The Freight Forwarders Association of Ghana has accused the Finance Ministry of breaching national law and international trade rules through its Artificial Intelligence customs valuation system.
At a press conference on March 30, 2026, President Johnny Martey said the Publican AI system violates the Customs Act, 2015 (Act 891) and WTO valuation framework.
The association claimed that the system relies on foreign retail prices, generating “arbitrary and fictitious” values.
“The directive requiring customs officers to adopt the higher of the Publican AI value and the officer’s own assessment directly violates section 68(3) of the Customs Act,” Martey said.The dispute may lead to court intervention or policy reversal.
The association demands suspension of the system, disclosure of its framework, and an independent audit. They warn that the directive embeds a “revenue-maximising bias”, undermining fairness and trade regime credibility, and risks declining compliance, rising informality, and long-term revenue losses if unaddressed.
