The government has banned the land transit of three additional food items as part of efforts to curb suspected transit diversion and protect the local market.
The latest items added to the restricted list are rice, mackerel and tomato puree. Pasta is also expected to be included in the list of banned items.
The directive follows last month’s ban on the land transit of cooking oil.
The decision comes after authorities intercepted 18 articulated trucks declared for transit to Niger but suspected to be part of a broader transit diversion scheme.
Under the new measure, consignments of these food items entering Ghana for onward transit to landlocked countries will no longer be allowed to move through land border collection points.
President John Dramani Mahama announced the latest restrictions during the inauguration of Ghana’s first pasta processing plant at Kpong by Olam Agri Ghana.
“Recently, following the ban on cooking oil, we’ve added rice to the list, we’ve added tomato puree ( tin tomatoes), and we’ve added mackerel to the list. I’m going to tell the Minister of Finance to add Pasta to the list,” he said.
He further stated that the government remains committed to supporting local food processing and strengthening Ghana’s agro-industrial sector.
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