This document discusses public and private sector involvement in freight transport management and organization. It notes that freight transport is important for economic growth but infrastructure development faces challenges due to limited public funds. Public-private partnerships (PPPs) have emerged as a solution, with governments and private sector sharing resources, risks, and rewards. The document then provides examples of PPP initiatives in Ghana for modernizing customs, expanding roads and ports, rehabilitating railways, and developing an inland port. It acknowledges challenges for PPPs in developing countries but emphasizes that, with best practices followed, they can effectively mobilize private capital for infrastructure.

1. “PUBLIC AND PRIVATE SECTOR INVOLVEMENT IN
THE FREIGHT TRANSPORT MANAGEMENT AND
ORGANISATION”
AT THE 26TH AFRICA FORUM,9th – 11th MARCH 2016,
MAURITIUS.
Delivered By:
Rev. G. D. Mensah, FCILT,
National President (CILT Ghana)

2. PUBLIC AND PRIVATE SECTOR
INVOLVEMENT IN THE FREIGHT
TRANSPORT MANAGEMENT AND
ORGANISATION

3. Mr. Chairman
International Secretary General, CILT International
International Education Coordinator, CILT International
International Vice President and Chair of AF.
CILT International Ambassador
Fellow National Presidents
Executive Council Members
Key Stakeholders in the Logistics and Transport
Industry
Fellow Practitioners
Distinguished Ladies and Gentlemen,

4. I am highly honoured to be given the
opportunity on our 12th Africa Forum to
present a paper on the topic “Public
and Private Sector Involvement in
the Freight Transport Management
and Organisation”

5. [Mr. Chairman]
Introduction
Freight transport industry is an
important industry to every nation. It
is indeed a critical component of every
country’s economic growth.

6. Without freight
transportation,
every economy
would basically not
function because
every product
purchased must be
indeed be
transported.

7. Across the globe the lifeblood of
country’s economy is the ability to
efficiently and cost-effectively
transports raw materials, components
and finished goods to either production
processing facilities or various
consuming points both nationally and
internationally.

8. [Mr. Chairman]
You will agree with me that maintaining
and improving an effective and efficient
freight transportation infrastructure for
the movement of freight and even
people continue to be important in
today’s global marketplace.
Especially given projected population
growth and increased domestic
productions of countries.

9. [Mr. Chairman, Ladies and Gentlemen]
The Expanded Growth of
Economies
It is of no doubt that transport has
affected economic development from
the beginning of human civilization.

10. In recent years, the
demand for freight
transportation service
has been increasing;
fueled by growth in
domestic movement of
goods and international
trade.

11. Further, economic interactions and
relationship by countries are changing
rapidly.
Decreasing trade barriers and
increasing drive of trade have led to
the entry of new economic and
geographic space, resulting in a
massive increase in world trade.

12. Any industry that produces or sells
transportable goods relies on the freight
transportation.
Taking the USA for example, their
nation’s economic competitiveness has
been as a result of the highly developed
transportation system that continues to
affect the seamless movement of
consignment.

13. • Their roads, railroads,
the inland waterway
system, seaports, and
airports all contribute to
connecting resource
areas, population and
employment centers as
well as international
gateways.

14. • Advantageously, an increase in
freight flows presents an economic
development opportunity for job
creation and economic growth related
to other value-added businesses.

15. • On the other side of the coin, if
countries do not fully meet the
demand for the efficient movement of
goods, the consequences will include
not less than the lost of jobs,
increment of prices of all goods we
consume, reducing export and import
just to mention a few.

16. [Mr. Chairman]
The Challenge of Infrastructural
Development
Today, governments at all levels – federal,
state and local – face challenges related to
the upkeep and construction of a wide
range of transport infrastructure to absorb
volumes of consignment being needed at
various supply points.

17. Furthermore, governments are being
faced with financial constraints and in
some instances shortage of technical
capacities.

18. This has brought forth the continuous
discussions and engagement of Public
and Private sector engagement as an
ideal consideration for the execution of
new infrastructure and unique technical
services to foster and ensure
sustainability.

19. [Mr. Chairman]
In recent times in the West Africa coast
and for that matter Ghana for example,
freight traffic is growing rapidly, fueled
by growing international trade and
modern manufacturing and distribution
supply chain practices which
necessarily needed its equivalent
transport infrastructural base.

20. Besides, freight conversion points are
exposing the inadequacies of current
infrastructure and operations to meet
the growing demand.
As a result, a conscious attempt has
been made to bring credible strategic
private entities together for this one
course.

