CEO of Shippers Authority, Professor Ransford Gyampo

Chief Executive Officer of the Ghana Shippers Authority, Professor Ransford Gyampo, has raised alarm over the conduct of certain international shipping lines, accusing them of deliberately applying arbitrary exchange rates in violation of the Bank of Ghana’s official benchmarks.

Professor Gyampo disclosed that the Authority has completed investigations into the matter and forwarded its findings to the central bank.

“Some shipping lines are using their own arbitrary exchange rate. We have conducted thorough investigations and submitted our findings to the Bank of Ghana. Hopefully, we will meet soon to discuss the issue,” he said in an interview on TV3’s KeyPoints.

His latest remarks reinforce ongoing concerns about the high cost of doing business in Ghana, a subject he has consistently addressed.

Back in February, Gyampo warned that the rising cost of shipping and logistics in the country was forcing some businesses to consider relocating to more affordable markets.

“The cost of doing business in Ghana is very high. Some people are charging exorbitant shipping fees and engaging in deliberate inefficiencies just to force businesses into paying demurrage,” he lamented.

“Some are even threatening to move their operations to countries with a lower cost of doing business,” he said.

He also noted resistance to regulation from some international players in the shipping industry.

“Some of the international shipping lines don’t want to be regulated. We are bringing an LI that will regulate the sector…we have a right to make our laws…we will not do that to antagonise anybody,” he added.