Ghana’s largest seaport, the Tema Port, is now the trade hub between Ghana and Brazil.
This is according to the Chief Executive Officer of the Meridian Port Services (MPS), Mohamed Samara.
Speaking at the 5th edition of Ghana CEO Summit on Monday, May 17, 2021, Mr Samara averred the port’s key geographic location at the centre of the world coupled with the expansion of the port has made it a preferred port for the transhipment of cargoes.
“We are at the centre of this world, and I am pleased to tell you that today MPS Tema Port is not only doing transhipment to Cotonou, Lagos and the hinterland countries but also doing transhipment from China to Brazil with goods coming through Tema.”
“There are direct service big ships that come to the Port due to its expansion, cargoes which would have normally been sent through the Panama Canal on the Pacific Ocean to Brazil, are now being brought to the Tema Port and then shipped from the Tema Port to Brazil.”
“Because of the expansion of the Port and how digitised our operations are, we have now become a hub between China and the US, South Africa and Europe,” Mr Samara stated.
Speaking further at the Summit and touching on the African Continental Free Trade Agreement (AfCFTA), Mr Samara opined that the AfCFTA is an opportunity to unlock huge volumes of trade and as such is in talks with some shipping lines to launch feeder services at the Tema Port.
“We are talking with some shipping lines to launch feeder services at the Tema Port, today if you want a ship to Liberia your ship has to go to Europe and come back to Liberia, I hope very soon it won’t be like this and we will create the opportunity for shipping lines to setup loading points over here,” he added.
The 5th edition of the Ghana CEO Summit was organised under the theme Resetting Ghana’s Economy: Policy Response & Strategies for Building a Resilient Economy Post-Covid Pandemic.
The Summit seeks to emphasis the necessity of digital technologies in the operations and survival of businesses in a post-Covid economy.
