The introduction of paperless system at Ghana’s port has removed 13 processes of clearance at the various ports of entry in the country.
The process has also led to importers not to interact with customs officers at the ports, and further eradicated the canker of bribery and corruption in the system.
According to the pioneer of single window and electronic solutions for trade facilitation and revenue mobilisation in Ghana, Ghana Community Network Services Limited (GCNet), the system is a one-stop platform for clearing goods.
Speaking at a day’s workshop to educate journalists ahead of a sixth Single Window Conference and Exhibition in Accra, Deputy General Manager of GCNet, Emmanuel Darko said the company had been at the forefront of single window since its inception, and many gains had been made in trade facilitation.
However, he said, there was the need to streamline agency inspection and examination processes such as joint inspection and continuous sensitisation and education of stakeholders to promote compliance and elimination of duplications.
He announced that this year’s edition is on the theme ‘Trade facilitation agreement and E-commence development: the role of single window as a catalyst’, and it is expected to draw over 10,000 visitors, including 30 delegates from several countries in Africa and other continents.
The aim of the conference, he explained, is to bring together different regions of the world to share, deliberate and discuss the contribution of countries on best practices regarding single window project and implementation.
The first edition was held in 2008 with the support of the Government of Senegal, and the sixth edition will be held in Ghana, under the auspices of the Ministry of Trade and Industry, and GCNet.
Chief Technical Officer at GCNet, Mathew Soputamit says the process has led to importers not interacting with customs officers at the ports.
“The process has led to removing delays at the port, as well as maximising revenue for the state.
“The introduction of the single window process has earned commendation from the World Bank Group and led to increase in the revenue mobilisation drive of the government,” he enumerated.
On her part, the Head of Communications at GCNet Mrs Aba Lokko, noted that her organisation is happy to partner other stakeholders to organise the sixth edition of the conference as it creates opportunities for Ghanaians to have more information about the concept of single window.
‘We took the initiative to organise this workshop to ensure that journalists who will be assigned to cover the main event have a better understanding of the concept ahead of the conference to enable them educate Ghanaians on the concept.”
She commended the media for their efforts at educating the public on the single window concept, and added that GCNet remains committed to partnering to share accurate information to foster better explanation of the concept.
GCNet is a public-private partnership company incorporated on November 13, 2000, with Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA), Ghana Shippers Authority, Ecobank Ghana, Ghana Commercial Bank and Societe Generale de surveillance of Switzerland as shareholders.
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