…waives business premises permit backlog
By Bankole Taiwo, Abeokuta
The Ogun State government has launched the State Business Premises Registration Portal just as it has also commenced free registration of businesses on the Portal till December 31, 2021 as part of efforts to improve the ease of doing business,
Ogun State Governor Prince Dapo Abiodun while speaking during the launch held at Ogun TechHub, Kobape Road, Abeokuta and virtually, said the launch is as a result of different reforms and digitisation of the present administration aimed at creating enabling environment for businesses.
Represented by the Chairman of the State Business Environment Council who also doubles as the Commissioner for Finance, Mr. Dapo Okubadejo, Gov. Abiodun added that through the Business Premises Registration Portal, the government would be able to plan for the provision of infrastructure, security, power, manage the environment as well as provide other relevant facilities for businesses in the State.
“In the past, Business Permit Registration had hitherto been done manually. But when the Business Environment Council established the Technical Working Group on ‘Starting a Business’ started work, in line with our digitization initiative, we decided that this registration process must be automated. The automation process has been tested. This Portal is very interactive,” Abiodun said.
The Governor enjoined all categories of businesses operating in the State to register their business on the portal for free via businesspermit.ogunstate.gov.ng from September 1 till December 31, 2021 adding that the government has also waived all backlog on Business Premises Permit Registration in the State.
Abiodun disclosed further that the government would harmonise its taxes with legal backing as well as increase on enforcement of its tax laws to eliminate illegal tax collection in the State.
In her welcome address, Commissioner for Industry, Trade and Investment, Mrs. Kikelomo Longe said with the launch of the portal, the state government has fully automated its business registration process adding that the full automation makes the process easier while also reducing cost.
She noted that with the automation process, “the state could be ranked number one on the Starting a Business Index of the World Bank’s Ease of Doing Business Ranking which is scheduled for 2022.”