Accra: The Deputy Chief Executive Officer in charge of Banking at the Ghana Export-Import Bank (GEXIM), Moses Klu Mensah, has emphasized the importance of robust investment in maritime infrastructure, technology, logistics, and financing to facilitate Africa's economic transformation and enhance trade competitiveness. He highlighted that the maritime sector is a vital gateway for industrialization, export growth, investment attraction, and job creation, urging that it be prioritized as a national and continental competitiveness strategy.
According to Ghana Web, Mensah expressed these views while delivering a speech on behalf of GEXIM's CEO, Sylvester Adinam Mensah, at the opening of the Maritime Trade Fair in Accra. The event, themed 'Shaping Africa's Maritime Future: Maritime, Technology and Finance,' gathered regulators, financiers, insurers, technology providers, logistics operators, industry leaders, and emerging start-ups to discuss the future of Africa's maritime industry.
Mensah advocated for Ghana and Africa to perceive the maritime economy as a strategic platform that connects producers to markets, supports exports and imports, facilitates industrial production, and influences business costs. He underscored the necessity for efficient ports, reliable logistics systems, affordable financing, responsive regulation, and modern technology to build a robust export economy and ensure Africa's competitiveness under the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA).
He identified finance as a key driver of maritime growth, explaining that exporters, logistics companies, freight forwarders, warehousing firms, insurers, and technology providers all need access to capital to expand operations and improve efficiency. Institutions like GEXIM play a crucial role not only in providing finance but also in helping businesses become export-ready and competitive in international markets.
The Deputy CEO further emphasized the need to align regulation, infrastructure, and investment to eliminate bottlenecks, lower transaction costs, and facilitate the smooth movement of goods across ports and borders. He also highlighted the role of technology in enhancing efficiency, transparency, and risk management within the maritime sector, noting that digital solutions could aid cargo tracking, customs processing, payment systems, insurance verification, and access to trade information.
In her remarks, the Executive Director of Whitestone Shipbrokers, Gertrude Adwoa Ohene-Asienim, remarked that the maritime sector is undergoing significant transformation driven by technological innovation, changing trade patterns, sustainability requirements, and an increasing demand for efficient supply chains. She noted that developments such as digital platforms, fintech solutions, automation, and smart logistics systems are reshaping the industry and creating new opportunities for African businesses.
Ohene-Asienim emphasized that the Maritime Trade Fair serves as an essential platform for dialogue, innovation, collaboration, and practical solutions to challenges facing the sector. She also stressed the need for greater inclusion and capacity development, particularly among women and young professionals, asserting that Africa's maritime future will be shaped not only by infrastructure and technology but also by people with the skills, ideas, and leadership to drive change.
She urged stakeholders to strengthen partnerships across government, industry, academia, and the private sector to unlock the full potential of the maritime economy and position Africa for sustainable growth.