By Albert Futukpor
Tamale, Aug. 31, GNA – Twenty-five Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) in the Northern Region have undergone training to strengthen their capacity to build sustainable and compliant businesses.
The participants were taken through sessions on business taxation and tax compliance for SMEs, tax clearance, taxpayer services, and strategies for maintaining compliance.
The training, dubbed the “2026 MSME Growth Clinic,” was aimed at equipping participants with practical knowledge to address challenges affecting their growth and sustainability, including taxation, tax compliance, access to finance and business management.
It was organised by Victory Business Services Limited (VBS), a business support firm, with funding support from the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA).
The programme was held on the theme: “Building Sustainable Foundations for Northern Businesses.”
Mr Victor Nantari, Managing Director of VBS, speaking during the training in Tamale, said the initiative formed part of efforts by the company to support MSMEs through business advisory and consultancy services, business formalisation and compliance support, access to finance, business linkages and capacity-building programmes.
He said many MSMEs in the northern part of the country faced challenges such as limited access to finance, business registration and compliance issues, poor record keeping, marketing difficulties, human resource management constraints, inadequate access to markets and weak strategic planning.
Mr Nantari said the MSME Growth Clinic was designed to help bridge those gaps by providing businesses with access to relevant institutions, professionals and practical knowledge to support their development.
He noted that properly formalised and compliant businesses were better positioned to build credibility, access opportunities and participate effectively in formal markets.
He encouraged participants to actively engage the resource persons and apply the knowledge acquired to improve their business operations.
Mr Siibu Abdul Mutari, Head of Audit, Tamale East Taxpayer Service Centre, GRA encouraged MSMEs to comply with their tax obligations to avoid penalties.
Mr Mutari said businesses were required to register where applicable, keep proper records, file their tax returns and pay taxes by the required deadlines.
He said tax compliance could also position businesses for growth, especially when dealing with institutions that required evidence of compliance through tax clearance certificates.
He said tax clearance certificates could be required for various business activities, including certain commercial transactions, and urged business owners to remain compliant to facilitate the process of obtaining them when needed.
Mr Mutari also advised business owners to visit the nearest GRA office to seek clarification and assistance on their tax obligations rather than wait until they encountered challenges with the Authority.
Miss Senahey Abla Perpetual, Owner of God’s Own Will Business and a participant, said the training had provided her with valuable knowledge to improve the management of her hairdressing, cosmetics and beauty accessories business.
Certificates were presented to participants at the end of the training.
GNA
Edited by Eric K Amoh/Lydia Kukua Asamoah
Reporter: Albert Futukpor
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