Ghana reopens land borders after two years of closure

Economic governance

Tuesday, 29 March 2022 07:55

Ghana reopens land borders after two years of closure

(Togo First) - Togo's western neighbor, Ghana, will reopen all its borders as of Monday, March 28, 2022, after two years of closure due to Covid-19. This is what Nana Akufo Addo, Ghana's president, said in an announcement reported by several local media.

"From tomorrow, Monday 28 March, all land and sea borders will be open. Fully vaccinated travelers will be allowed to enter through land and sea borders without a negative PCR test result from the country of origin," the Head of State said in a televised statement on Sunday, March 27, as quoted by Ghana web.

"Citizens and foreign residents in Ghana who are not fully vaccinated will be required to present a negative PCR test result within 48 hours and will be offered vaccination upon arrival," he added.

This reopening of the borders will allow Ghana to resume the movement of people especially with its neighbors (Togo, Cote d'Ivoire, and Burkina Faso), after the closure in March 2020.

This comes after much pressure in parliament, especially from the opposition, calling for the opening of Ghana's land borders to allow the free movement of people and goods. This is because the closure of borders has had negative effects on the economies, especially those of the border populations.

As a reminder, Togo shares more than 800 km of land border with its English-speaking neighbor, the most important point of which is the border post of Aflao, a border town next to the Togolese capital Lomé.

Within ECOWAS, the reopening of land borders was previously envisaged for January 1, 2022, according to a proposal by ministers of the subregion. Although it is not yet effective in the countries of the subregion, they have agreed to coordinate these reopenings and harmonize their directives at border posts.

Ayi Renaud Dossavi

REFORMS OVERVIEW

STARTING A BUSINESS (more info)

At the fifteenth position, worldwide, and first in Africa, under the Starting a Business index of the 2020 Doing Business ranking, Togo sustains its reformative dynamics with more reforms….

ENFORCING CONTRACTS (more info)

Compared to some years ago when it was one of the lowest rankers under the Doing Business’ Enforcing Contracts indicator, Togo, leveraging many efforts to improve its business climate, was able to jump significantly on the index in the recent years... .

CONTRACT EXECUTION (more info)

Creation of special chambers of commerce for small debts • Creation of chambers of commerce at the Court of Appeal • Civil and commercial cases now handled by distinct clerks • Establishment of commercial courts in Lomé and Kara • Lawyers and bailiffs now have access to the FORSETI COMMERCIAL platform • A maximum period of 100 days was fixed to settle a commercial dispute .

TRADING ACROSS BORDERS (more info)

In comparison to previous years,Togo has significantly improved its ranking under the“Trading across borders” indicator by adopting multiple reforms that focus mainly on the digitization and reduction in delays, for import and export procedures related to import and export.

In comparison to previous years, Togo has significantly improved its ranking on the “Trading across borders” index by adopting multiple reforms that focus mainly on the digitalization and reduction in delays, for import and export procedures related to import and export.

CONSTRUCTION PERMIT (more info)

After moving from the 133rd to 127th place under the 2020 Doing Business’ construction permit index, Togo intends to reiterate this feat in the coming edition of the global ranking. To this end, it has introduced this year multiple reforms.

GETTING ELECTRICITY (more info)

Over the past two years, Togo’s ranking under the Doing Business’ Getting electricity and water indicator has increased consistently. Owing this performance to multiple reforms aimed at making it easier for businesses to access power and water, Lomé plans to introduce even more reforms this year to keep up its improvements.

REGISTERING A PROPERTY (more info)

Out of all the 'Doing Business’ indicators, Property Registration is where Togo has improved the most since 2018. Indeed, after spending years in the lowest part of this ranking, the country now seeks to beat Rwanda which is the best performer on this index in Africa. To do so, Lomé has been introducing many reforms, with the latest batch implemented this year.

PUBLIC PROCUREMENT (more info)

From professionalization to digitization, through legislative regulations, Togo’s public procurement framework is constantly being modernized. Several reforms have been implemented to improve the sector much to the benefit of the private sector, which is the focus of the National Development Plan.

PAYING TAXES AND DUTIES (more info)

To improve its business environment, Togo introduced some important reforms related to the payment of tax and duties. From the replacement of some taxes to the cancellation of others through exemptions, the country has only one objective: offer the most attractive tax framework to investors and economic operators. To achieve this, the authorities relied on digitization.