This is the most heavily regulated business on this site, and the regulation decides whether you can open at all. Start with the licence, not the shop.
Chemical shop or pharmacy?
They are different licences and different businesses.
- A chemical shop (an over-the-counter medicine seller) may sell a restricted list of non-prescription medicines. It does not require a pharmacist, and it is what most neighbourhood medicine shops in Accra are.
- A pharmacy may dispense prescription medicines and must be superintended by a registered pharmacist.
Both are licensed by the Pharmacy Council of Ghana, and both are inspected. Selling prescription medicines from a chemical shop is the single most common and most serious breach in the trade.
What it costs to start
Roughly ₵20,000 to ₵80,000, most of it stock and licensing.
| Item | Note |
|---|---|
| Licensing and premises approval | First, before anything else is bought |
| Opening drug stock | The bulk of the money |
| Shelving, counter, lockable storage | Some items must be secured |
| Fridge | For anything requiring cold chain |
| Premises and rent advance | Must meet the Council’s premises standards |
| Record books | Stock, expiry, sales. Inspected |
Where it works
Population and footfall, with a real eye on how far the nearest existing shop is. The Council also considers distribution when approving premises.
The paperwork, in the right order
- Qualify or engage the right person. A chemical shop needs an approved operator who has done the Council’s training; a pharmacy needs a registered superintendent pharmacist.
- Get the premises approved by the Pharmacy Council before you commit to a lease. Premises that cannot be approved are the most expensive mistake available here.
- Register the business with the ORC.
- Business operating permit from the assembly.
- FDA matters throughout: every product you stock must be FDA-registered.
- Annual licence renewal, and inspection.
— Pharmacies and medicines, from a customer’s side — Ghana’s regulators
Stock discipline
- Expiry is money. Rotate, check monthly, and write off honestly.
- Cold chain items are lost the first time the power goes and the fridge does not. — Electricity and dumsor
- Buy only from licensed wholesalers. Cheap stock of unknown origin is either counterfeit or expired, and both end the licence.
- Never sell what you are not licensed to sell, however routine the request. This is the line the whole business stands on.
Counterfeit and unregistered medicines
Ghana has a real problem with falsified medicines, and a shop that stocks them harms people and loses its licence. Know your wholesaler, keep the invoices, and check FDA registration.
What closes chemical shops
- Losing the licence — selling outside the permitted list, or failing inspection.
- Expired stock, quietly accumulating.
- Credit given to regulars who then do not pay.
- A pharmacy opening nearby with a wider list.
Work out the money before you sign
— Business viability checker — Rent advance calculator — Loan repayment calculator — Cost of living calculator
— Entrepreneurship in Accra — Registering a business — The traditional trades of Accra