Digitalisation key to efficient maritime trade facilitation – Maritime Lawyer 

Digitalisation is critical for improving trade facilitation and reducing inefficiencies in port and shipping operations, a maritime lawyer has said.

Madam Josephine Nkrumah, a Maritime Lawyer and Senior Fellow at the Gulf of Guinea Maritime Institute, said Ghana's maritime digitalisation journey had evolved from paper-based cargo transactions to paperless processes, electronic payments, the Integrated Customs Management System (ICUMS) and single-window processes.

She said the Ghana Maritime Authority was also spearheading the Maritime Single Window initiative and Just-in-Time sailing to improve efficiency and reduce vessel turnaround times through inter-agency coordination.

Speaking during a Ghana Ports and Harbours Authority (GPHA)-powered media discussion, Madam Nkrumah said digitalisation should serve the broader objective of trade facilitation rather than become an end in itself.

She said Ghana and other countries within the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) needed to leverage digitalisation to make trade more seamless and economically beneficial to citizens.

Madam Nkrumah said increasing cargo volumes following the COVID-19 pandemic presented an opportunity for Ghana to strengthen its infrastructure and develop regional short-sea shipping services.

She noted that about 70 per cent of regional trade along the coast was transported by road through the Abidjan-Lagos corridor, exposing cross-border traders to multiple customs checkpoints, increased costs and challenges, particularly for small businesses.

She advocated the use of short-sea shipping as a catalyst for regional trade, saying ECOWAS was developing frameworks and cabotage laws to create an enabling environment for the service.

Madam Nkrumah cautioned against the duplication of digital systems, saying maritime digitalisation should progressively develop into a seamless one-stop platform that connected the various actors in the sector.

Mr Eric D. Ang-numbaala, Senior Planning Officer at the Ghana Maritime Authority, said digitalisation was also important for maritime security and environmental risk management.

He said Ghana's Maritime Domain Awareness coverage had been expanded from the 24-nautical-mile contiguous zone to the country's 200-nautical-mile Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ).

Mr Ang-numbaala said technology alone was insufficient and must be supported by inter-agency coordination, information sharing, training and appropriate infrastructure.

GNA