Oil Find to Boost Ghana’s Ports Expansion

Mr Richard Anamoo, Director General of the Ghana Ports and Harbours Authority, said expansion works on the Tema and Takoradi ports had become necessary due to the oil find with increased volume of traffic in the country.

Mr Anamoo said this when an Irish delegation from the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade visited the Tema Port on Wednesday. He said while the Tema Port would be expanded to handle increased traffic, the port at Takoradi, constructed in the 1920s, would undergo a total transformation to become a modern port.

The seven man Irish delegation was led by Mr Joe Costello, Irish Minister of State at the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, with an additional responsibility for Trade and Development.

Other members were Mr Patrick Fay, Irish Ambassador to Nigeria, Mr George O’Keese, Deputy Head of Mission at the Irish Embassy in Nigeria and Mr Sean Hoy from the Irish Aid.

The rest were Ms Niamh Browne from the Irish Department of Foreign Affairs, Mr John Moore, Director at the Dublin Port Company and Mr Charles Murphy, Liaison Officer at the Dublin Port Company.

Mr Costello expressed his government’s satisfaction and confidence in the economy of Ghana, which, he said, was the fastest growing economy in the world according to statistics from the World Bank.

He pointed out that Ghana’s success story about her democratisation process qualified the country to attract many foreign investments.

This, he said, was the more reason why the Irish government wanted to identify itself with Ghana’s success story by getting actively involved in the ports expansion programme and trade.

Mr Alphonse Wordi, the focal person of UNCTAD’s Train For Trade programme in Tema, said the programme’s impact had been a positive one since some of the participants transferred to port operations were applying the acquired skills and knowledge well.

Mr Romeon Bortey, focal person for the Takoradi programme, said with its high patronage, the programme had reached the dissertation stage with participants busily working.

The Irish delegation was at the Tema Port to have first hand information about the UNCTAD Train For Trade programme’s impact on port staff and operations.

The programme is been financed by Irish Aid, the government of Ireland’s programme of assistance to developing nations, with Technical support from three Irish ports namely; the Dublin Port Company, the Port of Cork and Belfast Harbour Commissioners.

A guided tour at the port for members of the delegation took them to Terminal One, the Meridian Port Services and the Golden Jubilee Terminal.

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Dredging Today Staff, November 29, 2012; Image: dmc