The Ghana Shippers Authority, in collaboration with the Bank of Ghana, has conducted an awareness workshop on the Bank of Ghana Letter of Commitment requirement for the repatriation of export proceeds.
The Letter of Commitment is a prerequisite for approving export shipments to exit Ghana’s Ports and Borders.
Since its implementation in 2016, the requirement has garnered significant attention, primarily due to the sanctions associated with non-compliance stemming from a lack of awareness among exporters.
Monica Josiah, the Tema Branch Manager for the Ghana Shippers Authority, emphasized that the workshop aimed to address exporters’ and customs house agents’ concerns and complaints regarding non-compliance.
She said, “we also want to use the documents that will come out of the sensitization workshop as a working document to help us. All the questions that have come up we are going to look at them and see whether something could be done to make the LOC more friendly or better suited to the transactions of exporters.”
Eric Kweku Hammond, the Deputy Director of Foreign Banking Operations at the Bank of Ghana, stated that the purpose of the Letter of Commitment requirement is to guarantee that export proceeds intended for the state are properly accounted for, rather than to hinder the business of exporters.
Lipton Baffour Nsoah, the operations manager at Ghana Link Network Services, asserted that ICUMS is dedicated to helping exporters with the customs process and went over what was expected of them.
He indicated that “without the LOC together with the Customs declarations you cannot send your goods abroad whether by road, air or sea.”