The three-day training programme being organised by GEPA in collaboration with West Blue Consulting will see exporters from the agriculture; manufacturing and handicraft sectors go through demonstrations on how to use the system.

Under the system, all documentation required for exporting would be submitted once and electronically onto a single entry point for onward distribution to other regulatory institutions.

This will mean that exporters would no longer be required to submit same documents to different agencies, instead information can be exchanged and re-used electronically, saving time and effort in the process.Minister of Trade and Industry, Mr Alan Kyeremanten, in a speech read on his behalf said the new platform was important for Ghana to be integrated into the global trading system through adoption of trade facilitation measures.

He said the new online exporter registration being implemented by the GEPA was a necessary part of the on-going World Trade Organisation (WTO) Trade Facilitation formalities.Mr Kyeremanten commended West Blue Consulting for the demonstrable commitment to the Single Window programme, commending GEPA for collaborating with West Blue.

 “I trust that this training and the follow-up activities by all the parties will prepare us to be globally competitive and improve our balance of trade and our full integration into the global trading system,” he said.On the recently ratified World Trade Organisation’s (WTO’s) Trade Facilitation Agreement (TFA), Mr Kyerematen, said it was a welcome development as it would facilitate the movement, release and clearance of goods, including goods in transit.

He said it would also set out measures for effective co-operation between the Customs Division of the Ghana Revenue Authority and other appropriate authorities such as the Ghana Chamber of Commerce and Industry, and the Ghana Standards Authority on trade facilitation and customs compliance issues.

Mr James Tiigah, the Chief Executive of GEPA in a speech read on his behalf said the implementation of the system would reduce the time and cost of going through the different processes required for making export declarations.

He said the system was an answer to the exporters’ perennial concerns about having to visit different agencies to collect permits and certificates needed for their products.“What this means is that your registration with the GEPA will now be electronic and be automatically connected with all other steps in the chain. Thus making the registration process easy and more effective,” he said.

Mr Tiigah announced that GEPA was in the process of establishing a market hub that would provide exporters with the needed trade information.This, he said, would help exporters to adapt to the global market trends and ensure their competitiveness in the market.