The Western Zonal Office of the Ghana Shippers’ Authority (GSA) held its first Transit Shipper Committee meeting for 2026 on Wednesday, 29th April to discuss transit trade facilitation, corridor safety and strategies to improve cargo movement within the West African sub-region.
The meeting which was held at the Takoradi Shippers’ Centre brought together stakeholders involved in transit trade along the western corridor.
Opening the meeting, the Head of the GSA Western Zone, Mrs. Agnes Asamoah Duku, who chaired the meeting commended members for their continued commitment to buoyant transit trade along the corridor and reaffirmed GSA’s commitment to promoting and facilitating transit trade through Ghana.
She informed members that the task force established to develop and implement a Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) for transit trade had completed their work, and the SOP was in active force, particularly with respect to the management of broken-down trucks and accidents along the corridor.
Mrs. Agnes Asamoah Duku cited the recent handling of a truck breakdown at the Nkroful Junction as evidence of improved coordination and response among stakeholders and commended the task force for their swift action on the incident.
She further informed members that, with the support of the Metropolitan Chief Executive of the Sekondi Takoradi Metropolitan Assembly, the contractor responsible for the road works along that stretch of the corridor had been engaged to level and fill the portions that were badly damaged with laterite to restore safe passage.
The stakeholders also discussed the ECOWAS Supplementary Act on the Harmonization of Standards and Procedures relating to the control of dimensions, weight and axle load of heavy goods vehicles within ECOWAS member states. They further deliberated on the challenges that confront the Joint Association of Port Transport Unions (JAPTU), particularly issues that relate to the implementation of the Transport Loading Advice system.
A Principal Freight and Logistics Officer of the GSA, Mrs. Rhodalyn Djanitey, who served as the Resource Person for the meeting, educated members on the role of GSA as the National Transit Coordinator. She also briefed the stakeholders on findings from a recent fact-finding mission conducted by GSA along Ghana’s main transit corridors.
In her presentation, she explained that transit trade contributes about 34 million US Dollars annually to Ghana’s economy, but continues to face challenges such as excessive checkpoints, VAT charges, robbery and extortion along the nation’s transit routes. She noted that concerns over such challenges had informed calls by international organizations, including the World Trade Organization (WTO) and the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), for countries to establish Transit Coordinators to improve coordination and communication across national, public, private, and international levels.
Mrs. Djanitey further informed members that the National Trade Facilitation Committee of the Ministry of Trade, following deliberations with stakeholders, accepted the recommendation that the Transit Shipper Committee of GSA should be the official Transit Coordinator for Ghana. She subsequently outlined the responsibilities of the Transit Coordinator to members, and urged the utmost cooperation in the collaborative effort to enhance and sustain transit trade for the mutual good of Ghana and her land-linked neighbours.
The meeting ended with an interactive question and answer session, which provided stakeholders with the opportunity to seek clarification on issues discussed and engage further on measures to improve transit trade operations along the corridor.
