The Ghana Standards Authority (GSA) has set October 1, 2026, as the enforcement date for the Pre-Export Verification of Conformity (PVoC) programme for vehicle imports.
The programme is designed to ensure that all used vehicles imported into Ghana comply with GS 4510, the standard governing the importation of used vehicles before shipment from the exporting country.
The PVoC programme is expected to prevent the importation of substandard and unsafe vehicles, ensure compliance with Ghana’s safety and environmental requirements, improve the traceability of imported vehicles and protect consumers and the environment.
Inspections will be conducted based on the requirements of GS 4510. Under the standard, vehicles with major damage will not be permitted for importation.
These include vehicles that have been submerged in water or damaged by floods, burnt or consumed by fire, as well as those with chassis or safety cage damage, including broken, cracked, bent or twisted structures.
The standard also prohibits the importation of originally manufactured right-hand-drive vehicles, vehicles assembled from spare parts, vehicles without speedometer readings in kilometres per hour, and over-aged vehicles (above 10 years).
The implementation of the PVoC programme is expected to improve the quality and safety of vehicles imported into Ghana, provide greater value for money for consumers and help streamline and regulate the automotive market.
The GSA also expects the programme to support the formalisation of the domestic used-vehicle industry, improve access to vehicle financing and increase investor confidence in the sector.
Deputy Director-General in charge of General Services at the GSA, Samuel Abdulai Jabanyite, said the initiative now has the backing of stakeholders who previously opposed its implementation.
Speaking to the media after a stakeholder engagement, he said the measure is also intended to help curb road crashes.
“We are trying to pluck a major loophole that all the waste, especially when it comes to the automotive industry, coming into our country as a dumping ground and that will be killing our people and causing environmental hazard to us, will now be a turn of the past,” he stated.
“We will not compromise on that. When cars are flooded, when they are burnt, these are things that we have set aside. But those things that can be replaced and make it road-worthy when they come to Ghana, we allow that. So the third-party inspectors who will be doing this job on our behalf have all these things, and they have the capacity to undertake this,” he subsequently added.
Meanwhile, the GSA will also implement the Vehicle Dealer Information System (VEDIS) to help clamp down on the importation and registration of stolen vehicles.
“What it simple means is that we are going to let systems speak with one another. Like DVLA, GSA has it standard. It is sitting somewhere in a component. DVLA has information or data seated somewhere. Insurance has its data seated somewhere. Interpol has its data. National Security has its data. VEDIS is going to build a network that will connect all these systems and be able to provide information to the user in real-time situations. So basically, when we develop this system and it is working, it is going to ensure that vehicle theft and vehicles that are road-worthy are those that can come into the country,” Samuel Abdulai Jabanyite said.
