Transport and logistics experts have called for increased investment in Ghana’s railway infrastructure and stronger connectivity between ports, railheads and inland terminals to enhance trade competitiveness.
They said an efficient multimodal transport system, integrating rail, road, ports and inland terminals, would facilitate faster cargo evacuation, reduce congestion on roads and lower logistics costs for businesses.
Mr Ignatius Kwasi Awortwe, Senior Member of the Railway Technical Working Group of the Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport (CILT), described railway transport as the “spine” of the logistics value chain.
He said rail provided an efficient and relatively cheaper means of transporting large volumes of heavy and bulk cargo over long distances.
Mr Awortwe said Ghana’s ambition to industrialise, expand trade and position itself as a regional logistics hub required the country to make railway development a priority.
He said the over-reliance on road transport for cargo evacuation had contributed to congestion, road deterioration, accidents and rising maintenance and logistics costs.
Citing clinker transportation, Mr Awortwe said a vessel carrying about 60,000 tonnes of the commodity could take at least nine days to evacuate under the current system.
An efficient railway system, he said, could significantly shorten the cargo evacuation period and improve the efficiency of port operations.
He said the challenge also affected Ghana’s potential to serve as a major trade gateway for landlocked countries such as Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger, which relied on coastal ports to access international markets.
Mr Awortwe called for an integrated transport system in which rail would handle long-distance and heavy cargo, while trucks focused mainly on first- and last-mile deliveries to warehouses, factories and other destinations.
He urged the government and private sector to invest in railway infrastructure, inland ports and terminals, road networks and policies that promoted effective integration among the various transport modes.
Ms Gertrude Ohene-Asienim, Chief Executive Officer of White Stone Shipbrokers Limited and the West Africa School of Shipping, said an efficient multimodal transport system would help decongest roads, reduce emissions and improve the movement of people and goods.
She called for stronger connections among ports, railheads, roads and inland terminals, particularly the Boankra Inland Port, which she said could play a greater role in Ghana’s logistics chain if effectively connected to the ports by rail.
Ms Ohene-Asienim said efficient modal integration would allow cargo to move seamlessly from the ports by rail to inland depots and subsequently by road to its final destinations.
She said such integration would improve cargo visibility, delivery times and supply-chain efficiency while reducing congestion, road deterioration, accidents and environmental pollution.
The two experts were speaking at a media discussion organised by the Ghana Ports and Harbours Authority (GPHA) on the need to revitalise Ghana’s railway network, improve cargo movement and strengthen connectivity between the country’s ports and inland destinations.
They agreed that railway development should be accompanied by investments in human-resource capacity, particularly in engineering, administration and technology, as well as the development of inland terminals.
The experts also called for public-private partnerships to support railway development, particularly for industries transporting bulk commodities.
They said greater private-sector participation could accelerate investment in railway infrastructure while helping businesses reduce transportation and operational costs.
