Commercial, High Court Judges build capacity on corporate insolvency and Restructuring Act

The International Finance Corporation’s Ghana Investment Climate Project in collaboration with the Office of Registrar of Companies has held a series of capacity building workshops on the Corporate Insolvency and Restructuring Act. The workshop, which ran from 20th -28th October 2022, involved different stakeholder groups, including Commercial and High Court Judges, who will eventually interpret the law and a select group of Insolvency Practitioners. The Insolvency practitioners were trained as the first cohort of ‘Trainers’ to enable more insolvency practitioners to support the rescue of private sector enterprises and members of Ghana Association of Restructuring and Insolvency Advisers (GARIA). Also, the staff of the Insolvency Services Division of the Office of Registrar of Companies were trained to regulate the corporate insolvency practice and Bankers to better manage credit difficulties and risk management. The training will build the capacity of the different stakeholders as they perform their different roles in the insolvency ecosystem. The programme is part of the ongoing technical assistance support from International Finance Corporation (IFC) to the Office of the Registrar of Companies and it is funded by Swiss State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (SECO). The stakeholders who benefitted from these workshops are Commercial and High Court Judges, Banks and Non- Bank Financial services. The Workshop for Judges was done under the auspices of IFC and the Judicial Training Institute. The purpose of the training workshop was to afford Commercial and High Court Judges in Ghana to interact with and learn from experienced Judges and Insolvency practitioners from other jurisdictions. It is hoped that this would enable Ghanaian Judges to understand how insolvencies may be resolved in other jurisdictions. The workshop was restricted strictly to Commercial and High Court Judges nominated by Ghana Judicial Service. Twenty (21) Judges participated in the two-day residential programme. The in-person training Is a follow-up to the on-line training that was completed by all the participating Judges 3-4 months earlier. Justice Kweku Ackaah-Boafo, opening the conference on behalf of the Chief Justice Anin Yeboah, said the Judicial Service of Ghana is a key stakeholder in the Ghanaian corporate insolvency and restructuring regime. To that extent, the judiciary especially judges have an important role to play to ensure the smooth and efficient implementation of the Corporate Insolvency and Restructuring Act. “Undoubtedly, judicial training programmes improve judicial performance. Judicial training is a key factor in the successful implementation and positive impact of regulatory reform,” he said He said Judicial training could prevent ruling errors by judges and prevent additional burdens at the appellate level. Therefore, to ensure the successful implementation of the CIRA, Ghanaian judges must be trained in corporate insolvency and restructuring proceedings in Ghana. In many jurisdictions, prevailing economic conditions and political motivations lead to reforms. Due to the current dire global economic situation which has given rise to high inflation rates in many countries, including Ghana, most businesses are likely to explore insolvency and restructuring laws in our country, and that may require the intervention of the courts. I am, therefore, happy that the International Finance Corporation (IFC) in collaboration with the Judicial Training Institute (JTI) has agreed to organize this workshop to equip judges to acquire the necessary knowledge to enable them to deal with insolvency and restructuring matters that are likely to come before the Courts. The workshop, he said, aimed at educating Judges on the provisions of the CIRA and its Regulations and to equip judges with knowledge about the provisions of the CIRA, to inform future judgments and rulings; It would also equip Judges with knowledge of technical terms and principles in the CIRA to facilitate expedited rulings and judgments to enhance greater investor confidence in the legal system. The dignitaries for the event were, the Chief Justice of Ghana, as Guest of Honour, was represented by Justice Kweku Tawiah Ackaah-Boafo, High Court Judge, the Deputy Head of Cooperation and Head of Mission of the Embassy of Switzerland to Ghana, Togo and Benin, Dr. Simone Haeberli, represented SECO (funding agency for Ghana Investment Climate Project). IFC was represented by the Senior Country Officer, Cemile and the Judicial Training Institute by its Deputy Director, Ms. Mabel Ahele.