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Maritime law consultant, Dr Kofi Mbiah
Maritime Law Consultant and Managing Director of the Ghana Chamber of Shipping, Dr Kofi Mbiah revealed that the chain disruption of global shipping due to the blockade of the world’s most heavily used maritime trade route could take weeks or months. to dissipate.
Speaking to Josephine Antwi-Adjei of Tv3, Dr Kofi Mbiah said that while traffic has now resumed in the canal, the repercussions after days of movement stoppage will continue to be felt.
“It is good that the ship is now free, although such an accident is not the first time,” he said.
“However, this is the third in history so far, but attention now would be the ripple effect of congestion in ports and supply chains already reeling from container shortages in the country. amid high freight rates, ”he added.
He added that the incident had not affected trade flows from the west coast of Africa, with Ghana remaining vulnerable due to some important trade ties with Europe.
Dr Kofi Mbiah pointed out that there will be losses, which will be spread over different categories, there will be insurance for the shipowners, as the rescue operations have been carried out, but ultimately the shipowners will pass on the cost. on the end consumer.
On behalf of the Executive Director of the Center for Maritime Law and Security in Africa and Senior Lecturer at the University of Professional Studies of Accra (UPSA), Dr Kamal-Deen Ali said the vessel’s prolonged delay would have may have raised safety concerns as many of the ships were still waiting.
The ship, one of the largest in the world, got stuck horizontally in the canal last Tuesday.
Since then, the crews have worked day and night to free the ship.
The MV Ever Given was dislodged on Monday after more than 10 tugs arrived at the scene, along with specialized dredging equipment and expert rescue teams all working together to free the 220,000-ton vessel.
According to the Suez Canal Authority, nearly 19,000 ships passed through the Suez Canal in 2020.
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