Register General Department asks SMEs to register their businesses

Operators of small and medium scale enterprises have been reminded about the need to make sure that their businesses are registered.

Mr. Akwasi Sarpong, Ashanti Regional Accountant of the Registrar General’s Department, said this was the way to protect their corporate identity and proprietorship.

He was addressing the closing session of a sensitisation workshop organised for members of the Consecutive Hairdressers Association of Ghana in Kumasi on Thursday.

It formed part of activities lined up by the Association for Small-Scale Industries (ASSI) to assist develop the private sector.

The resource persons came from the National Board for Small-Scale Industries, Association for Ghana Industries, Ministry of Trade and Industries, National Youth Authority, Local Enterprises and Skills Development Programme, Department of Women and the Ghana Chamber of Commerce and Industries.

Mr. Sarpong expressed concern about the tendency by business entities who refuse to file annual returns and ignore the requirement to renew the registration of their businesses.

This, he said tends to undermine the department’s revenue-generation capacity and its role of facilitating good corporate governance.

To help change things, the department has intensified efforts at helping the business community to have better understanding of the Companies’ Code.

He said this would promote compliance with the regulation on annual renewal of business names and partnerships and the filing of annual returns based on the turn-over.

Mr Kwame Buor, the ASSI Regional Chairman, said the association would continue to educate its members on good business practices.

Madam Beatrice Ofori, Vice-President of the Consecutive Hairdressers’ Association, asked the members to ensure proper record-keeping.**