The President of the Ghana National Chamber of Commerce and Industry (GNCCI), Stephan Abbas Miezan, has raised urgent concerns regarding challenges faced by importers at Ghanaian ports.
During a recent working visit to the Western Regional Coordinating Council, Miezan highlighted specific complaints from Burkinabè importers about alleged harassment by Ghanaian security officers.
The visit aimed to discuss ways the Western Regional Coordinating Council and the GNCCI can collaborate to foster a more robust business environment in the region.
Miezan emphasized the significant role of businesses in employment, stating, “The government is the singular largest employer, but businesses collectively employ much more than the government. That’s why the chamber advocates for favourable working conditions for the business community.”
He also commended the government for recent economic improvements, mentioning the stability of the Ghanaian cedi and reduced inflation, which benefits both consumers and businesses.
Miezan expressed serious concerns about the hurdles faced by importers, particularly noting, “We are trying to encourage Burkinabè importers to use the Takoradi Port as their major port of transit, but issues such as police harassment deter them.”
He urged the regional authorities to coordinate with the police and other security agencies to create a welcoming environment for importers, stressing that any discouragement could lead businesses to seek alternatives such as ports in Côte d’Ivoire or Togo, resulting in lost revenue for Ghana.
The concerns raised by Miezan are not isolated to West African transit trade. In October 2025, the GNCCI Tema Regional Chapter convened a logistics conference that exposed systemic challenges bleeding Ghana’s trading community, including arbitrary exchange rates imposed by shipping lines, frequent outages in the Integrated Customs Management System (ICUMS), and insufficient infrastructure.
David Kofi Nutakor, Tema’s Logistics Sector Leader for GNCCI and FIATA Vice President, enumerated problems including delays in cargo transfers from Meridian Port Services to other terminals, insufficient truck parking space, decaying road networks, and the absence of a Ghanaian shipping line, which makes the country overly dependent on foreign carriers.
In response to the Western Region concerns, Western Regional Minister Joseph Nelson reiterated the government’s dedication to supporting the business community, sharing that the port director is already working on initiatives to enhance the operating environment for businesses from neighbouring West African countries.
He stated, “The director has shared a copy of the action plans on how to attract our West African neighbours to use the port for their goods.”
The collaboration between the GNCCI and local government is critical in addressing these challenges, aiming to create a more favourable environment for trade and investment in Ghana. Some members of the chamber called for support with the 24 hour economic policy.
At the 6th Chamber National Dialogue Series in Accra, Miezan also cautioned against the government’s intention to re-enter the domestic debt market, saying Ghana required more time to consolidate recent macroeconomic gains. “We believe it is too early in the day to start accruing debt,” he said, urging partnerships with domestic private sector investors instead.
The GNCCI president urged the government to ensure effective implementation of budget policies, warning that previous national budgets contained well crafted strategies that failed to materialize due to weak execution.
He reaffirmed GNCCI’s commitment to supporting a competitive business environment that lowers the cost of doing business, improves productive capacity, strengthens institutions, and expands market access under the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) and beyond.
The concerns about port operations come as Ghana works to exit its International Monetary Fund (IMF) programme in May 2026, following a period of strict fiscal consolidation. The government has significantly increased capital expenditure from a projected 36 percent in 2025 to nearly GH¢60 billion in 2026, reflecting a strong shift toward infrastructure expansion and growth enhancing investments.
A 2017 research commissioned by GNCC in collaboration with the Business Sector Advocacy Challenge (BUSAC) Fund revealed that Ghana’s ports, notably the Tema and Takoradi ports, were facing challenges of delays in clearing goods and cost escalation. The current concerns suggest these structural issues persist nearly a decade later.
