emphasised the need for African states to put in place the needed infrastructure; provide relevant, accurate and timely information; educate, train and interact with shippers among other measures for the realisation of an effective trade facilitation regime..
The 11th General Assembly of the UASC ended with the election of Mr. Giscard Lilian Ngoula of the Gabon Shippers’ Council as the new Secretary-General: Mr Ngoula took over from Mr. Adamou SALEY ABDOURAHAMANE of the Niger Shippers’ Council who served for four years as Secretary General.
The Assembly among other things adopted the Secretary General’s 2014-2017 activity report and the Statutory Auditors’ reports for the financial years of 2015, 2016 and 2017. Others adopted were the Statutory Treasurer’s report and the reviewed text of the UASC Constitution.
Ghana, at the General Assembly, handed over the Chairmanship of the Union to the Burkina Faso Shippers’ Council after a 2-year tenure which saw many achievements during the period.
The next General Assembly of the Union will take place in 2020 in Luanda, Angola.
The UASC was formed in 1977 and is headquartered in Douala, Cameroon. It is the umbrella body of Shippers’ Councils in the West and Central African sub-region. Member countries are Angola, Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Chad, Congo, La Cote d’Ivoire, Democratic Republic of Congo, Gabon, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea Bissau, Mali, Niger, Nigeria, Senegal, Togo and the Central African Republic.
