Cattle herders utilize the permeable fencing of the 1,200-acre Tema Freezone enclave to graze their livestock in the industrial metropolis.
For approximately 85 businesses, the situation poses a security risk and a nuisance as they struggle to restrict the movement of animals to prevent accidents and minimize property damage.
Mrs Patience Agbleze Acorlor, the Director of the Tema Administrative Office of the Ghana Free Zones Authority (GFZA), emphasized the difficulty when the Minister of Trade and Industry, Mr Kobina Tahir Hammond, visited the office on a familiarisation tour.
"Because of these fence wall breaches, cattle are entering the property. "Unfortunately, every time you fix something, they break it," she lamented.
The fence walls have observation posts, so security would need to be stationed there. However, the security personnel claim that the posts are too isolated.
The enclave, which employs 7000 people, is comprised of 37 Free Zone businesses and 48 non-Free Zone businesses.
Mrs. Acorlor mentioned additional challenges confronting the enclave, such as deteriorating roads, inadequate street lighting, and inconsistent water supply.
In the interim, she stated that the GFZA, with assistance from partners such as the World Bank and GIZ, was implementing a number of projects, including the construction of roads and boundary walls, the expansion of a water storage facility, the introduction of affordable transport projects, and the provision of canteen services.
Mr. Hammond, who was pleased with the enclave's development progress, stated that the GFZA must aspire to become the center for industrialisation and commerce by expanding its scope of operations to attract more businesses to the enclave.
"We hope you generate a great deal more national productivity, employment, and revenue," he said.
Cattle herders posed a grave security threat, he said, adding, "I don't think that's acceptable, and I'm not sure to what extent the country's security forces are aware of it."
He stated that the issue would be presented to the relevant security agencies for resolution.
The Minister stated, "It (enclave) is supposed to be a safe place for economic productivity, and allowing herdsmen and their cattle to roam freely is dangerous to begin with."
Later, he visited the 10-acre construction site of the Reroy Power Company, Toyota Tsusho Manufacturing Plant, and Nissan Assembly Plant, all of which are located in Tema, in order to interact with the stakeholders in an effort to resolve the issues.