Importers and Exporters Association of Ghana (IEAG) Supports Ghana Shippers’ Authority Directive on Container Administrative Charges

 

The Importers and Exporters Association of Ghana (IEAG) wishes to state, in unequivocal terms, its strong support for the recent directive issued by the Ghana Shippers' Authority to streamline and cap Container Administrative Charges (CAC) at Ghana’s ports. This intervention is not only timely but long overdue.

For decades, importers, exporters, and Ghanaian businesses have borne the brunt of excessive, opaque, and, in many instances, unjustified administrative charges imposed by international shipping lines and their local agents. These charges, commonly referred to as local handling charges, have significantly inflated the cost of doing business and undermined Ghana’s competitiveness as a trade hub.

The Association notes with concern the recent threats issued by certain shipping line workers. We wish to make it clear that such threats will not deter regulatory action in the national interest.

The global shipping industry operates on well-established commercial principles where freight charges, surcharges, and ancillary fees, including demurrage and detention, are revenue streams accruing directly to the shipping lines (carriers). Industry data and global shipping practices confirm that:

Ocean freight is the primary revenue of carriers, covering vessel operations, fuel (bunker), and capital expenditure.

Demurrage and detention charges, paid when containers overstay at ports or outside terminals, are also collected and retained by shipping lines, contributing significantly to their ancillary income streams.

These revenues are typically repatriated to parent companies abroad, resulting in substantial foreign exchange outflows with limited direct fiscal benefit to the Ghanaian state.

Against this backdrop, it is disingenuous for shipping lines to suggest that Container Administrative Charges are essential for their operational sustainability in Ghana.

Clarification on Cost Structure and Freight Pricing

It is important to place on record that all legitimate port-related costs incurred by shipping lines in Ghana, such as port dues, pilotage, towage, berth charges, and terminal handling charges, are already embedded within the ocean freight rates charged to importers and exporters.

In shipping economics, this is standard practice: Freight rates are structured using a cost-recovery and margin-based pricing model, where carriers factor in origin and destination port costs, operational overheads, and market conditions.

Whether freight is prepaid (at origin) or collect (at destination), these costs are ultimately borne by the cargo owner, not the shipping line.

Therefore, the imposition of separate Container Administrative Charges at destination constitutes a duplication of cost recovery, effectively making Ghanaian importers pay twice for the same service components.

The IEAG maintains that these charges are unwarranted and outdated.

Historically, the Container Administrative Charge was introduced in the late 1980s, at a time when vessels calling at Ghanaian ports were required to deploy ship-mounted gear (geared vessels) to facilitate cargo operations due to limited port infrastructure. However, this justification no longer holds.

Today, Ghana’s ports, particularly Tema Port and Takoradi Port, are equipped with state-of-the-art container handling infrastructure, including: Ship-to-Shore (STS) gantry cranes, Rubber-Tyred Gantry (RTG) cranes, Automated terminal operating systems (TOS), modern quay and yard facilities capable of handling large container vessels

These advancements have eliminated the operational conditions that originally justified the CAC. Its continued application is therefore technically indefensible and economically exploitative.

On Employment and Welfare Claims

The argument that the directive will adversely affect employee welfare is misplaced.

Shipping lines operating in Ghana are agents of international principals (carrier owners). Under standard maritime business structures, the principal is responsible for all operational expenditures, including staff remuneration, insurance, pensions, and other benefits.

Local administrative charges such as CAC are not designed to fund employee compensation, but rather have evolved into additional revenue streams.

It is therefore inappropriate to suggest that Ghanaian businesses should continue to bear unjustified charges to subsidize employment conditions that are the responsibility of multinational shipping corporations.

Economic Impact and National Interest

The scale of the issue cannot be ignored. Available industry estimates indicate that in 2024 alone, Ghanaian shippers and traders paid approximately GH₵1.69 billion (about USD 108.32 million) in Container Administrative Charges. This represents a substantial cost burden on trade and a major contributor to high import prices and inflationary pressures.

At a time when Ghana is pursuing trade facilitation, cost competitiveness, and regional hub status, such charges are counterproductive.

Support for the GSA Directive

The IEAG fully endorses the decision by the Ghana Shippers' Authority to cap the Container Administrative Charge at GHS 550 per Twenty-Foot Equivalent Unit (TEU), effective 1st May 2026.

This cap represents: a reasonable and proportionate ceiling, a balanced regulatory intervention that protects shippers while allowing operational flexibility, and a step toward eliminating unjustified cost build-ups within the logistics chain.

The IEAG reiterates that the era of unchecked and opaque charges in Ghana’s shipping and logistics sector must come to an end.

We commend the Ghana Shippers’ Authority for its decisive action and urge all stakeholders to comply fully with the directive in the interest of fairness, transparency, and national economic growth.

Attempts to resist or undermine this reform through threats or pressure tactics will not succeed.

Signed

Samson Asaki Awingobit

Executive Secretary

Tel: 0243575046