Handling gantry cranes at the Beirut Port, March 13, 2024. (Credit: Philippe Hage Boutros/L’Orient-Le Jour)
The Beirut Port Authority — managed by its Committee for Management and Operation — announced Tuesday in a statement the extension of daily working hours, from Monday to Saturday, until 6 p.m. This measure will remain in effect until the end of the year, in coordination with the Customs Administration.
This measure comes in response to a request from the Food Importers’ Syndicate, which on Monday complained of problematic delays in processing goods as the holiday season approaches.
According to the syndicate, these delays were caused by malfunctions in CAMA, the centralized IT system that connects all parties involved at the port — from customs to shipping companies — and through which certain essential documents are issued.
Contacted for comment, syndicate president Hani Bohsali welcomed the port’s decision but at the same time lamented that its effect was being offset by a strike by the Economy and Trade Ministry's inspectors. The strike is part of a broader movement launched Sunday by the Civil Servants’ League.
“Goods must be inspected before they are cleared. If the Trade Ministry inspectors do not come to collect samples or go on strike, even if you keep the port open 24/7, it’s pointless,” Bohsali told L’Orient-Le Jour.
The civil servants’ strike is scheduled to continue until Wednesday. The Economy Ministry has not yet responded to our request for comment. According to an anonymous source at the ministry, inspectors have not actually gone on strike. “They were at the port on Monday, went to check goods at the land border posts on Tuesday, and should return to the port on Wednesday,” the source said.
