The Ghana Shippers’ Authority (GSA) has collaborated with the Security Services to train haulage truck drivers to address the recent spate of insurgent attacks on drivers in the Sub-region.
The training was to put stakeholders on high alert as measures were being taken to address the threat.
Three weeks ago, over 18 trucks en route to Ghana from Niger were attacked by suspected jihadists in Burkina Faso, and the truck burnt beyond recognition.
It is to train the haulage truck drivers on some protective measures they could adopt to defend themselves and escape from such incidents.
Personnel from the Military, Police, and Customs took the truck drivers through the precautionary and reactionary Security assessments on the transit corridors.
Captain Ishmael Frimpong from the Ghana Armed Forces Training School said the insurgents mostly target cargo trucks transporting food items and urged the haulage truck drivers to be vigilant.
Ms. Benonita Bismarck, the CEO of GSA, said the training was part of GSA’s annual sensitization workshop for haulage truck drivers held in Tema.
She said the sensitization workshop by the GSA was aimed at building the capacity of the truck drivers amidst the insurgency attacks.
‘The heightened security concerns and the risks posed to transit consignment, the trucks, and in particular the life of the drivers and their assistants have largely informed the selection of the topics for the workshop,’ she said.
Mr. Fred Asiedu Dartey, the Head of the Freight and Logistics Department of GSA, said recent happenings showed that transit trucks were being targeted by insurgents, which was not the case.
‘The insurgency has been around for some time, but the focus has not been on transit trucks, but it does appear that they have also become targets for the insurgents,’ he stated.
The sensitization workshop also featured presentations on the impact of the ECOWAS Brown Card Bureau on transit operations, Management of Transit Incidences along Ghana’s Transit Corridors, and the Status of the Axle Load Stations along Ghana’s transit corridors.
Some of the truck drivers, who were concerned about the recent attacks on cargo trucks, commended the GSA for taking swift measures such as the sensitization workshop as it would enhance their operations.
Source: Ghana News Agency