Transport Ministry invites investors for construction of Eastern rail line, Kumasi inland port
The Ministry of Transport is to attract a strategic investor for the reconstruction of the Eastern rail line and the construction of an inland port in Kumasi.
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The ministry has, therefore, engaged a transaction advisor to assist it in attracting such an investor to embark on the two projects under a Build, Operate and Transfer (BOT) arrangement.
When completed, the two projects would not only facilitate movement of freight from the Tema Port to the Northern part of the country but would also serve land-locked countries such as Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger.
The Minister of Transport, Mr Fiifi Kwetey, made this known in Accra yesterday when he opened the 15th Intermodal Africa 2016 Exhibition and Conference, organised by the Transport Events Management, Malaysia in collaboration with the Ghana Ports and Harbours Authority (GHAPOHA).
The two-day event, the biggest annual container ports and terminal operators conference in Africa, is being attended by 268 participants from 19 countries. The conference provided a platform for stakeholders to dialogue on issues and challenges on global transportation and logistics. It is the second time the conference has been organised in Ghana. The first was in 2008.
Port expansion
He said GHAPOHA had entered into a concessionary agreement with a private consortium to expand the Tema port to more than three times its current capacity. The first phase of the project involves the construction of four terminals and the expansion of the Tema Motorway into six lanes at a cost of $1.5 billion.
Mr Kwetey said the project, expected to be completed in 2018, would be one of the biggest expansion projects in the West African sub-region. Already, he said about 350 million euros had been invested into the Takoradi port expansion project to meet the new dynamics in the maritime trade, especially the exploration and exploitation of oil and gas.
Regulations
The minister also indicated that the existing maritime regulations had been reviewed to address the new challenges in the industry.
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He said maritime transport was a vehicle for the growth of world trade as it carried about 80 per cent of cargo across borders in the world.
According to him, currently Africa trailed behind other regions in the infrastructural and logistics sectors and stated that efficient transport modes would facilitate both inter and intra-regional trade amongst countries.
Job creation
The Minister further noted that employment opportunities could be created in the intermodal transport sector when the needed infrastructure such as roads and railways was constructed.
He said Africa could not tap the full benefits of ports and shipping without promoting intermodal transport system and, therefore, called for the establishment of strategic partnerships to develop that sector.
Global environment
The Director-General of GHAPOHA, Mr Richard Anamoo, described the current global business environment as challenging.
He said vessel sizes were equally increasing, creating a situation where ports had to expand their facilities to accommodate bigger vessels or risked becoming feeder ports.
Mr Anamoo, however, expressed the hope that the outcome of the conference would lead to partnerships to improve cargo handling, transportation and accelerated development.