The Minister for Trade, Agribusiness and Industry, Elizabeth Ofosu-Adjare, has convened a high-level stakeholder forum to address operational challenges associated with the Integrated Customs Management System (ICUMS), Ghana’s flagship platform for trade facilitation.
Speaking at the engagement in Accra, the Minister acknowledged the dual performance of ICUMS — commending its role in enhancing efficiency, reducing costs, and curbing illegal activities at ports and borders, while noting that operational bottlenecks continue to hinder smooth implementation.
The forum brought together representatives from ministries, departments and agencies, the Customs Division of the Ghana Revenue Authority, freight forwarders, and private sector stakeholders. It provided an open platform for dialogue between users and the system’s operator, Ghana Link Network Services Ltd.
Ghana Link, represented by Raymond Amaglo, Director of Operations at ICUMS, assured participants that a comprehensive upgrade of the platform is underway.
He disclosed that by the end of October 2025, the system’s stability, capacity, and reliability will be significantly enhanced, reducing downtimes that have frequently disrupted port operations.
“Our priority is to deliver a seamless trade facilitation process while ensuring effective revenue mobilization for government,” Amaglo stated.
Hon. Ofosu-Adjare praised the collaborative spirit of stakeholders and urged Ghana Link to meet the agreed November deadline for implementing the planned reforms. She also pledged to work closely with the Minister of Finance to explore measures addressing penalties and unauthorized charges imposed on traders.
Introduced in 2020, ICUMS integrates valuation, classification, risk management, and payment processes into a single digital platform.
The system has played a pivotal role in improving transparency and boosting government revenue, though intermittent technical issues have drawn criticism from freight forwarders, importers, and exporters, who argue that such inefficiencies undermine its intended benefits.
Ghana Link reaffirmed its long-term commitment to ensuring that ICUMS operates as a world-class trade facilitation platform, aligned with the government’s development goals and the private sector’s competitiveness.
As Ghana’s trade volumes expand under regional frameworks such as the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), stakeholders emphasized that the efficiency of customs management systems like ICUMS will remain crucial to strengthening the country’s position as a competitive trade and investment hub.
