The Office of the Registrar of Companies (ORC) yesterday launched its 2025 Week Celebration in Accra, as part of an effort to educate the public on the ORC’s mandate and promote compliance with the Companies Act. 

The celebration, which is on the theme: “Resetting the Business Environment: The Role of Enterprise Risk Management”, is also aimed at driving the ORC’s ongoing reforms to improve service delivery and address challenges faced by clients.

Speaking at the launch, the acting Registrar of Companies (RoC), Maame Samma Peprah, said the week-long celebration offered the right platform for the ORC to educate the public and ensure compliance with the Companies Act, facilitate the restructuring of businesses, and supervise the winding up of companies when necessary.

She explained that many people were unaware of the importance of registering their businesses, a gap that needed to be addressed to foster a healthy and well-regulated business environment.

Public sensitisation

Mrs Peprah added that the week-long programme would help educate the public on the mandates of the ORC, including registering business entities such as sole proprietorships, partnerships, companies limited by shares or guarantees, and professional bodies.

The acting RoC further explained that the celebration would provide a platform to address clients’ concerns and raise awareness about the importance of enterprise risk management in sustaining a healthy business environment.

She added that as part of the programme, the ORC?had come up with registration clinics, where the public could make inquiries, resolve challenges and register businesses on the spot, provided all documentation was in place. 

Reforms

Mrs Peprah also outlined a series of reforms aimed at making the ORC’s services more efficient and accessible.

The reforms, she said, included the establishment of a Prestige Centre to deliver services within 24 to 48 hours, a call centre to reduce congestion at its offices, and an online registration system currently being tested to allow businesses to be registered remotely.

“As part of the week’s activities, we are issuing same-day certificates for fully documented applications to demonstrate our readiness to deliver faster services,” she said.

Commitment

For his part, the acting Deputy Registrar of Companies, Benjamin Zigorsh-Nyakpenu, reaffirmed the ORC’s commitment to modernising operations and making services more responsive to the needs of businesses.

“We are here because of our clients, and we appreciate the challenges they face.

A lot of reforms are taking place, and a time will come when most of the things they come here to do will be completed from the comfort of their homes.

The acting Registrar is working assiduously to ensure this promise is fulfilled,” he said.

Mr Zigorsh-Nyankpenu added that the ORC’s leadership was determined to strengthen its systems to deliver quality and timely services to all stakeholders.