Dealers in ferrous metal scraps have been supplying the local Ghanaian steel industry with the raw material for its use over the years, but the local companies reportedly took advantage of the monopoly and dictated the market price to the disadvantage of the scrap suppliers.
The scrap market, however, got a boost when Indians introduced the export business to compete with the local steel manufacturers and the challenge became keen, to the extent that on daily basis the shipping lines carried away hundreds of containers of ferrous metal scraps from our shores.
This led to shortage of the raw materials for the local steel industry and when this came to the attention of the government on March 25, 2013, parliament per legislative instrument (LI) 2201 of 2013 banned the exportation of the ferrous metal scraps, in the interest of the local steel industry.
A few months later, the suppliers started agitations for the law to be reversed because the local companies were not in a position to purchase the scraps. According to the suppliers, the companies could not pay cash and most of them resorted to issuance of post-dated cheques, some of which could not be honoured for months, bringing untold hardships to them in the ferrous metal scrap business.
Truckloads of the goods are left unattended to in front of the steel companies, simply because the export market has collapsed. The suppliers, therefore, embarked on demonstrations at Ashaiman and Agbogbloshie respectively, demanding further action from the central government and to possibly reverse the law parliament had promulgated.
The only solution that came was the issue of permits to some selected exporters to buy and export only non-ferrous metal scraps for a period of six months but were found to have taken advantage of the opportunity to ship the banned items. Now, there is a complete shortage of ferrous metal scraps leading to some of the companies contemplating to shut down, because there is no raw material for the mills.
Information later emerged that the ferrous metal scraps were finding its way into neighbouring Togo, hence the mission by The Chronicle to locate places smugglers have been using, which started at Abor, through Tadzevu in the Akatsi-South district, to Dzodze in the Ketu North district, all in the Volta Region.
Initial report pointed to Akanu, a town on the Ghana-Togo border as the route being used by the smugglers. The Akanu Base commander of the Customs Division of the Ghana Revenue Authority, Chief Collector, Nathaniel Quayson, briefing this reporter said some time ago his men spotted an articulated truck loaded with the banned metals, but was not permitted to cross. Since then, he continued, there has not been any report on ferrous metal scraps crossing the border in the area.
The Chronicle investigation also established that the smuggling of the ferrous metal is rife at Segbe, a kilometer from Kpoglo customs check point. Segbe is 18km from Aflao to the north and 76km to the south of Ho, the Volta regional capital. This reporter gathered that the boys in the town collect between GH�300 and GH�500 depending on the size of the truck carrying the load, to help the smugglers cross the border to Togo with the ferrous metal.
The Chronicle also noticed that in one night alone, over eight vehicles were escorted to cross the border between 10pm and 2am. Since Togo has not banned the items, their border officials allow the loaded trucks to cross from Segbe in Ghana, then undertake documentation of the metal scraps in the morning and then allowed passage to Lome and its outskirts.
Whereas a ton of the ferrous metal scrap sells for GH�700 per ton at the Ghanaian market, the smugglers are paid the equivalent of GH�900 after crossing into Togo. At Katanga Korme in Togo, this reporter met Gastom, a well-built young man, in charge of two yards, Berkpota Alhaji garage, near the Aviation yard and Kinitime, with a lady by called Esi manning it as administrator. The ferrous metal scrap yards were full and awaiting containers to load for export.
The price is tied to the Dollar/CFA and is between CFA 135,000 and CFA 40,000 depending on the quality of the metal scraps. Gastom and Esi in separate interviews told this reporter that Ghana is the biggest source of their goods but were facing some challenges as at the time of The Chronicle investigation.
According to them, there was so much in stock that the buyers did not have containers to load them for export and this had affected the purchase. The two further stated that they are aware of the handicap the suppliers face in Ghana with the steel companies and promised that so long as the market in Togo remains, some of the Ghanaian steel companies, which are cash strapped and resort to crediting will close down for lack of raw materials to operate.
The investigations further revealed that a lot of Ghanaian suppliers have not been paid and are stranded in that francophone state. Back in Ghana, the officer in charge of the Segbe border, Chief Collector Ebenezer Ahiator in an interview said information on the border crossing through unapproved routes in the night had come to their notice and that they were working around the clock to halt it.The heads of both National Security and the Bureau of National Investigations (BNI) for the Aflao Command also expressed similar sentiments.
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