The Ghana Shippers’ Authority (GSA) Tuesday inaugurated its new office in Tamale to bridge the gap between the north and the south to remove trade bottlenecks for internal and intra-regional trade.

The new office will also bring services of GSA closer to exporters and importers in the Northern, Upper East and Upper West Regions.

Madam Benonita Bismarck, Chief Executive Officer of GSA, who inaugurated the new office, said it would among others contribute to economic development in the export sector.

Madam Bismarck said the GSA would perform its mandate to ensure that Ghanaian shippers had quick, safe and reliable delivery of import and export cargoes and also to ensure “borderless” transit route to neighbouring countries.

Mrs Stella Agyapong, Board Chairperson of GSA, noted that transit cargo through the ports of Tema and Tarkoradi increased from 1,027,787 tonnes in 2016 to 1, 249,336 last year, which represented a 22 percent rise.

“It is an indication that Burkina Faso, Mali, Niger and other landlocked countries have increased their trading with Ghana,” Mrs Agyapong added. She called on stakeholders to remove trade bottlenecks and disseminate information to educate traders.

Gukpe-Naa Alhassan, Paramount Chief of Tamale, advised drivers, who parked heavy duty truck along roads, to be mindful of road traffic regulations to avoid accidents.