Some importers are nonetheless utilizing fraudulent means to ship used fridges and equipment into the nation’s market.
Despite the Power Effectivity Laws, 2008 (LI, 1932), which positioned a ban on the importation or sale (distribution) of used fridges, air-conditioners and incandescent filament lamps, Each day Graphic’s investigation has revealed that the banned refrigeration home equipment are nonetheless being smuggled into the market.
Excessive demand
The fraudulent actions, which occur typically underneath the nostril of legislation enforcers, have typically been sustained by the excessive demand and fast returns (revenue) of the equipment within the nation.
The importers, who overtly carry the banned items, largely in consolidated containers, have managed to construct relationships with some officers on the ports to assist facilitate the clearing of the products and make their actions flourish.
The Power Fee admits the inflow of the restricted home equipment out there however blamed it on what it described as outdated elements within the rules (LI, 1932).
12 months-long monitoring
A year-long monitoring by the Each day Graphic confirmed that Tema Port, particularly Jubilee Terminal and undesignated entry factors on the nation’s borders, primarily inland, had grow to be extraordinarily porous and a secure haven for this fraudulent exercise regardless of a 14-year-old legislation that restricted the importation of the home equipment.
On the Tema Port, the Each day Graphic noticed that the importers hid a number of of the banned home equipment of their consolidated containers.
Hid used fridges are typically additionally wrapped with polythene and different supplies and positioned behind the container to stop diligent Customs officers from detecting them throughout bodily examination.
The modus operandi at Aflao Border is a bit totally different as importers who interact in that exercise ship the product by way of the Port of Lome and subsequently cart them into Ghana in mini-trucks and tricycles with little resistance from the safety officers manning these entry factors.
Aflao, on the nation’s japanese gate, has a number of entry factors known as Beats and Pillars, which are sometimes utilized by smugglers out and in of Ghana and Togo.
Market go to
Out there, the fridges promote between GH¢500 (desk prime) and as much as GH¢5,000 for multiplex door fridges at Kaneshie, Lapaz, Dodowa highway and different areas within the Larger Accra Area.
Whereas among the sellers who spoke to the Each day Graphic stated their merchandise have been ‘previous inventory’, others stated theirs have been ‘retailer rejects’ from Germany, United Kingdom or Turkey and for that cause couldn’t be categorised as used fridges.
Those that had the arrogance to confess that their home equipment have been used fridges stated that they had developed varied technique of delivery the home equipment however wouldn’t disclose these means.
Certainly one of them, Michael Boadu, stated: “I can’t inform you how we carry these home equipment into the nation however we’ve the technique of bringing them in.
“For those who additionally wish to be a part of this enterprise, you will have to seek out your means round however the market isn’t good this yr and so contemplate that earlier than they’re imported.”
The regulation
The regulation banning the equipment seeks to cut back power consumption and hurt to the setting.
Additionally it is to safeguard the nation from turning into an environmental dumping website for used electrical and digital waste from Europe.
The legislation banning the importation of the merchandise was launched in 2008 however the implementation was prolonged to January 2013 to supply sellers the wanted time to regulate, however over the interval,
the home equipment are nonetheless within the Ghanaian market.
Amongst different issues, the legislation stipulates that an individual shall not import a used fridge, air-conditioner and incandescent filament lamp, or provide on the market or distribution the stated objects.
It additional empowers an Inspector and a Customs officer to enter any premises to grab used air-conditioners and incandescent filament lamps being manufactured, saved or supplied on the market.
Alternate scheme
The federal government, by way of the Power Fee, has in place an initiative referred to as the Fridge Rebate and Alternate Scheme (RRES), which is to allow extra Ghanaians to interchange their previous power-consuming fridges with new energy-efficient ones.
Greater than 10,000 used and inefficient fridge units have been exchanged for brand spanking new ones between 2012 and 2016.
It additionally launched the ECOWAS Fridges and Air Conditioners Initiative (ECOFRIDGES) to speed up the adoption of energy-efficient and climate-friendly home fridges.
The ECOFRIDGES save customers cash on their electrical energy payments, relieve demand on the ability sector and mitigate impacts on the setting. About 1,952 cooling home equipment have been offered since 2020.
The Power Fee additionally launched the star-rating system which depicted the power use effectivity of {an electrical} equipment – the upper the variety of stars, the extra environment friendly the equipment.
Nothing like retailer reject
When contacted, the Assistant Supervisor in control of Power Effectivity Inspection and Enforcement on the Fee, Hubert Nsoh Zan, stated there was nothing like ‘retailer reject’ per the legal guidelines of the nation.
“So, in the event that they declare they’re retailer rejects, they’ve to check them to ensure they meet the minimal power efficiency take a look at necessities,” he stated.
He famous that the Power Effectivity Laws was handed in 2008 and so some elements of the legislation have grow to be outdated.
Mr Zan stated, for example, that the regulation solely supplied an import ban however didn’t empower the fee with the authority to grab the equipment out there.
He defined that the import ban launched by the rules had moderately created a secure haven or some type of black market to assist the smuggling of the product.
Affirmation
Corroborating the Each day Graphic investigations, the assistant supervisor stated the fee might verify that a lot of the used fridges out there have been smuggled by way of the ports in hid containers underneath the guise of “private results and family items.”
He stated the Power Fee realised that some individuals have been additionally importing used fridge compressors (motors), which the legislation had not positioned a ban on.
Modification
Mr Zan said that it was for that cause that the fee by way of the Ministry of Power (MoE) wished to amend components of the Power Effectivity Laws.
He stated the modification was to broaden the scope of the legislation from a direct ban on importation of the used fridges and air conditioners to incorporate different used equipment of the fridges.
“It additionally seeks to strengthen the fee to have the ability to seize the fridges from the market.
“The amended regulation will be sure that all importers engaged in smuggling and officers who assist and abet them are answerable for prosecution by the brand new legislation,” he stated.
Laws not the issue
A Senior Analysis Fellow on the Centre for Local weather Change and Sustainable Research of the College of Ghana, Dr Bob Manteaw, said that the passage of the rules, coupled with the introduction of incentives for extra individuals to accumulate new fridges, was important however had not yielded any outcomes after a few years.
“If that they had yielded outcomes, we’d not be seeing second-hand home equipment flooding the market. We’ve a ban in place however in precept it’s only on paper as a result of the vast majority of the fridges enter the nation by way of authorized routes,” he stated.
He stated there was the necessity for political will to strictly implement the ban.
Past political will, Dr Manteaw stated the inflow of second-hand fridges additionally raised questions concerning the authorities’s dedication to worldwide agreements particularly on local weather change.
“There are well being implications related to dumping of these home equipment within the nation. Many of the previous fridges include chemical substances that are dangerous to the earth’s ozone layer,” he said.