Registrar-General's Department to open two new regional offices

Accra, Aug 21, GNA - Mrs. Betty Mould Iddrisu, Attorney General and Minister of Justice on Friday said the Registrar General's Department would soon open two new offices in the Western and Northern Regions. "The Tamale office would take care of the three Northern Regions, while the Sekondi- Takoradi office would cater for the western corridor of the country".

Mrs. Iddrisu, who appeared before the Parliamentary public Accounts Committee said the new offices, would help ease tension on the Headquarters and Kumasi offices and also reduce the burden of the business community and couples who had to travel from their various regions to transact business in Accra.

She said the Department would by 2011 have Regional offices throughout the country, while online registration would commence next year.

She gave the assurance that appropriate measures would be instituted to facilitate the effective functioning of the exercise. The Minister of Justice said measures were in place to also commence Saturday services to avoid the backlog of work at the beginning of every week and to reduce the duration of business registration to at least three days.

Mr Kwadwo Obeng, Acting Director-General of the Department said it had submitted proposals to review the charges at the Department upwards since the last increase was in 2003.

He said the review would also enable the Department to generate adequate income, especially from industrial registration, to provide better services to clients all over the country.

Mr Obeng said the Department had taken steps to eliminate the 'middlemen' by establishing the complaints office and called on the business community to send their complaints as well as report people who try to extort from them to the office.

Mrs. Jemima Oware, Chief State Attorney said the Department had now received some vehicles and trained more inspection officers who would from time to time monitor and evaluate the performance of various businesses and enterprises in the country. She said the staff had been trained in ICT and were now well equipped to handle data. 21 Aug. 09