Close to 1,000 transit and export trucks cleared at Ghana’s Paga Border are stuck due to slow processing and limited space at the Dakola crossing in Burkina Faso. Ghana Customs officers say they have shifted to 24-hour operations to keep traffic moving. However, the Burkina Faso side has not matched that rhythm, creating a bottleneck that now makes entry difficult for vehicles headed north.
What is happening on both sides of the frontier
According to officers at Paga, every truck currently in the Ghanaian holding area has been processed and is ready to move. The roadblock sits ahead, at Dakola. Drivers report delayed checks, pauses in service, and a lack of parking space on the Burkinabè side. Dakola’s capacity constraints mean queues build up quickly. As a result, vehicles remain parked for days after finishing paperwork in Ghana.
Drivers call for round-the-clock clearance
Truck drivers are appealing for a coordinated 24-hour regime on both sides of the border to ease congestion. “We transport goods worth millions from Ghana to Burkina Faso, but we are stranded in Paga,” said driver Emmanuel Branton. Others reported that Ghanaian officers worked through the night while the Burkinabè post closed by morning. They want authorities in Accra and Ouagadougou to agree on overtime or a trial period of extended hours to clear the backlog.
Safety risks as hazardous cargo waits
Many stranded trucks carry petroleum and mining chemicals. These loads are flammable and require strict handling. Keeping them parked for extended periods increases operational risk for drivers, border staff, and nearby communities. Prolonged idling also adds cost, from cold-chain protection to security escorts, while raising the chance of spills or theft.
Tema’s 24-hour push and its ripple effects
Officials link today’s traffic to the 24-hour operations at Tema Harbour, which have accelerated cargo flows toward the northern corridor. Faster clearance downstream has created overtime for Customs at Paga, where teams also work through the night. Without a similar tempo at Dakola, the corridor’s weakest link now determines overall speed. A “24-hour operation” means border and port services run continuously in shifts to process cargo without overnight stoppages.
Paga border congestion: space and capacity fixes
Customs officers at Paga say Dakola lacks adequate parking to receive the surge of trucks. They also flagged land pressure at Ghana’s inland port site and have asked government to expand the facility, which sits on about 100 acres. Additional staging areas, better lane management, and digital pre-clearance could raise throughput. In the short term, synchronized working hours and temporary overflow parking near Dakola would relieve the longest queues.
What authorities say and the road ahead
SRO Umar Sulemana, head of the Customs Long Room at Paga, confirmed that Ghana’s side continues 24-hour clearance and has appealed to Dakola to extend operations. He urged a joint plan to decongest both borders. Drivers echoed the call, asking Ghana to engage Burkina Faso’s leadership so both border posts run matching schedules. Until then, trucks will keep stacking up at Paga despite being fully cleared, while the key constraint remains across the line at Dakola.
