The Ghana Shippers’ Authority (GSA) has encouraged Women in Cross Border Trade who are yet to register with the Authority’s Regional Shipper Committees to do so.
The move is to enable the GSA gather enough data on their operations and develop programmes and policies to support their efforts geared toward socio-economic growth.
This follows several complaints by Women in Cross Border Trade in the past about challenges they face at the borders: which include delays by border agencies in processing documents; challenges with the Letter of Commitment (LOC); multiple checkpoints and extortions; and armed robbery among others.
It is for this reason that the GSA collaborated with the GIZ-Trade Hub on 28th September 2022 to sensitise Women in Cross Border Trade in Accra on ways to avoid some of the recurrent challenges in their line of work.
A Senior Officer with the Shipper Services and Trade Facilitation Department of the GSA, Mrs. Rhodalyn Djanitey, used the occasion to educate cross-border traders on the Authority’s Shipper Complaints and Support Units which have been set up at all the country’s entry points.
She assured cross-border traders that the Shipper Complaints and Support Units are well-equipped to handle any challenge, and encouraged them to utilise their services.
Head of the GIZ-Trade Hub Dr. Maren Breuer reiterated the crucial role played by Women in Cross Border Trade in relation to Ghana’s economy, hence the decision to intensify efforts to assist them.
Organiser for the Women’s Wing of the Ghana Union of Traders Association (GUTA) Pearl Poku commended the GSA and GIZ-Trade Hub for the initiative, and called for regular collaborations to assist the operations of cross-border traders.
