The Sekondi/Takoradi branch of the Ghana Chamber of Commerce and Industry has called for the passage of the Food and Drugs Bill as well as the Standards Bill.
The Chamber, at a meeting with the leadership of the Food and Drugs Board and the Ghana Standards Authority, said the passage of the bill would help to define the roles of the two bodies in order to take away the seeming overlapping functions.
Mr. Cadmond Dadzie, Treasurer of the Chamber, said there was the need for the two bodies to remove all bottlenecks surrounding product certification to ensure confidence and also develop the business environment.
He said the complexity as well as frustrations encountered by local entrepreneurs at the offices of both the Food and Drugs Board and the Ghana Standard Authority for certification of a product had over the years hindered the growth of the local industry.
He said this had caused delays in licensing and certification of businesses in the manufacturing and food sectors and is also responsible for the low rate of growth in businesses particularly in the manufacturing sector.
Mr. Dadzie added that these delays had resulted in the lack of trust in the operations and the capabilities of the two agencies resulting in the high cost of production and low investor confidence.
He said agencies playing different roles had resulted in the payment of different amounts for certification of a single product.