GHANA Law and Practice Contributed by: Victoria Bright and Justice Oteng, Addison Bright Sloane
audit or sustainability) for overseeing geopolitical risks, shifting them from a compliance issue to a core strategy driver. Boards are increasingly requiring man - agement to provide mandatory regular and detailed reporting on emerging threats (eg, cyber-attacks, sanctions, conflicts) to make informed decisions. Board oversight also includes guiding management to build resilient, flexible supply chains and financial strategies and planning rather than relying on reac - tive measures. The board builds strategic integration rather than treating risks in isolation. Companies inte - grate geopolitical risks into their overall risk manage - ment frameworks, capital allocation and long-term strategy. All these measures aim to ensure that geo - political threats are proactively identified, assessed and mitigated. International Sanctions Compliance Board-level oversight of international sanctions compliance is expected to be active, proactive and risk-based rather than passive or merely shifting to management. In other parts of the world, sanctions compliance is seen as a core governance responsibil - ity, and boards are held accountable for establishing strong mechanisms and strategic frameworks. Boards are responsible for setting up a culture of com - pliance, with sanctions adherence being considered a priority, not just a legal technicality. This involves fos - tering a culture where compliance risks are identified, escalated and acted upon, even if it means declining lucrative business opportunities. The board must directly approve the company’s sanc - tions compliance policy and, more importantly, ensure its effectiveness. It must oversee regular, comprehen - sive risk assessments that map business operations against evolving international sanctions regimes. Boards are expected to initiate independent, periodic audits of the sanction compliance policy to test its effectiveness and ensure gaps are remediated. They must challenge whether the business is investing sufficient resources in both technology and human expertise. This includes providing the compliance function with enough authority, independence and budget to operate effectively.
Boards should receive regular, precise and accurate reports from the compliance team, including key per - formance indicators such as red flags that have arisen and how they were resolved, results of screening and testing, status of training initiatives, and known gaps or vulnerabilities. They must remain aware of evolving evasion tactics, such as the use of shell companies, intermediaries and complex ownership structures. Boards should have a clear, pre-defined crisis man - agement plan for handling suspected breaches, including investigation protocols, potential self-report - ing to regulators, and communication strategies. Ghana’s commitment to sustainable development has led to the adoption of various ESG-related regu - lations. The main ESG disclosure regulations in Ghana include: • the Securities and Exchange Commission Regula - tions, 2003 (LI 1728); • the Environmental Assessment Regulations, 1999 (LI 1652); and • the Securities and Exchange Commission Cor - porate Governance Code for Listed Companies, 2020. While there is no single statute mandating ESG report - ing across all sectors, obligations arise from a combi - nation of international standards, domestic regulatory frameworks, and corporate governance principles. Companies are increasingly required to report on envi - ronmental, social and governance (ESG) issues, with key requirements emphasising relevance, compara - bility, verifiability and clarity of information. There is growing emphasis on climate-related risk disclosure, stakeholder engagement and responsible governance practices, consistent with international best practice. The International Accounting Standards Board (IASB) has introduced IFRS S1 (General Requirements for Disclosure of Sustainability-related Financial Infor - 7. Environmental, Social and Governance 7.1 ESG Requirements
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