Ghana will host an international signing ceremony for the United Nations Convention on Negotiable Cargo Documents on October 26, in a move aimed at advancing the digitalisation of global trade and improving cross-border cargo movement.
The ceremony in Accra is expected to bring together representatives of governments, international organisations and the global trading community to support the adoption of a harmonised legal framework for negotiable cargo documents in both paper and electronic formats.
The Convention, adopted by the United Nations General Assembly in December 2025 after six years of negotiations, seeks to extend the benefits of negotiable shipping documents beyond maritime transport to road, rail and air freight.
Speaking at a press conference in Accra, the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Ghana Shippers’ Authority (GSA), Professor Ransford E.V. Gyampo, said the Convention was particularly relevant to Africa, where cross-border trade often involved multiple jurisdictions, transport systems and border procedures.
He said a reliable legal framework for electronic negotiable cargo documents would reduce documentary barriers, improve the exchange of trade-related information and facilitate the movement of goods.
Prof. Gyampo called for collective commitment to ensure that the Convention translated into practical benefits for businesses and the wider trading community.
“Let us translate our collective commitment to ensure that the Convention becomes more than an international instrument signed in our capital,” he said.
He added that sustained commitment, strategic collaboration and decisive follow-through would be necessary to create a more efficient, secure and digitally enabled trading environment.
The Chief Commercial Officer and Director of Foreign Trade and Negotiations of the Ghana Shippers’ Authority, Ms Stella Ansah, said the Convention would not establish a new international institution but would provide a common legal framework for negotiable cargo documents.
She said it would enter into force 180 days after the deposit of the 10th instrument of ratification, adding that more than 10 countries were expected to sign the Convention in Accra, with Ghana expected to lead the process.
“The bill of lading transformed trade by sea. The Accra Convention offers opportunities to extend those benefits to the truck, train and aircraft. This is a reform of real consequences,” she said.
A Principal Freight and Logistics Officer, Ms Rodalyn Djanitey, explained that while a bill of lading served as a receipt for goods, evidence of a contract of carriage and a document of title, other transport documents, such as airway bills and consignment notes, generally did not confer title to goods.
She said the Convention would enable negotiable cargo documents to be issued across all modes of transport, allowing goods in transit to be used as collateral to access trade finance.
“This is particularly important for SMEs. With a negotiable cargo document, a consignment moving by road can now be used as collateral to access financing from banks,” Ms Djanitey said.
She said the Convention also provided for electronic documents, which could help reduce cargo dwell time and ease congestion at ports.
BY VINCENT DOH
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