Critical: FABAG Demands Nationwide Land Border Shutdown to Combat Smuggling Rackets

The Food and Beverages Association of Ghana (FABAG) has issued a definitive ultimatum to the government regarding systemic smuggling.

The association demands an immediate, total shutdown of all land routes for importing specific goods currently fueling illegal trade.

This mandate follows a recent Ministry of Finance and Ghana Revenue Authority directive targeting the Aflao border.

While that initial move sought to halt the suspicious transit of cooking oil, FABAG argues the scope is too narrow.
A localized restriction at a single border post serves only as a temporary detour for organized smuggling syndicates.

Unless the ban applies uniformly across every land entry point, illicit flows will simply shift to more porous regions.

The urgency of this demand is underscored by staggering financial losses recently revealed by the state.
Authorities recently intercepted eighteen articulated trucks falsely declared as being in transit to Niger.
These vehicles traveled without mandatory customs escorts, indicating a coordinated effort to bypass national tax laws.

By diverting these goods into the local market, the racket caused an estimated revenue gap of eighty-five million Cedis.

FABAG asserts this massive loss is a direct threat to the survival of the domestic private sector.

The association calls for a policy requiring all high-risk imports to be processed exclusively through national seaports.

Land borders for transit goods have created loopholes that smugglers exploit with relative ease and impunity.

Local manufacturers struggle to compete with untaxed products flooding the marketplace.

Legitimate businesses are burdened by high utility costs, rising logistics expenses, and complex corporate taxes.

Smuggled goods entering the market without paying duty undercut the prices of law-abiding producers.

This creates an uneven playing field that threatens the collapse of the domestic manufacturing industry.

Seaport exclusivity would centralize regulatory control and maximize national revenue mobilization.

Ports offer superior scanning technology, robust documentation, and centralized customs oversight.

Removing the land border option ensures every imported commodity is properly accounted for and taxed.

The association also highlighted security risks from unmonitored trucks moving through the country’s hinterlands.

A complete shutdown of these routes would dismantle the infrastructure of regional smuggling rings.

FABAG’s leadership expects the Ministry of Trade and the Ministry of Finance to act with significant speed.

Thousands of Ghanaian jobs depend on the government’s ability to protect borders from economic sabotage.

Stakeholders are watching to see if the state will prioritize local industry over administrative convenience.

This call for a total shutdown is a measure born from years of frustration with ineffective enforcement.

The time for half-measures and pilot programs at single border posts has passed.

Only a comprehensive, nationwide ban can restore the integrity of the Ghanaian marketplace.

Protecting the economy requires a decisive shift toward secure, monitored maritime trade routes.

A fair future for all producers depends on the elimination of these illicit land-based shortcuts.

Credit: myjoyonline.com

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