In fulfillment of its manifesto promise to ensure and maintain adequate security on the Ghanaian coast, the government has made significant inroads into the global maritime industry. Last Tuesday, President John Dramani Mahama, inaugurated Africa?s biggest Vessel Traffic Management Information System (VTMIS) at the Ghana Maritime Authority (GMA) in Accra.
The about 16-million Euros facility, a collaboration between the governments of Ghana and Finland, has a long range identification system that can track vessels within a range of 1,000 nautical miles.
The system meets up to 99.8% of the International Maritime Organization (IMO) standards.
The VTMIS is an integrated system to enhance electronic surveillance on the entire coast of Ghana and beyond, it also includes an automatic identification system for vessels and boats operating on the Volta Lake.
It has eight remote sensor sites for coastal surveillance, in addition to three remote base stations.
It also has weather sensors.
Source: Andrew Nettey
