Mcdan Group set for African shipping line

The McDan Group of Companies is set to bring life into the defunct Ghana Black Star Line (BSL) as it has procured two shipping vessels and two cargo planes to start running an African shipping line.

This African shipping line is intended to serve as a catalyst in the promotion of opportunities in the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) agreement.

The BSL, established by Ghana’s first President, Osagyefo Dr Kwame Nkrumah, was amongst the renowned global cargo service provider in Africa in the freight forwarding Services.

However, the company went defunct as its operations grounded.

The procurement of the two shipping vessels and two cargo planes is therefore considered as a good initiative that will place Ghana on the global map of cargo services.

The Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the McDan Group of Companies, Dr Daniel McKorley, is of the view that the non-existence of a shipping line in any African country is a major concern, pointing out that every ship operating on African shores presently comes from outside the continent.

Speaking as a Guest-of-Honour at the Ghana Armed Forces Command and Staff College (GAFCSC), when the Military College commenced its 2023 edition of the Maritime Sector Governance Course 2023 (MSGC ‘23) on Monday, February 13, 2023, Dr McKorley remarked that as a stakeholder in the maritime domain, his major concern was safety and security of investment, calling on stakeholders to help address identified threats.

For him, an investor would only be assured to make more investments when the policies and arrangements put in place by stakeholders to address the threats were appropriate and comprehensive.

It would be recalled that the Africa Continental Free Trade Agreement Secretariat entered into an agreement with McDan Group for the transportation of goods across the AfCFTA member countries.

The deal was signed at an official ceremony to launch AfCFTA’s Guided Trade Initiative in Accra.

Mr. McKorley urged participants of MSGC 23 – Senior Officers, students of the college’s prestigious 11-month Master of Science (MSc) in Defence and International Politics (MDIP) Course 44 to excel in their chosen programmes and be more innovative. 

He further urged the Military College to endeavour to merge academia and industry since the global environment keeps changing so fast, and to scrutinise the AfCFTA as a stakeholder in the maritime sector in order to derive benefits from the treaty.