The Ghana Union of Traders Association (GUTA) is urging the government not to take decisions that would adversely affect the retail sector, an area reserved for Ghanaians, as the government plans to review the country's investment laws.

President John Dramani Mahama, on August 20, 2025, announced that the government is seeking to abolish the minimum capital requirement for foreign investors under a planned review of the GIPC Act, aimed at attracting more Foreign Direct Investment (FDI).

He made this known while speaking at the Presidential Investment Forum in Japan.

Speaking in an exclusive interview with GhanaWeb Business on August 22, 2025, GUTA’s Director of Communications, Joseph Paddy, said that while the association supports government’s efforts to boost FDI, such reforms should be limited strictly to agriculture, manufacturing, and production-based sectors and not extended to the retail sector.

Ghana to scrap minimum capital requirement for foreign investors – President Mahama

"If he [government] is going to remove the minimum capital for those activities, we don’t have a problem. But when it comes to the trading aspect, that is preserved for Ghanaians. That’s why it wasn’t touched. So, in our view, he is talking purely about investment-related sectors, not the trading area. And that is why we are saying they should not touch it," he explained.

He added that GUTA is also proposing an increase in the minimum capital requirement for foreign investors in the retail sector from US$1 million to US$2 million, citing growing competition from foreigners operating in the space.

"We are even proposing that it should be increased to US$2 million. The current minimum capital for the trading aspect is US$1 million, but now we think it should go up because of the rising number of foreigners engaging in retail trade," he noted.

SP/MA

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