Accra – Wednesday, 11 – Thursday 12 September 12, 2024: The Business Regulatory Reforms (BRR) Unit of the Ministry of Trade and Industry (MoTI), in a Technical Working Group, have engaged Heads of Reform Implementing Institutions on the best practices for promoting functional business environment in Ghana.
The Technical Working Group’s discussion among others, was for the Heads of the Institutional Reforms to identify the possible indicators for creating a more professional business environment in the country and to make recommendations for best practices.
The Head of the Service, Ing. Dr. Nana Ato Arthur in a remark, expressed appreciation to the Ministry of Finance (MoF) and the Business Regulatory Reform (BRR) team for their distinguished efforts towards the reform agenda. He described the platform as an opportunity for the Heads of Reforms to collectively contribute towards the reform agenda and make best recommendations which would be insightful to inspire and empower a driven force to positively impact the business environment.
In a remark, The Head of the Civil Service, Mr. Evans Aggrey Darko reiterated that, the initiative forms part of government’s effort to lay out compelling strategies to regulate businesses to address system-wide issues of the reform institutions, intended to rationalize current business regulations in order to manage the quality and flow of new regulations.
He called on the infringing support of the Heads of reforms to make the best recommendations in their deliberations to support the efforts of Government in reforming businesses in Ghana.
On his part, the Deputy Minister of Trade and Industry, Hon Michael Okyere Kofi Baafi, expressed gratitude to the World Bank for their continued support to the Business Regulatory Reforms (BRR) Programme through the Ghana Economic Transformation Project. He acknowledged that, the presence of the Heads of the reform institutions was a palpable indication of their commitment to support and work closely with Government to develop collaborative mechanisms in ensuring a functional business environment in Ghana for which the private sector was key.
He encouraged them to put in place structural reforms that would establish firm grounds for making Ghana a favourable home for global businesses.
The four key areas covered and selected by the Heads of reforms for possible recommendations included Administrative Procedures and Processes to remove
bottlenecks, Automations and Digitilisations of Administrative Procedures, Fees and Charges, Legal and Regulatory Amendments.
Some recommendations made by the Heads of Reform Institutions included the need to develop a framework that clearly defines the frequency and timelines for the review of tax laws and regulations, development of a framework for Corporate Tax Differentiation for different scales of business (Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises), development of permits to introduce expedited processes for the acquisition of development permits for low-risk projects, establishment of an electronic database for labour related complaints for labour violations, development of a framework for collaboration and Joint Inspections to facilitate the issuance of development/building permits, among others.
The Heads of Reform Institutions were drawn from the Financial Services, the International Trade, Dispute Resolution, the Market Competition, the Business Insolvency, with representatives from the Ghana National Chambers of Commerce and Industry (GNCCI), Ghana Institute of Freight Forwarders, Association of Ghana Industry (AGI) and the Ghana Association of Restructuring & Insolvency Advisors (GARIA).