Minority demands suspension of Ghana-Colombia Shipping Deal over cocaine concerns
The Minority Caucus on Parliament’s Foreign Affairs Committee is demanding the immediate suspension of Ghana’s maritime and port cooperation arrangement with Colombia, as well as the bilateral visa-waiver agreement between the two countries, citing grave national security concerns over cocaine trafficking.
In a statement signed by the Ranking Member of the Committee and MP for Damongo, Samuel Abu Jinapor, the Minority said the recent surge in large-scale cocaine seizures linked to Ghana made the continued implementation of the agreements untenable without a comprehensive security review.
The call comes in the wake of repeated interceptions of multi-tonne cocaine consignments linked to Ghana, both locally and internationally, including the seizure of nearly 3.9 tonnes of cocaine by French authorities at Dunkirk on September 10, 2026, from a container reportedly shipped from Ghana.
The Minority referenced the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime’s World Drug Report 2026, published in June, which identifies Colombia as the world’s leading departure country for cocaine shipments, with the majority trafficked by sea.
It also cited a JoyNews report published on September 29, 2026, indicating that Belgian authorities had ranked Ghana as the fifth-largest country of origin for cocaine seized at the Port of Antwerp, a major entry point for cocaine into Europe. According to the statement, Ghana was the only African country and the only country outside Southern and Central America among the top five.
The Minority argued that Ghana’s expanding bilateral relationship with Colombia — including a mutual visa-waiver arrangement and a maritime trade agreement signed in March 2026 linking the Port of Tema to Colombia’s Port of Cartagena — therefore required urgent reassessment.
“Prudence and good governance demand a comprehensive national-security assessment of that arrangement before it is permitted to remain in operation,” the statement said.
The Caucus is further calling for the entire framework of the agreements to be submitted to Parliament for a comprehensive security review, warning that the integrity of Ghana’s ports and the country’s international standing had already come under strain.
“The security of our borders, the integrity of our institutions and the good name of the Republic must come first,” the Minority stressed.
The demand builds on an earlier push by the Minority for a bipartisan parliamentary inquiry into how the 3.9-tonne consignment passed through Ghana’s ports undetected, a motion the Speaker ruled inadmissible due to overlap with matters before the courts.
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