SLPHA Company Secretary, Martin Maada George, left, brainstorming at the ongoing PMACA meetings in Cotonou, Benin
Abubakar Hashim
The Ports Management Association of West and Central Africa, PMAWCA, a body responsible for providing strategic policy direction toward Ports operational efficiency in the regions, is currently holding its high-level economic, finance, legal and administrative committee meetings in Cotonou, Benin, from March 24 to 26, 2025.
The Sierra Leone Ports and Harbours Authority, SLPHA, is ably represented at the PMAWA meetings, to further boosts the new corporate image of SLPHA, in line with international best practices.
High Level participants at the meeting
The strategic gathering is significant for two key reasons:
It is in tandem with the current drive of the African Continental Free Trade Agreement, ACFTA, to bolster Ports operational efficiency to promote trade in the continent
To build human capacity in areas of training and technology to fast track ports operations
The prime focus toward beefing up ports operations by PMAWCA, is that 70 to 80% of goods in the markets pass through the sea ports.
Beefing up ports efficiency, scaling down regulatory challenges and hiccups, facilitating financial, legal and administrative strategies to bolster economic growth, is inevitable to achieve overall national development in each of the participating countries.
Participants will brainstorm issues on maritime trade and port management for rapid economic growth in the regions.
The main objective of the PMAWCA meetings in Cotonou is primarily to further enhance port’s efficiency and sustain competitiveness in international operations in global maritime business