Adnan Adams Mohammed
The Export and Import (Restrictions on Importation of Selected Strategic Product) Regulations, 2023, which seeks to limit the importation of 22 strategic goods into Ghana is facing stiff opposition.
In this regard, Parliament of Ghana has on three consecutive times aborted the introduction of the Legislative Instrument by the Trade and Industry Ministry.
The bill, if passed, will restrict the importation of 22 products into the country. These include; rice, guts, bladders, and stomachs of animals (offals), poultry, animal and vegetable oil; margarine, fruit juices, soft drink, mineral water, noodles and pasta. The other products to be affected include ceramic tiles, corrugated paper and paper board; mosquito coil and insecticides; soaps and detergents; motor cars, iron and steel; cement, polymers (plastics and plastic products), fish, sugar; clothing and apparel, biscuits and canned tomatoes.
The Minority’s strong opposition to the Bill in its current form is based on the concerns raised by various business groups which demands broader consultation by the government to reshape the Bill to avert any adverse effects on the country’s businesses.
To appreciate the contending adverse effects, a former Minister of Trade fears that other countries to be affected by the import restrictions may also ban major export commodities from Ghana.
“Mr. Speaker, my final caution as former minister of trade and industry, is you may, by this legislation, be inviting retaliatory measures from other countries”, the Member of Parliament for Tamale South constituency, Haruna Iddrisu said in his contribution in parliament last week. “Other countries may decide that you have said okay I am restricting the import of rice and sugar so we will restrict the import of your processed okro into our trade regime. That will have consequences on the very balance of payment and export regime you want to regulate. Particularly, the euro.”
The President of the Ghana Union of Traders Association, Dr. Joseph Obeng, says government must provide details and timelines for the implementation of the bill.
“What we are expecting is that we have aims and objectives for this policy, and it is not spelt out for even journalists to propagate it well. What is it that we are using the LI to achieve? We want to enhance local productivity. We want to attain self-sufficiency for a period of time. And what are the timelines for this? It doesn’t spell out the timelines. We are not doing this policy in the abstract. All that we are saying is that we should know the timeline so that when we are going to be restricted, we can hold on to something,” he said in an interview.
To this, CUTS International believes the government’s decision to restrict the importation of 22 products in the country was rushed, citing other countries where years of planning go into such policies before implementation.
“It appears someone woke up one morning, went to the office, and said, ‘Let’s do this.’ In most countries, literature tells us that about 45 years of planning go into such measures. They identify the products they want to restrict, the measures needed to improve local capacity, and the constraints of local production”, West Africa Director, Appiah Adomako Kusi, contributing to the ensuing debate about the L.I. in an interview said.
“Once you address all of these things, then you give the market, consumers, and businesses a bit of notice, saying, ‘From 2026, there won’t be imports into the country because we have an excess of rice, wheat, or sorghum in the country.
“Here is the case we don’t have these commodities in excess and whenever you want to do this, the problem is that it’s going to shoot up prices and then consumers are going to be worse off. You will see politicians trying to capitalise on it to make money. I think that we will need to go back to the drawing board. At least we are supposed to have seen all these measures in the 2024 budget. What are the specific measures the budget is addressing on this?” he asked.
Already, six business associations that will be affected by the import restrictions bill have submitted a petition to Parliament in opposition to the proposed legislative instrument.
The groups under the umbrella name, Joint Business Consultative Forum, include the Ghana Union of Traders’ Associations (GUTA), Food and Beverages Association of Ghana (FABAG), Importers and Exporters Association of Ghana, Ghana Institute of Freight Forwarders (GIFF), Chamber of Automobile Dealership Ghana (CADEG), and Ghana National Chamber of Commerce and Industry (GNCCI).
Apparently, the Association of Ghana Industries (AGI) has declared support to the bill.
Speaking at the opening ceremony of the 6th Volta Trade and Investment Fair in Ho, the National President of AGI, Dr Humphrey Ayim-Darkey, said “a recent legislative instrument that has been tabled by the Minister of Trade is facing significant opposition, but the Association of Ghana Industries believes that is the way to bring competitiveness to our country and therefore we have pledged our support to the Minister of Trade and the L.I that has been tabled as much as the principle is correct.”
“We believe issues regarding implementation can still be deliberated on where the committee and the chair of the committee and the reporting procedures regarding tabling of applications, the processes, and the role of the Minster of Trade and Industry to accept or deny applications for restricted products can be further discussed and brought to bear on our economy”, he said.
