Ghana: Our shops in Kasoa are now opened – Nigerian shop owners

Nigerian shops in Kasoa, a suburb of Ghana's Central Region are now opened to business after several dialogues with the chiefs and the Ghana Union of Trade’s Association (GUTA).

Shops owned by Nigerians in major markets in Ghana have been locked for months due to their inability to provide the mandated documentation to venture into retail trade in the country.

According to the Ghana trade agreement, every foreign retailer must pay a $1 million minimum capital under the GIPC Act, Act 865.

Their inability to provide the needed funds has generated tension between Nigerian and Ghanaian authorities.

Ahmed Akolade Suleiman, a Nigerian chief and shop owner in Kasoa who spoke on behalf of his colleagues told MyNigeria.com in a phone interview that as of August 16, all their shops in Kasoa have been opened.

According to him, they expressed their inability to provide the $1 million payment required by the government as they are petty traders.

He noted that after discussing with other leaders and GUTA in Ghana, they have been given three months to provide their necessary documents.

“Our people in Kasoa here are petty traders and can’t afford the $1m. So, we appealed to GUTA in Kasoa. They agreed and understood that we are all human. Prior to this, we were given three months to provide those documents and as they didn’t hear from us that’s what prompted them to lock the shops. And this time, we had an agreement with them. The FCE of Awutu Senya came into the intervention of our people and also the regional commander and we had a beautiful dialogue with GUTA. All our people’s shops are opened but we are still on the process we agreed to that all who have documents should tender their document and those who do not have will be given three months again to acquire a local document and everyone will be free,” he said.

On the issue of other areas being locked, he urged the shop owners and leaders of Circle Tip Toe Lane and Abossey Okai to come together and resolve the problem rather than dividing themselves into groups and aiming at nothing.

"What happened in tip toe lane, they should have all come together under one umbrella, it doesn’t matter who is leading. It is the agreement of everybody that whoever leads will speak on but they refused to do that. They divided themselves into groups and that decision is what affected them till today. Assuming they came together like we did in Kasoa I think it wouldn’t be a problem," he added.

NUTAG president, Okechukwu Nnaji also confirmed the reopening of the shops and noted that agreement between the Ghana and Nigerian government are ongoing to resolve the trading conflicts between the two countries.