Importers and exporters in the country have complained bitterly about the ban on the importation of second-hand refrigerators.
According to them, the ban on the importation of fridges had adversely affected their livelihood.
They said the assembling and manufacture of refrigerators locally should have commenced before the enforcement of the ban.
They therefore called on the government to reconsider the decision to ban the fridges since the new fridges were not affordable for the majority of Ghanaians.
This was made known when the Executive Secretary of Importers and Exporters Association of Ghana, Sampson Asaki, interacted with officials of Customs Division of the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA) in Takoradi recently.
The ban on the importation of used refrigerators, freezers and air conditioners took effect from January 1, 2013.
It followed the coming into force of Legislative Instrument (LI) 1932 (2008) which banned the importation of those used items.
Following the passage of the law, a grace period of two years was granted to allow importers and dealers to restructure their operations.
However, Mr Asaki claimed most of the fridges and freezers they imported into the country did not contain Chlorofluorocarbons (CFC) as was being speculated.
He, therefore, pleaded with the Ministries of Trade and Industry and Environment, Science and Technology to, as a matter of urgency, allow the importers to bring in fridges that do not contain CFC, noting that those that contained the CFC were seized at the ports abroad.
He remarked that the second-hand fridge dealers pay taxes and provided valuable services to many Ghanaians, who cannot afford to buy new fridges.
He noted that apart from the cost of new fridges, most people prefer the second-hand fridges because they are cheaper, durable and last longer than the new ones and called for more dialogue.
Mr Asaki advised importers and exporters to do proper declaration and also develop interest in the clearance process.
The Customs officials also pointed out that the ban on the importation of second fridges had adversely affected the volume of imports at the Takoradi Port.
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