President Muhammadu Buhari has written to the Senate seeking an
amendment to a section of Nigeria’s current Companies and Allied
Matters (CAMA) law.
His message was contained in a letter read out by the Senate
President, Ahmad Lawan, at the start of plenary on Thursday.
In the letter, the president wants to preserve the powers of the
Attorney-General of the Federation to approve the registration of
companies limited by guarantee.
“Pursuant to Section 58 of the Constitution of the Federal
Republic of Nigeria 1999 as amended, I hereby forward the Companies
and Allied Matters and other related matters Bill 2019 for
consideration and passage into law by the Senate.
“The Senate may wish to note that in this bill, Section 26(5) of
the extant companies and Allied Matters Act has been amended
to:
a. Preserve the powers of the Attorney-General of the Federation
to approve the registration of companies limited by guarantee
and
b. Reflect the ease of doing business principles in a veto order
(1) of 2017 on the promotion of transparency and efficiency in the
business environment.
Senate President, @DrAhmadLawan reads a
letter from Mr. President on the transmission of the Companies and
Allied Matters Bill, 2019 for its consideration and passage by the
Senate.#TodayInSenatePlenary[1][2]— The Nigerian Senate (@NGRSenate) November
28, 2019[3]
“While I look forward to the usual expeditious consideration and
passage of this bill, please accept the assurances of my highest
consideration,” the letter read.
The Senate passed a bill to repeal and re-enact the CAMA in May
2018 to, among others, make it possible for individuals to register
their companies from any part of the world.
The bill came 28 years after the passage of the original
Companies and Allied Matters Act and is expected to make Nigeria
the best country in Africa to do business in.
The bill was transmitted to the president in May but has not
been assented to.
The bill, if signed into law, is expected to provide significant
benefits to companies by reducing red tape and making it easier to
comply with regulatory obligations.
The amendments are aimed at encouraging investments that will
allow small businesses and startups to thrive, lower costs and ease
regulatory burdens. Changes included in the bill will mean that
many of the over 75,000 private companies limited by shares which
are established in Nigeria every year will be able to incorporate
more easily.
In addition, small companies will no longer be required to have
a company secretary or hold Annual General Meetings and the
requirement for statutory declaration of compliance has also been
removed.
Minimum share capital required for companies to be registered
has also been reduced to encourage more investments in small
companies; and individuals will no longer need a lawyer to register
a company.
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References
- ^
@DrAhmadLawan
(twitter.com) - ^
#TodayInSenatePlenary
(twitter.com) - ^
November 28, 2019
(twitter.com)