He said the government must provide important details about the new company that will be taking over West Blue’s operations.

A statement from the management of West Blue on Wednesday sighted by citifmonline.com, said an agreement has been entered by the two companies to that effect.

“Customs World, a subsidiary of Ports Customs and Free Zones Corporation (PCFC) Dubai, has signed an agreement to take over West Blue Ghana Limited, the company engaged for the provision of the National Single Window and Risk Management System in Ghana. This agreement formalizes the establishment of ‘Ports & Customs World Ghana Limited,’” the statement said.

“What kind of contractual arrangements is government going to enter with the new company that is taking over from West Blue, and how long is the contract going to last? Is the new company going to continue where West Blue stopped, and how much will it cost?”

“There are a lot of companies that are crying in silence because they entered into contractual arrangements with the previous government. There are genuine questions that need to be asked because it involves money,” he added.

But according to Murtala Mohammed, West Blue’s decision to close operations in Ghana was not voluntary, but were forced to do so by the government.

“I am not surprised at all. Some of us saw it coming. That company went through a lot of frustration when the NPP came to power…I am aware that they went through a lot of frustration. For the purposes of their business interests, they may not want to admit but they were frustrated and a strangely another company has been contracted,” Murtala told Richard Sky on Eyewitness News.

West Blue Consulting, an IT firm engaged by the John Mahama government to provide a National Single Window and Risk Management System in Ghana, had been operating in the country since 2015.

The companies engagement by the former government was met with stiff opposition from members of the New Patriotic Party (NPP).

There were recent concerns about whether the country was operating a single window or a double window following complaints of a duplication of duty by West Blue Consulting and the Ghana Community Network Services Limited (GCNet) at the ports.

The NPP government’s decision to operate a paperless system at the ports rekindled debates on the operations of GCNet and West Blue.

Details of West Blue’s takeover by Customs World, are yet to be made public.

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By: Jonas Nyabor/citifmonline.com/Ghana

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A statement from the management of West Blue sighted by citifmonline.com, said an agreement has been entered by the two companies to that effect.

“Customs World, a subsidiary of Ports Customs and Free Zones Corporation (PCFC) Dubai, has signed an agreement to take over West Blue Ghana Limited, the company engaged for the provision of the National Single Window and Risk Management System in Ghana. This agreement formalizes the establishment of ‘Ports & Customs World Ghana Limited,’” the statement added.

[contextly_sidebar id=”oFWAfnUak0SoBLkVhaJ7WJ2Z42Yf0SMi”]The statement further said Customs World International is committed to “investing significant resources including capital, world-class technologies and human expertise in Ghana as they have done in Dubai and other countries.”

“The implementation of these new systems will be based on a robust risk engine that will improve efficiency in Ghana’s ports and customs operations thus, increasing revenue to the Government of Ghana and at the same time significantly reducing the cost of doing business in Ghana’s ports. The takeover by Ports and Customs World Ghana will automate Customs, Free Zones and Port processes in Ghana and also build Ghana’s capacities through the application of technology and services that will mirror the operational model in Dubai. This solution will be implemented through segments like the Risk Engine, Mirsal 2, the Client Management System, Smart Applications and the management of free zones and customs warehouses,” the statement added.

West Blue acknowledges new company

West Blue in the statement welcomed Customs World International’s entry with its Chief Executive Officer, Ms Valentina Mintah saying “In Ghana, we have made significant strides in the last few years with the Ghana National Single Window and in the recent month, the Paperless Programme…This new combination of Local and Global expertise, taking into consideration Ghana’s own unique trade environment, will ensure we fast track the gains already made in Ghana, for the benefit of the trading community, government and ultimately the citizens of Ghana.”

Single window and West Blue woes

The Mahama government faced stiff opposition from some freight forwarders in 2015, for picking West Blue for the National Single Window and Risk Management System at the country’s ports.

Three Ministers and the then Commissioner General of the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA) were subsequently sued over the deal.

There were also concerns about whether it was a single window Ghana was operating or a double window following complaints of a duplication of duty by West Blue Consulting and the Ghana Community Network Services Limited (GCNet) at the ports.

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By: Godwin Akweiteh Allotey/citifmonline.com/Ghana
Follow @AlloteyGodwin

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