Nana Yaa Jantuah is a Senior Presidential Staffer
A Senior Presidential Staffer in charge of Energy, Nana Yaa Jantuah, has called on government agencies to introduce mechanisms that make regulatory licensing easier for businesses in Ghana.
She noted that many business owners struggle to acquire the necessary documentation due to lengthy procedures and excessive requirements.
Speaking at a Business Regulatory Dialogue organised by the Institute for Liberty and Policy Innovation (ILAPI), Jantuah emphasised the need for stronger public engagement between government agencies and businesses.
“We use middlemen. Middlemen do make it cumbersome for us. But why do we use middlemen? When any group of people use middlemen, it means that whoever is supposed to deliver the service is not visible, is not accessible. And that is why, in my frustration, if I need a licence, I will use a middleman. So, on behalf of government, we are urging these regulatory institutions,” she said.
Regulatory costs threaten job creation and SME expansion in Ghana
Jantuah further stressed that despite the rise of digital platforms, more must be done to ensure inclusivity in business regulation and certification advocacy.
“When I hear people talking about websites, talking about social media, social media is good. But there are people who don’t go to social media. The richest who want to invest might not be social media people. That is why you should have one-on-one engagements. That is why you should have a lot of engagements with the people. Everybody is a businessman in Ghana,” she added.
For his part, ILAPI’s Executive Director, Peter Bismark Kwofie, warned that Ghana risks losing its competitive edge if urgent reforms are not undertaken to simplify the regulatory environment.
He revealed that findings from ILAPI’s 10-month research (2024–2025) showed that regulatory bottlenecks significantly slow the growth of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs).
Kwofie urged government and stakeholders to treat regulatory reform as a national priority, stressing that efficiency is key to unlocking innovation, attracting investment and strengthening Ghana’s economic foundations.
“I believe that business with regulatory reform is not always the responsibility of the government. The private sector must speak, civil society must analyse, and policymakers must listen. The government must try to make it. We must reduce administrative bureaucracy and rating, and not duplicate them. Interoperability, automation, and user-centred designs should guide every digital reform,” he noted.
SP/BAI
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