On Thursday, the Office of the Registrar of Companies (ORC) launched a public engagement initiative to emphasize the importance of registering and renewing businesses.
The campaign commenced around 0940 hours at the Registrar General’s Department premises, involving 70 ORC staff, some on a trailer and others on foot, accompanied by music and police escort.
The campaigners made their way through targeted market areas in Accra, including Makola, Tudu, Kantamanto, Agbogbloshie, Abossey Okai, Kaneshie, and Odorkor, reaching out to the business community.
Previously operating as part of the Registrar General’s Department, the ORC is now an autonomous entity, established by an Act of Parliament under Section 351 of the Companies Act, 2019 (Act 992).
While it shares premises with the Registrar General’s Department, the campaign sought to create awareness that the ORC now functions independently and is responsible for registering and regulating business entities in Ghana.
On the other hand, the Registrar General’s Department continues to carry out other functions, such as registering marriages, intellectual property rights, estate administration, among others.
Mr Nicholas Ofori Obeng-Twum, Head, Public Relations, ORC, indicated that:
“As a new institution, there is the need to do public sensitisation not only on the brand and the institution, but to drum home the need for the public to register their businesses, the consequences of not registering their business and the opportunity they have when they register their businesses.”
During the campaign, a portion of the campaigners addressed the crowds using loudspeakers, while the majority engaged in one-on-one interactions with the audiences. They also handed out flyers containing valuable information about the services offered by the ORC.
The campaigners actively communicated with both small and medium-scale business owners, emphasizing the importance of registering their businesses if they hadn’t already done so, and encouraging those whose businesses required renewal to take immediate action.
Ms. Catherine Gbikpi Benissan, a State Attorney representing the Office of the Registrar of Companies, highlighted the benefits of business registration. She explained that registering a business grants it a legal identity, enabling it to avail itself of various privileges such as access to loans and the ability to enter into contracts.
“We realised there are business entities that had registered, but not complying with the regulations of filing their annual returns and renewal,” she noted.
“We are hoping that with this sensitisation, companies and businesses will know the requirements and the obligation to file their returns and stay viable on our books. And companies that have already registered will come to renew annually,” she added.
Ms Benissan said the ORC offered online services and so businesses and companies could go online to register.
“We want every company to comply with the law so that we can grow businesses and make Ghana rank high on the ease of doing business,” she said.