The enforcement exercise comes two weeks after the FDA issued a public notice warning that all food establishments without valid permits as of February 1, 2026, would face closure.

Among the affected facilities are The Cheesecake House, Dolce Frizzante, Onda and Alora Beach Resort, all cited for failing to meet mandatory licensing and hygiene requirements.

According to the FDA, the exercise forms part of ongoing efforts to ensure that food service providers strictly adhere to food safety standards and regulatory obligations.

Operating without a valid Food Hygiene Permit constitutes a breach of public health regulations aimed at protecting consumers from unsafe food handling practices.

The Authority further urged food vendors and restaurant operators to regularise their operations promptly to avoid sanctions, warning that inspections and enforcement activities will continue across the region.

The exercise is part of a regional effort to sanitize the hospitality sector of some over 200 facilities in the region including guesthouses and restaurants that are operating illegally and breaching key regulatory requirements.

The authority warns that without effective management of the facilities, it could potentially hamper progress in the hospitality sector, denying the country of revenue.

Leadership of the Ghana Hotels Association in the Ashanti region has been meeting with some directors and managers of hotels and other hospitality facilities in Obuasi.

The forum was to address challenges facing the sector in the gold mining town and expose managers to ways to effectively manage hotels in today’s competitive market.

Concerns were raised over the delays in the issuance of licenses and room standardization for the facility’s effective operations.

GTA Director in the Ashanti Region, Frederick Rudolf Adjei, says the poor management of these facilities has a negative implication on the sector.

“The few hotel rooms that we have, if they don’t train their staff and they don’t manage it effectively, the hotels will collapse. Even though new ones are coming up, the ones that are already traditionally doing well, the services deteriorate and they collapse, the number of hotel rooms will reduce,” he said.

But the authority says it will soon commence a crackdown on illegal hotel operators in the town.

“We are done with Kumasi and Mampong. Our next place we are visiting next is Obuasi. After here, we will head to Konongo, Agogo and Manso,” he revealed.

Chairman of the Hotels Association in the Ashanti region, George Arkoh Mensah, explained that measures are being instituted to enhance the operations of facilities in Obuasi.

“We want to hold a training for them with good resource personnel that will explain, teach, and guide them how to be efficient managers in their facilities,” he noted.

The forum with the directors and managers of hotels in Obuasi is part of the activities by the Ghana Hotels Association in celebrating its 50 years of existence.

The anniversary is on the theme: “50 years of Advocacy, perseverance and impacting Ghana’s Tourism and Hospitality Industry”.

A series of activities has been streamlined to celebrate the anniversary across the country, including a Health walk and donations to hospitals.

In October, a symposium is expected to be held in Cape Coast, and in January 2026, the celebration will be climaxed with an Honorary Award.

This follows a review of licenses conducted by a special committee tasked with auditing existing small-scale mining permits. Out of 1,278 licenses reviewed, 316 were found to be clear of any irregularities. The remaining 962, however, were fraught with various issues, leading to 55 being revoked earlier this year.

The Ghana National Association of Small-Scale Miners (GNASSM) had earlier pleaded for an extension of the deadline, which the Minister granted, moving it to the end of August 2025.

With the ultimatum now drawing to a close, the Ministry has reiterated that any licenses that remain defective after 5:00 pm on 1st September 2025 will be permanently revoked.

“Affected license holders are therefore reminded to submit any documentation to prove the legitimacy of their small-scale mining licenses to the Ministry on or before 17:00 hrs., 1st September 2025. Failure to do so will result in the revocation of their license by the Honourable Minister,” portions of a statement from the License Review Committee read.

The Ministry says the review and revocation exercise form part of efforts to sanitize the mining sector and clamp down on illegal mining.

Meanwhile, a comprehensive review of large-scale mining licenses is expected to commence soon as part of broader efforts to enforce compliance with mining laws and regulations.

Source: Lands Ministry

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]]> https://www.adomonline.com/ashanti-dvla-to-introduce-bulk-sms-alerts-for-license-registration-updates/ Wed, 14 May 2025 15:55:23 +0000 https://www.adomonline.com/?p=2535000 The Ashanti regional office of the Drivers and Vehicle Licensing Authority (DVLA) is seeking to revolutionize its service delivery with the introduction of a bulk short messaging notification system for license registration updates.

The initiative is part of the vision of the new regional manager, Jerry E. Aflabo, to ensure a convenient and stress-free process for obtaining the license.

He hinted at implementing this plan when paid a courtesy visit to the Kumasi business unit of the Multimedia Group to familiarize with the staff and management.

Mr. Aflabo stated the initiative is a proactive approach to keeping clients posted on the latest developments pertaining to their vehicle registration and related processes.

“I realized that a lot of people often wait for weeks, months, or even years without receiving any updates on their cars. When they finally inquire, they are sometimes met with few technical challenges which may have occurred during biometric capturing and this stalls the process. To address this, we will send SMS alerts to notify clients ahead of time about the status of their cars and licenses,” he explained.

He acknowledged technical challenges with the new Vehicle Registration System (VRS) and pledged to work closely with garage owners, vehicle importers, and dealers to provide education and sensitization on registration requirements.

Mr. Aflabo further cautioned prospective vehicle owners and registrants against engaging with middlemen when accessing services at the DVLA.

He advised the public to directly engage the DVLA staff on concerns regarding the registration and verification of services.

He cited instances where individuals had unknowingly used invalid licenses for years only to realize their authenticity when seeking renewal.

He reassured motorists in the Ashanti Region of his commitment to making their service experience seamless and efficient.

“We encourage the general public to have faith in us, and we will also do our best to make service experience a pleasant one for the people within the Ashanti Region,” said Mr. Aflabo.

