The Importers and Exporters Association of Ghana (IEAG) has raised alarm over what it describes as the growing capture of the auctioning of perishable goods at Ghana’s ports by politically connected cartels.
The group warns that the practice is crippling businesses, eroding investor confidence, and deepening the country’s economic woes.
In a strongly worded statement, the IEAG linked the development to Ghana’s ongoing foreign exchange shortages, which have left many importers struggling to secure dollars quickly enough to clear their shipments.
Under existing laws, goods on the Uncleared Cargo List (UCL) are entitled to a 60-day grace period before they can be auctioned. However, the Association says this timeframe has been arbitrarily cut to just 21 days, creating a loophole that has been exploited by well-connected businessmen. According to the group, these cartels acquire goods at cut-rate prices, often bypassing proper gazetting and legal processes.
More troubling, the IEAG claims, is that importers are left bearing heavy demurrage charges even after losing their consignments, while the beneficiaries of the auctions walk away paying little more than a nominal service fee ranging between GH₵6,000 and GH₵10,000.
“This fraudulent system not only robs importers of their hard-earned capital but also denies the state valuable revenue at a time when Ghana desperately needs every pesewa,” the Association lamented.
The group is demanding urgent reforms, including the restoration of the 60-day grace period, a one-time clearance option for importers struggling with forex, and a full-scale investigation by the Customs Division and security agencies into what it describes as a “political cabal” profiting from the system.
It is also calling on the Bank of Ghana to ensure commercial banks provide fair access to foreign exchange for traders, a measure it believes would ease the current strain on importers and reduce the risk of consignments being lost to auctions.
The IEAG cautioned that if authorities fail to act swiftly, it may be forced to mount mass action in defense of its members and Ghanaian businesses at large.
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