The Patents and Companies Registration Office (PACRO) has disclosed that government has embarked on a national wide programme to streamline business licenses to business organizations that do not comply with the outlined regulations.
PACRO Senior Inspector of Companies Wilson Banda said it is sad that most business houses in the country do not submit their annual returns including relevant statutory fees on time, a situation he said has made it difficult for the organization to ascertain their existence.
Mr. Banda said this in an interview with ZANIS in Lusaka yesterday
He has meanwhile clarified that the basis behind annual returns is not the revenue collected, but rather the issue of compliance as provided for in section 184 of the Companies Act Cap 388 of the Laws of Zambia
He said it is for this reason that government has put in place measures for any business wishing to register with the Public Procurement Authority to submit their latest annual returns together with PPA forms to enhance cooperation and efficiency between the two parties.
Mr. Banda also disclosed that Section 361 of the Companies Act Cap 388 empowers the Registrar of Societies to strike off any company from the register of companies for non compliance.
Meanwhile Mr. Banda has noted that a number of business institutions, especially those operating in the informal sector, opt to directly go to local municipalities for their various trade licenses without being questioned over their business registration by PACRO.
Mr. Banda has since called on individuals in the country wishing to register companies to follow the right procedure to avoid being in conflict with the law.
Last year in December PACRO expressed displeasure at the escalating levels of briefcase businesses.
ZANIS
