- marks a significant step forward in enhancing the business framework in Ghana
The Ghana Association of Restructuring and Insolvency Advisors (GARIA) has unveilled the Corporate Insolvency and Restructuring Journal maiden edition, marking a significant step forward in enhancing thought-leadership in the business framework space of Ghana.
Ghana’s journey toward an improved business environment has been punctuated by key legislative milestones, including enactment of the Companies Act in 2019 and Corporate Insolvency and Restructuring Act in 2020 – which GARIA has been at the forefront of advocating with support from the Office of the Attorney-General and Ministry of Trade and Industry, various development and foundation partners and corporates.
This historic launch kicks-off GARIA celebrations comprising seminars, a workshop and Gala Presidential Awards Night on 11 November 2023, and is a testament of Ghana’s commitment to fostering a more robust and supportive business environment through education, research and advocacy in the field of corporate insolvency and restructuring. The journal is poised to play a pivotal role in shaping the future of Ghana’s corporate insolvency and restructuring landscape.
Elsie Addo Awadzi, Editor-In-Chief of the Maiden Journal and 2nd Deputy Governor-Bank of Ghana, when launching the Journal in Accra yesterday, noted that GARIA is privileged to be recognised as the professional body for insolvency practitioners under the Corporate Insolvency and Restructuring Act, 2020 (ACT 1015).
“I felt that the next step should be GARIA starting a mouthpiece for intellectual discourse, for intellectual workmanship in terms of helping to develop our jurisprudence and practice in this area.”
She emphasised the importance of this journal in shaping a more supportive culture of business rescues and restructuring in Ghana, and noted that the Corporate Insolvency and Restructuring Journal is not supposed to be a law journal but a multidisciplinary publication designed to stimulate discussions and incubate ideas to strengthen Ghana’s insolvency and restructuring industry. It also aims to shape policy, legislation and jurisprudential underpinnings of the country’s market-based economy.
George Fosu, CEO-GARIA, shared insights into theof the Corporate Insolvency and Restructuring Journal’s significance. He stated: “The then Companies Act 1963 (Act 179) was quite inadequate to address the trajectory that Ghana was on, in the context of its integration into the global economy. The Companies Act and Official Liquidation Bodies Corporate Act, 1963 (Act 180) provisions did not provide any room for resuscitating businesses that were viable but had incurred some sort of financial distress”.
Mr. Fosu also emphasised the journal’s role in simplifying complex concepts and making them accessible to a broader audience, ensuring maximum readership and benefit.
Mr. Felix Addo, President-GARIA, reflected on the Association’s journey since 2006, stating: “We’ve come a long way since 2006, and it’s a momentous occasion. Tonight, we have a diverse audience including lawyers, members of the judiciary, accountants, bankers and others. Our focus is on restructuring distressed companies at the company level”.
He highlighted the distinction between restructuring at the national or sovereign level, and GARIA’S focus on helping distressed companies.
Professor Emeritus Albert Fiadjoe, Chairman of the Corporate Insolvency and Restructuring Journal maiden edition launch, underscored the importance of education, training, research and advocacy in promoting business rescue practice. He praised the enthusiastic support received from GARIA members and the editorial board for establishing the journal.
The Corporate Insolvency and Restructuring Journal’s keynote speaker, Professor Philip Ebow Bondzi-Simpson, Vice Chancellor of the Methodist University and former Dean-University of Cape Coast Business School and Rector-GIMPA, emphasised the necessity of corporate solvency and restructuring for corporate entities facing financial distress. He discussed the legal framework, capacity building for practitioners and the importance of a platform for knowledge-sharing.
Prof. Bondzi-Simpson commended the journal for its role in educating laypersons and business practitioners about sound practices and current trends. He noted that the journal’s capacity-building aspect will clarify the roles, regulations and needs of qualified solvency practitioners.
The Corporate Insolvency and Restructuring Journal’s inaugural edition features 11 high-quality articles contributed by eminent academics, practitioners, jurists and experts from Ghana, Canada, Nigeria and South Africa. These articles cover a wide range of insolvency and restructuring-related topics, and are designed to be accessible for a broad audience including students, practitioners, professionals and researchers.
The journal is intended to be published bi-annually.
About GARIA
The Ghana Association of Restructuring and Insolvency Advisors (GARIA) is an association of accounting, banking and legal professionals with an interest in restructuring and insolvency, established in 2006 to play a leadership role in corporate restructuring, business recovery and insolvency in Ghana. It is presently registered as a professional body under the Professional Bodies Registration Decree, 1973 (NRCD 143), and also incorporated as a company limited by guarantee under the Companies Act, 2019 (Act 992).