The court indicated that BoG was carrying out its lawful mandate in the interest of the shareholders and by extension the public, and could not be faulted.

After the court cleared that the applicants had the requisite capacity and had properly invoked the jurisdiction of the court, the judge proceeded to deal, substantively, with the issues of discrimination, unreasonableness, unfairness, and violation of the administrative rights of the applicants.

On the issue of administrative rights violation, the applicant asserted that an honest assessment by the BoG would have proved that the GN savings and loans were solvent contrary to the Bank of Ghana’s assertion that the entity was not solvent.

The plaintiffs contended that, if the debt owed to them by government was paid, the capital adequacy ratio would have been met.

“If the Bank of Ghana had taken into consideration the financial circumstances of the company, and the fact that government owed us, they would have seen that the company was solvent,” the lawyer said.

The applicant’s dissatisfaction is based on miscalculation, and they claim that this amounted to a violation.

“The bank, as an administrative body, was unfair, unreasonable and irrational in its administrative functions, the lawyer for the applicant averred. No reasonable person faced with the same set of facts would have arrived at the decision taken by the Bank of Ghana to revoke its license.”

The applicant maintains that several actions to demand their money from government had failed and so it was unreasonable for the BoG to have revoked their license considering their circumstances.

The court dismissed the claim by the plaintiffs indicating that as an administrative body fortified by the Bank of Ghana Act, it was incumbent on the Bank of Ghana to ensure a strict supervision regime and once the applicants did not meet the threshold, and were not solvent at the time of revocation, their duty was to take the decision it took.

According to the court, the plaintiffs can take the matter of debt owed them by government with the Finance Ministry.

“It’s manifestly clear that the BoG took a reasonable decision to protect the public interest,“ the judge said.

On the issue of discrimination, the court concluded that the applicants were not discriminated against since other entities suffered a similar fate as that of the applicants.

The court said the applicant was not discriminated against and their complaints are unfounded and without merit.

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He attributed the issue to the illegal acquisition of driving licences.

Speaking on Adom FM’s Entertainment Hall show, Kwaisey Pee said tightening the process for obtaining a licence could significantly reduce accidents on the roads.

“If I were the DVLA boss, no one would easily get a licence. If I am able to curb that alone, I think it would curb lots of accidents” he stated.

Watch video below for the full interview

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In a statement set for discussion in the House on Monday, March 22, sighted by Joy News, the former Governor of the Central Bank petitioned the Legislature to investigate the conduct of BoG in the takeover.

Dr Duffuor also wants an inquiry into the appointment of an Official Administrator of uniBank Ghana Limited as well as the circumstances surrounding the revocation of the bank’s license in 2018.

He is also asking Parliament to direct the restoration of the banking license of uniBank Ghana Limited by BoG and remedy the harm done to the shareholders’ property rights as a result of the conduct of the Central Bank.

Dr Duffuor, the founder of uniBank in 1997 at a time when he was BoG Governor, also wants Parliament to give any other directives it deems fit.

The bank was put into administration by the BoG in 2018 and then consolidated with four other defunct banks during Ghana’s banking crisis.

At the time of its administration, the bank was led by his son Dr Kwabena Duffuor Jr.

In taking over the bank, the BoG cited weak supervisory standards, weak operations and persistent liquidity shortfalls and breaches in its cash reserve requirements as reasons for taking over the bank.

On his part, the former UT Bank boss, Mr Amoabeng has petitioned the Legislature to conduct an investigation into the conduct of the Central Bank and Ghana Stock Exchange for the revocation of UT Bank’s license and delisting the bank without due regard to the rules of Administrative Justice guaranteed under Article 23 of the 1992 Constitution.

The disgruntled Chief Executive also wants Parliament to direct the restoration of his bank’s license and remedy the harm done to the shareholder’s property right as a result of the conduct of the BoG.

Mr Amoabeng also wants Parliament to give other directives it deems fit.

He is being accused by the state of mishandling depositors’ cash by engaging in fictitious and unlawful activities which led to the collapse of UT Bank in 2017.

The Central Bank revoked the license of UT bank and approved a takeover of its assets and liabilities by state-owned GCB Bank.

Since then, Mr Amoabeng has been the subject of police investigations.

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Meanwhile, Majority Leader, Osei Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu, said: “The two matters are before the court and they [Dr Duffuor and Mr Prince Amoabeng] have been directed to amicably resolve the matter with BoG.”

He said Parliament doesn’t want to be on a warpath with the Judiciary so he cannot understand why they matter has been brought before the House.

The Suame Member of Parliament said the Speaker shouldn’t have admitted the motion to be discussed.

The National Teaching Council says it will soon begin phasing out teachers without professional licenses from all private schools across the country.

The Executive Secretary, Christian Addai Poku says the Council will ensure that any person who teaches in a private or public school has been certified through the licensure exams regime and is fit for purpose.

He tells Luv News his outfit is liaising with proprietors of private schools on a roadmap to phase out unqualified teachers on their payroll.

Mr Poku says it will soon be impossible for private schools to recruit teachers who are not fit for purpose.

He was speaking with the media when he joined the Education Minister to inspect the first batch of teachers writing this year’s Licensure Exams at the St Louis Teacher Training School in Kumasi Sunday.

In all, 14,500 candidates wrote this year’s teacher’s licensure exams across the country on Sunday.

The exams expected to have been held in March this year delayed because of Covid-19 restrictions.

Education Minister, Dr. Mathew Opoku Prempeh was at the St. Louis Training College exams centre to observe proceedings.

The exams was held with the strict adherence to Covid-19 health protocols.