Ghana’s Parliament is considering a new Ghana Investment Promotion Centre (GIPC) Bill, 2025, which proposes to remove the mandatory minimum capital requirement for foreign investors. The move is part of the government’s broader efforts to make the country more competitive and attractive to global capital amid rising regional investment competition.
Under the current GIPC Act 2013 (Act 865), foreign investors are required to inject a minimum of US$200,000 for joint ventures with Ghanaians and US$500,000 to US$1 million for wholly foreign-owned enterprises, depending on the business type. However, these thresholds have long been criticised as barriers to entry, especially for small and medium-scale investors seeking to operate in Ghana’s non-resource sectors.
The proposed amendment, currently before Parliament’s Trade, Industry, and Tourism Committee, seeks to abolish the capital threshold entirely, allowing market forces to determine investment entry levels. The GIPC argues that the current regime is outdated and inconsistent with Ghana’s economic diversification agenda.
According to Mr. Yofi Grant, Chief Executive Officer of the GIPC, “the new Bill is designed to open Ghana’s doors wider to all categories of investors, from startups to multinationals, while ensuring fair competition and protection for local entrepreneurs.”
The proposal comes at a time when Ghana is experiencing renewed investor interest, with FDI inflows rising by 382 percent in the first half of 2025. Policymakers believe that removing rigid capital barriers will further accelerate investment inflows, spur innovation, and create employment opportunities across key sectors such as manufacturing, agribusiness, and digital services.
However, the proposed reforms have generated mixed reactions among local business groups. While many welcome the idea as progressive, others fear that eliminating the minimum capital clause could expose local businesses to unfair competition from foreign entrants with greater financial muscle.
The Association of Ghana Industries (AGI), in a statement, cautioned that “the liberalisation of capital requirements must be balanced with robust local content and partnership policies to ensure that Ghanaians are not marginalised in their own economy.”
Similarly, some policy analysts have warned that the new Bill must include strong safeguards to prevent market saturation by low-quality investors or briefcase companies with little long-term commitment to the economy.
In response, the GIPC has indicated that the new legal framework will introduce a risk-based screening system to assess investor credibility, project viability, and compliance with environmental and labour standards before project registration.
The Centre is also working closely with the Registrar of Companies and the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA) to streamline investment registration processes and reduce bureaucratic delays that discourage investors.
If passed, the new Bill will mark one of the most significant overhauls of Ghana’s investment policy in over a decade. Economists believe it could strengthen Ghana’s position as a regional investment hub, rivaling Kenya, Côte d’Ivoire, and Nigeria, countries that have already relaxed similar restrictions to attract capital inflows.
The debate in Parliament continues, but one thing is clear: as Ghana reforms its investment laws, the world is watching how the country balances openness with protection, liberalisation with inclusion, and foreign capital with national interest.
