Government has started feasibility studies towards the implementation of the second phase of the national single window system of clearance at the country’s ports following the success of the first phase.

The feasibility studies, which is expected to end in April this year, would be followed by the automation of the processes and procedures involved in the second phase of the project.

The single window system being implemented by West Blue Consulting in collaboration with GCNet Service and other scanning companies operating within the ports.

It was introduced by the Ministry of Trade and Industry, primarily provides the platform for an integrated clearance process to minimize the human factor as much as possible and, to a large extent, help to reduce the processing time trade documents.

After 15 years of operating with destination inspection companies (DICs), the Customs Division of the Ghana Revenue Authority took over that task on September 1, last year, to enhance customs functions as a stop-gap measure to improve on trade facilitation.

The concept also provides an opportunity for importers and exporters to electronically lodge their documents, including customs declarations, certificates of origin and invoices at a single location to be accessed by all regulatory and trade agencies, instead of traders sending copies of the same documents to different agencies.

Meanwhile some stakeholders have described the first phase of the Single Window project as an improvement of what the DICs were doing.

According to them, the previous reporting system takes up to about two weeks but the new system takes less than two days.

Some of the challenges they identified are that some customs officers are not conversant with some imported items coupled with data duplication and work process duplication.

- See more at: http://thebftonline.com/business/maritime/17325/feasibility-studies-for-phase-ii-of-single-window-system-underway.html#sthash.bc0l9pPr.dpuf