Professionals in the maritime industry have deliberated on how the ports of Ghana can be made more efficient so as to enhance its competitiveness in the West African sub region at a presidential conference in Accra.

The conference, which was organised by the office of the vice President, was aimed at evaluating the efficiency of Ghana’s ports, receive recommendations from industry players on the kind of structures and policies to be rolled out to increase productivity and ensure Ghana’s business competitiveness.

The Director-General of the Ghana Ports and Harbours Authority, Paul Asare Ansah said the port authority has deployed several automation processes to increase its efficiency.

This, he noted will ease the cost of doing business in the ports of the country.

The Minister of Transport, Kweku Ofori Asiamah said the use of technology at Ghana’s ports will go a long way to improve efficiency at the ports.

Vice President, Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia said government will put in place appropriate policies for gathering and validating data to ensure its credibility is part of efforts to building an efficient port.

The Chief Executive Officer of West Blue Consulting Valentina Mintah suggested the integration of existing systems to reduce cost and time in the clearance process chain.

The Deputy Managing Director of GCNet, Emmanuel Darko advocated for a joint inspection of products that enter the country to facilitate the clearance process.

The Commissioner of the Customs Division of the Ghana Revenue Authority, Isaac Crentsil together with other industry players such as Ghana Institute of Freight Forwarders the President among others suggested ways as to how to improve the efficiency level of Ghana’s ports.

Experts from the Port of Dubai, Singapore and Antwerp shared some best practices at their respective ports stressing on the use of technology and running a paperless system in the clearance chain.

The experts also explained their ports have become very efficient in the receipt and discharge of cargoes.

They also promised to partner with all players in the port and shipping industry to improve the level of efficiency in Ghana’s ports.