Government is positioning rail as the next frontier of Ghana’s transit trade strategy, unveiling plans to move cargo destined for the Sahel through a dedicated freight corridor from Takoradi to Hamile.
Finance Minister Dr. Cassiel Ato Forson says the move is intended to protect billions of cedis invested in road infrastructure while strengthening Ghana’s role as a regional logistics hub.
Dr. Forson also signalled a tougher stance on overloaded trucks, warning that government is preparing stricter regulation and punitive measures to curb the destruction of roads.
“My problem here is these vehicles that are overloading and destroying the roads. We will ensure that overloading and destroying this investment that we are making becomes a thing of the past, and it will come with very punitive measures,” he said.
But beyond enforcement, the Finance Minister indicated government’s longer-term solution is structural.
According to him, Ghana plans to designate Takoradi Port as the preferred entry point for cargo headed to landlocked Sahel economies and develop a 1,012-kilometre railway line linking the port to Hamile in the Upper West Region.
“The long term and the medium term is for us to have a railway that will serve our brothers and sisters in the Sahel. Bring your goods to Takoradi and they will haul it straight by rail to Hamile,” he stated.
Dr. Forson disclosed that discussions have started with counterparts across Burkina Faso, Mali and the wider Sahel bloc on funding arrangements for the project, which is expected to take between three and five years to complete.
If executed, the strategy could reduce pressure on Ghana’s highways while opening a new chapter in transit trade and regional freight movement.
