The World Bank’s Business Ready (B-Ready) 2024 report has revealed that setting up a business in Ghana is difficult compared to the country’s peers in sub-Saharan Africa.

According to the report, Ghana scored lowest in market competition, business entry, and dispute resolution.

“Within these areas, the economy lags in the digitalization of intellectual property services, does not provide general and sex-disaggregated firm statistics, and also lags in the digitization of the judicial system”, the report highlighted.

The B-Ready report assesses the regulatory framework and public services directed at firms, and the efficiency with which regulatory framework and public services are combined in practice.

 On providing better public service, the report showed that in Ghana, there is no electronic system that covers the entire company registration system.

In addition, the country lacks an electronic case management system that allows initial complaints to be filed electronically.

Speaking at the launch of the report the World Bank’s Division Director for Ghana, Liberia, and Sierra Leone, Robert Taliercio O’Brien said the time processes to register a business in Ghana is too cumbersome and difficult.

“It takes 57 days to register a new domestic company in Ghana. In Rwanda it only takes 3 days”, he pointed out stating that Ghana could do better to reduce the period for private businesses.

 He added that 48 percent of firms in Ghana report internet disruptions in a typical month, adding that in most efficient economies it must be only 2 percent.

Positive sides of the report

The report also showed that Ghana scored highest in Labor, Utility Services, and Business Insolvency.

Within these areas, the economy implemented good practices in its labor dispute resolution mechanisms, provides transparent information (connection requirements, tariffs, complaint mechanisms) for water and electricity, and electronic case management systems for liquidation and reorganization proceedings.