By Gloria Anderson
Compete Ghana has trained key public and private institutions on customs import procedures and trade facilitation under the Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA) between Ghana and the European Union (EU).
Participants were trained on Tariff and Non-Tariff Measures (NTM), Rules of Origin, Rules of Origin and the Private Sector, Tariff Classification and Customs Valuation.
The focus of the training was to look at critical aspects of import facilitation and import trade policy tools, which could be used by the government of Ghana and the EU to support the implementation of the EPA.
The training is part of 10 training modules that seek a smooth implementation of the EPA between Ghana and the European market and encourage Ghanaian exports to the EU.
The training was organised by the EU-funded Compete Ghana Programme under the auspices of the Ministry of Trade and Industry (MOTI).
The selected public and private institutions included the Ministry of Trade and Industry, the Ministry of Foods, the Ghana Revenue Authority, the Ghana International Trade Centre, the Ghana Shippers Authority, the Ghana Export Promotion Authority, and the Ghana Commodity Exchange.
The others included the Ghana National Chamber of Commerce and Industry, the Association of Ghana Industries, the Food and Drugs Authority, the Ghana Standards Authority, the Ghana Free Zones Authority, and the Plant Protection and Regulatory Services Directorate.
Mr Nicolas Gebara, Team Leader of Compete Ghana, said this module was about the customs import procedures related to the application of the EPA agreement. He said the training also aimed at increasing the level of awareness of the procedures on imports and helping the key stakeholders understand their key roles and responsibilities in terms of providing guidance to the private sector on the implementation of the EPA.
Mr Gebara said, “we are trying to simplify things for the importers who will be increasingly importing products from the EU for processing into production.”
The team leader added that while the tariffs for exporting to the EU were removed at once in December 2016, tariffs on imports to Ghana follow liberalisation schedule that started in 2021 and will decrease for 80% of products over a 10 year period.
Mr Gebara said responses from the private sector have been positive and engaging, but that there was the need for coordination and guidance by key public institutions to assist exporters and importers under the EPA.
Mr Dodi Seidu, a trainer in trade facilitation, said participants from both private and public trade support institutions should understand the policy tools available to them, how to implement them, and how to ensure that the non-tariff measures policy tools were not trade-restrictive.
He added that the participants were also expected to understand and analyse non-tariff measures (NTMs) implemented by other countries, including the EU, to be able to respond appropriately to challenges which may result from such measures.
The Trainer explained that said tariffs referred to taxes levied on imports of goods or products into a country to level the price against locally produced similar goods and raise revenue.
Mr Raffaele Quarto, Trade Counselor, EU Delegation, noted the importance of partnership, particularly Ghana-EU partnership.
He said such training forums helped strengthen the partnership between Ghana and the EU.
The trade counselor urged the participants to take advantage of the knowledge gained to improve their work.
Mr Ibrahim Bawumia from the Ghana International Trade Centre expressed, on behalf of the participants, appreciation to the EU, Compete Ghana, and MOTI for this training opportunity.
He noted the importance of the impact of the EPA on Ghana’s economy and said, “The EPA is opening up the EU markets to Ghana.”
Mr Bawumia assured that as key agencies in the trade sector, they would do all they could, per the knowledge gained, to make an impact on the Ghanaian economy.