Minister of Labour, Jobs and Employment, Dr Abdul-Rashid Pelpuo, says the government is actively working to streamline business registrations, reduce regulatory burdens, and simplify tax administration systems.
Speaking at the 65th Annual General Meeting of the Ghana Employers’ Association (GEA) in Accra, he stated that the move aims to make it easier for companies, ranging from large corporations to small and medium-sized enterprises, to operate and succeed.
The event was on the theme: “Leveraging Technology for Enterprise Development: The Way Forward.”
He said the government’s commitment extended to ensuring that public services were responsive and efficient, noting that the government was investing in AI across government agencies to improve service delivery, enhance transparency, and eliminate the frustrations of bureaucracy.
The Minister said the government was committed to fostering a stable macroeconomic environment with inflation and interest rates managed sustainably.
“We understand that predictability and stability are the bedrock of confidence, and without confidence, there can be no significant investment or expansion,” he added
He said the government’s partnership with the GEA was crucial in formulating policies and pursuing reforms that reflected the needs of the business community.
He said beyond creating a favourable business environment, the core focus was on employment creation.
“The true measure of our economic success is not just in GDP figures but in the number of dignified and sustainable jobs we create for our people. In a digital age, this means investing in our human capital,” he said.
Dr Pelpuo said the government was prioritising skills development and vocational training to ensure that the youth were not just passive recipients of economic growth, but active participants and drivers of it.
President of GEA, Nana Dr. Emmanuel Adu–Sarkodee Afriyie said, “We are now in an era where technology is rapidly reshaping economies, labour markets and businesses.”
He said as indicated by the 2024 Ghana Digital Economy Policy and Strategy, the competitiveness of Ghanaian enterprises would increasingly depend on how effectively the businesses were able to adopt, adapt and deploy emerging technological and digital tools to enhance productivity, reduce costs and access advanced markets.
He said the future of business development in Ghana lay in embracing digital finance, cybersecurity solutions, additive manufacturing (or 3D printing), blockchain, Al, e-commerce, cloud computing, and big data, among others.
” It is imperative to emphasize that these technologies are no longer optional, as we treated them yesteryears, they have become the backbone of competitiveness, innovation and enterprise resilience,” he added.
On his part, the CEO of MTN, Stephen Blewett, in a speech read on his behalf, said, “As we celebrate 65 years of the GEA, let us also embrace the immense opportunity before us.”
He said the way forward for enterprise development was unmistakably digital, adding that connectivity, digital platforms, AI, and skills would define the future of competitiveness.
“At MTN Ghana, we reaffirm our commitment to Africa and Ghana and to investing in infrastructure, platforms, skills, and partnerships that empower every business from the rural SME to the multinational,” he added.
He said MTN believed in Africa and the diversity and creativity of its people and called on everyone governments, businesses, associations, academia and other stakeholders to work together to harness technology and the continent’s resource potential for its development.