Cost of land made its way to the top of the list as the most declined business component in this year's UK-Ghana Chamber of Commerce (UKGCC) Business Environment and Competitiveness Survey (BECS).
Corruption, however, dropped to the 5th position, showing a slight improvement despite topping the list twice in previous years.
Between 2021 and 2025, the number of respondents who felt key components of the business environment had declined significantly, from four to six out of every 10 in 2021 to just one in 10 by 2025.
According to a survey, this sharp improvement suggests that the advocacy efforts of chambers like UKGCC are making a real impact. “Rising land prices and double-digit lending rates in Ghana make entrepreneurship costly, limiting expansion and discouraging investment for businesses”.
Most Improved Business Component
Availability and access to quality infrastructure (road, railways, air and ports) topped the list, reflecting the government’s effort in improving infrastructure, moving from fifth last year to first in this year's survey.
Also, advanced technology maintained the top two positions in the last four years but dropped to fourth this year.
Management skills, being new on the list, made it to the top three.
The survey also revealed that the emergence of political stability and effectiveness signals stronger investor trust and safer capital flows.
Similarly, the survey showed that three out of 10 respondents saw significant improvements in components of the business environment in 2024. In the 2025 survey, this rose to 5-6 respondents out of every 10 shared this sentiment.
These improvements bode well for Ghanaian businesses by reducing operational costs, expanding market reach, and fostering competitiveness
The findings suggest that several areas, such as government bureaucracy, taxation policy, crime-free environment, and security systems, which previously demanded urgent reform, now seem to be better and require continued refinement rather than structural overhaul.
Encouragingly, the proportion of respondents who view Ghana’s business environment as trailing behind regional and global peers declined to 58% from 69% last year. This shift signals improving business confidence, even as some issues remain.
The 2025 UK-Ghana Chamber of Commerce (UKGCC) Business Environment and Competitiveness Survey (BECS) offers a snapshot of Ghana’s business landscape, capturing the experiences and outlooks of companies across diverse sectors. Despite persistent hurdles such as the high cost of machinery, land, and technology, this year’s findings reveal a growing sense of optimism among respondents—especially about future growth opportunities, market expansion, and overall sentiment toward the business environment.
Comments