21. [Mr. Chairman, Ladies and
Gentlemen]
The birth of Public and
Private sector
Interdependence
This has resulted in the birth
of public private
interdependence which has
engaged a global term known
as public-private partnership
(PPPs).

22. • It has become the preferred vehicle
by which most Governments in both
developed and developing Countries
get critically needed transport
infrastructure constructed.

23. • I must be quick to say that the
Private-Public Partnership worldwide,
as part of solution to close funding
gap for freight transport
infrastructural development, is
unique for each country.

24. [Mr. Chairman]
Public and Private sector Interdependence
– What is it?
For the sake of our YOUNG CILT professionals
present here today, few definitions will be in
order. The public and private interdependence
that has assumed the term Public Private
Partnership (PPP) in the field of transportation
in general, is a contractual agreement between
public and private sectors aimed at better
delivery of transportation infrastructure.

25. They are usually promoted on the
grounds that they can deliver
infrastructure more efficiently than
conventional public sector and that
they relieve strained public purse.
Through this agreement, the skills and
assets of each sector (public and
private) are shared in delivering a
service or facility for the use of the
general public.

26. • In addition to the sharing of
resources, each party shares in the
risks and rewards potential in the
delivery of the service and/or facility.

27. Rationale for Public and Private
Interdependence
Governments normally seek one or several
of the following benefits: Obtain private
sector know-how and innovation, Private
sector financing (off balance sheet),
Transfer project risks to the private sector,
Value for Money, Private sector efficiency
in implementation, Creation of
opportunities for the private sector

28. [Mr. Chairman, Ladies
and Gentlemen]
Ghana in Focus
Ghana is a sub-Saharan
coastal nation within West
Africa.
She is bounded on the
south by the Gulf of
Guinea, on the north by
Burkina Faso, on the east
by Togo and on the west
by Cote D’Ivoire..

29. • Rapid economic development,
demographic growth and regional
dynamics have put increasing
pressure on Ghana’s transportation
system over the past decade

30. Like many other
African nations,
Ghana faces the
challenge in
delivery of
transport
infrastructure
including
continuous
maintenance and
operational
obligations.

31. Constraints on public spending to
control deficits limit the ability of the
government to invest directly in
transport infrastructure.
Nevertheless, there is the dire need for
new infrastructure needs to be
provided and existing ones also
upgraded or rehabilitated to deliver
public services more effectively.

32. Rather than allowing the transportation
sector to become a victim of the
country’s success, the government has
spurred interest in new sources of
financing for transport infrastructure
with the private sector to take a major
role in finance, construction and
management

33. [Mr. Chairman]
Ghana’s Freight Transport
Infrastructure Needs
According to The Africa Infrastructure
Country Diagnostics (ACID) Report
2010, addressing Ghana’s
infrastructure deficit would require
sustained spending of at least US$1.5
billion per annum over the next
decade.

34. This has resulted in the government
seeking to attract private finance from
broader spectrum of investors through
private partnership in order to meet
the growing need of freight transport.

35. Barely five months ago (specifically
October 2015), at a press conference
in Accra, the Minister of transport,
emphasized the importance of the
private sector in transport
infrastructure development.

36. • She re-echoed the
need for preferred
policy option for
partnership
arrangement to
bring public and
private sector
investment for
infrastructure
development.

37. [Mr. Chairman]
Ghana’s Public and Private
Interdependent Initiatives
a. The Modernization of Customs
Operations
In Ghana, the Government found it
expedient to use PPP to modernize its
customs operations (of a total cost US $12
million) that gave birth to the Ghana
Community Network Services Limited
(GCNet) established in 2000.

38. This encompassed
expansion of the physical
infrastructure work, the
establishment of
communication networks,
the upgrading of customs
facilities, and electric
generators placed in
remote border stations
yielding great result in the
flow of traffic freight at
the port.

39. [Mr. Chairman]
Other areas the government is
considering the collaboration of the
private sector with respect to the
various mode of transport are as
follows:

40. Road Mode: Expansion of the 24.7-
km Accra-Tema Motorway
With regard to road mode of transport,
one of the most pressing needs
highlighted for private support is the
expansion of the 24.7-km Accra-Tema
Motorway.

41. • This is a hugely strategically
important road linking the capital
with the country’s largest port, and a
notorious traffic bottleneck that sees
30,000-40,000 vehicles a day.

42. • The government intends to seek
private sector support to expand the
road to develop a six-lane highway.

43. Sea Mode: Expansion of Port Terminals
In the case of sea mode of transport, both
of Ghana’s major ports, Tema and
Takoradi, are undergoing expansion and
upgrade programmes with private sector
intended to support rising trade volumes,
and maintain their position as competitive
ports for regional traffic.

44. One of the aims is to develop Takoradi as a
centre for the regional oil and gas services
industry, a burgeoning sector, taking
advantage of its position in the centre of
the West African coast.
The extended 1.7-km breakwater at
Takoradi will give sufficient space for
extensive land reclamation totaling 53,000
ha, and establish new berthing facilities
and oil and gas platforms.

45. [Mr. Chairman, Ladies and Gentlemen]
Railway Mode: Rehabilitation of
953-km mainline network
In the case of railway mode of freight
transport, one of the most keenly
anticipated developments in the
Ghanaian transport sector is the long-
awaited overhaul of the country’s rail
network.

46. The 953-km mainline network forms a
triangle between Accra-Tema, Kumasi
and Takoradi, theoretically giving a
strong backbone on some of the
busiest transport routes in the country.
However, it is only part-operational
after years of insufficient investment
and the government is keenly
anticipating the injection of private
support in this direction.

47. Boankra
Inland Port
Ghana’s railway
rehabilitation
programme is
designed to
dovetail with
the creation of
Inland Port in
the middle zone
of the country.

48. • The Inland Port situated at Boankra
near Kumasi, the Ashanti Region of
Ghana would be a dry port and
intermodal transport centre with
Customs and logistics facilities on a
160-ha site.

49. It is partly intended to ease pressure
on congested Tema, by allowing goods
to be transported inland for Customs
clearance and processing before being
forwarded elsewhere, particularly to
the landlocked countries to Ghana’s
north.

50. Initial plans by the government have it
that the dry port would be developed
under a BOT model of PPP, potentially
allowing an investor to tap into the
profitable trade flows through Ghana.

51. Air Mode
In the case of Aviation private sector
injection is expected in the area of
provision of additional cargo handling
facilities to meet the demands of
consignment at the airport.

52. [Mr. Chairman, Colleague Practitioners,
Ladies and Gentlemen]
The Challenges for PPP’s in developing countries include the
following:
For instance, based on a study by Sader (2000) and the
Camdessus Report, which focused on the experience with
partnerships in the water sector, the main obstacles within
developing countries include:
• Conflicting aims—Often one project is expected to serve
several policy objectives.
• Award procedures—Award procedures often lack
transparency and do not employ objective evaluation
criteria.

53. • Regulatory frameworks—Existing legislation in many
countries was designed to define public sector
responsibility in infrastructure and is inadequate to govern
private participation.
• Public governance—Multiple public authorities attempted
to enforce conflicting rules and objectives,
• Existing service providers—Incumbent service providers,
often state owned, often receive preferential treatment.
• Political commitment—In countries where the rule of law
is not firmly entrenched, new administrations reneged on
contracts signed by previous administrations.

54. BEST PRACTICES
Evidently, Advocates contend that PPP successes in
developed countries lay a good foundation for PPPs in
developing countries.
They claim that giving more space to the competitive private
sector produces greater efficiencies and increases innovation
and improved quality.
Given the right incentives and environment, the private
sector can also mobilize the capital necessary for expensive
infrastructures and services.
According to the United Nations, good governance is open to
much interpretation but six core principles are widely
accepted:

55. • Participation - the degree of involvement of all
stakeholders
• Decency – the degree to which the formation and
stewardship of the rules are undertaken without
causing grievances to people
• Transparency – the degree of openness with
which decisions are made
• Fairness – the degree to which rules apply equally
to everyone in society
• Efficiency – the extent to which limited human
and financial resources are applied without waste,
delay or corruption.

56. Indeed Private Public Interdependence has had it
fair share of challenges yet there has been
increased reliance on these collaboration as a
result of dire need of freight infrastructural
development.
Thank you. God bless CILT International, CILT
Africa forum and God bless you.

57. References
• Cristina Borra Marcos & Luis Palma Martos; Estimating
the Demand for Freight Transport: The Private versus
Public Trade-Off in Andalusian Food Industry, 2012
• Handbook on Infrastructure Development Statistics:
Africa Infrastructure Knowledge Program, 2011
• Public - Private Partnership on Integrated Customs
Services in Ghana. International Trade Center, 2013
• Thomas W. Ross & Jing Yan, Efficiency vs. Flexibility in
Public-Private Partnerships, 2013
• Stephen Perkinsi , Better Regulation of Public Private
Partnerships for Transport Infrastructure, 2013
• Solving Ghana’s infrastructure deficit; the role of PPP-
Ministry of Transport Mid-Year Review Conference,
2015
• Vivien Foster, Africa Infrastructure Country
Diagnostic: Overhauling the Engine of Growth:
Infrastructure in Africa 2010