Ghana · Certification
ISO 22301 certification in Ghana
Achieve ISO 22301 certification in Ghana with Sterling: 8,100+ client engagements in 60+ countries, 20+ years.
- Accredited certification
- Lagos office team
- Effivity software included
- Academy training included
Who asks for ISO 22301 in Ghana
Clients include
ISO 22301 certification in Ghana at a glance
Bank of Ghana Cyber and Information Security Directive, March 2026 refers to ISO 22301, yet none of the Ghanaian instruments checked makes it compulsory. Buyers in Ghana ask for it anyway.
Business continuity has a clear regulatory home for Ghana's financial sector. The Bank of Ghana's Cyber and Information Security Directive devotes sections to business continuity and disaster recovery, including testing, and its annexure for managed security service providers refers to ISO 22301 alignment and a tested continuity plan. The Cybersecurity Act, 2020 adds incident reporting within twenty-four hours for owners of critical information infrastructure, and BPO exporters regulated through the Ghana Free Zones Authority meet continuity questions in overseas client audits. No Ghanaian rule makes an ISO 22301 certificate compulsory on its own, so the value lies in a tested system that stands up when an outage hits. Because the Ghana Accreditation Service is an Associate Member of Global ACI, certificates usually carry accreditation from another economy. Impact analysis, strategies, plans and exercises are supported from Sterling's Lagos office, alongside the Effivity platform and Sterling Academy courses that come with the engagement.
Who needs ISO 22301 in Ghana, and what happens without it
In Ghana the question rarely comes from a law. It comes from the buyer, the regulator or the partner that wants proof before it signs. These are the organisations that get asked.
- Banks, payment firms and other regulated financial institutionsThe Bank of Ghana directive has sections on business continuity and disaster recovery, including testing, and expects resilience to operational disruption.
- Managed security and technology providers to financial institutionsThe directive's annexure for managed security providers refers to ISO 22301 alignment and a tested continuity plan.
- Owners of critical information infrastructureIncidents must be reported within twenty-four hours, and continuity planning shapes how an owner responds.
- BPO and ICT-enabled service exportersOverseas clients ask for continuity evidence before awarding work and during audits.
- Telecom, energy and health operatorsThe Cybersecurity Act's sector list for computer emergency response teams includes them, and an outage affects the public directly.
Not sure which of these applies to you?Answer a short set of questions and your readiness report arrives by e-mail.
Take the ISO 22301 readiness checkISO 22301 requirements in Ghana
Strip away the vocabulary and ISO 22301 requires a company to prove six things about how it keeps operating when something goes wrong.
In Ghana these six sit alongside the local laws and regulations listed under drivers below; one system can evidence both. The detail is on the global hub: ISO 22301 explained →
How to get ISO 22301 certified in Ghana
One team from the Lagos office carries the work from scoping to certificate. Clients across Ghana are served from Sterling's Lagos office, on-site where the work needs it and remotely otherwise.
- Discovery call and scopeEntities, locations, regulators and target date, agreed before any proposal.
- Gap assessment against ISO 22301 and the Ghanaian requirements that apply to youControls you already run for your regulators and customers are reused, not rebuilt.
- Your system built with your team in EffivityRisks, controls, evidence, incidents and reviews in one live system the auditor can see.
- Internal audit, management review and corrective actionsYour internal auditors trained by Sterling; the evidence proven before the certification body arrives.
- Certification body stage 1 and stage 2, then surveillanceAn accredited body audits and decides. Sterling supports the audits and the three-year cycle.
- End to end, from one team
- Effivity ISO & GRC software
- Preferential Sterling Academy access, with complimentary awareness training for your people
- Internal auditor training for your audit team, as applicable to your standard
- Vulnerability assessment on ISMS engagements
The Sterling Promise: 100% on-time completion, 100% success, 8,100+ client engagements.Sterling does not certify. Certification decisions stay with independent bodies.
How long does ISO 22301 certification take in Ghana?
There is no standard duration: it depends on your scope and on how much of the system already runs. In Ghana these are the factors that set the timeline.
- Business impact analysis and recovery objectives to set
- Number of sites, recovery locations and critical suppliers
- Exercise and test records to build
- Certification body scheduling
Sterling agrees a dated plan with you on the discovery call, once the scope is known.
How much does ISO 22301 certification cost in Ghana?
The cost has two parts: the consulting work to build and prove the system, and the certification body’s audit fees, which are quoted separately. In Ghana these factors move both.
- Number of sites and critical activities in scope
- Recovery site, backup and communications investments
- Certification body audit fees, quoted separately from consulting
- Exercise facilitation and training
Sterling gives one customised, all-inclusive proposal after the discovery call, never before the scope is agreed.
ISO 22301 consultants and certification bodies in Ghana
Two different organisations are involved. A consultant helps you build the system and prove it works; an accredited certification body then audits or assesses it and decides. Keeping the two separate is what makes the result credible to buyers and regulators.
- Check that the body’s accreditation or approval covers ISO 22301 and your sector, and that its certificates can be verified online.
- Ask the consultant how the local requirements in Ghana are mapped into the same system, so nothing runs twice.
- Ask for client references in your sector; Sterling’s client letters are available on request.
- Agree who owns the evidence and the tool after the engagement; with Sterling the system stays yours, in Effivity.
Laws and regulations that drive ISO 22301 in Ghana (3)
| Instrument | How it treats the standard |
|---|---|
| Bank of Ghana Cyber and Information Security Directive, March 2026 | Refers to / expects The directive has sections on business continuity and disaster recovery and on testing them, and its annexure for managed security providers refers to ISO 22301 alignment; confirm with the Bank how it applies to your tier. |
| Cybersecurity Act, 2020 (Act 1038) — critical information infrastructure | Context Owners must report an incident within twenty-four hours of detection and have the infrastructure audited; the Act does not name ISO 22301. |
| Ghana Accreditation Service (GHAS) and Global ACI membership | Accreditation Global ACI lists the Ghana Accreditation Service as an Associate Member and not among its Full Members, so ISO 22301 certification usually rests on accreditation from another economy. |
Accreditation, audit language and remote audits in Ghana
Use a certification body accredited for ISO 22301 by an accreditation body within the international mutual recognition arrangements (Global ACI — Global Accreditation Cooperation Incorporated, formerly the IAF MLA). Ghana's own accreditation body, the Ghana Accreditation Service, is listed by Global ACI as an Associate Member and not among its Full Members, so a certificate that carries recognition across the arrangements normally comes from a body accredited in another economy. Where the Bank of Ghana's directive applies, confirm with the Bank how a certificate relates to its continuity paragraphs for your tier. Ask each body for its accreditation certificate and check that the scope covers the standard and your sector. The accredited certification body decides, not Sterling. Edition and transition details: ISO 22301 hub →
Audit language
English is the usual audit and document language; agree it with the certification body at application, and say early if interviews will run in a local language.
Remote and on-site
Remote audit elements are at the certification body's discretion; the business impact analysis, plans and exercise records can be reviewed remotely, while operations centres, recovery sites and data centres in scope are visited.
ISO 22301 in Ghana: questions clients ask
Does the Bank of Ghana require ISO 22301?
Its directive has sections on business continuity and disaster recovery and on testing them, and its annexure for managed security service providers refers to ISO 22301 alignment and a tested continuity plan. It does not make a certificate compulsory for every institution on the face of those references. Ask the Bank how continuity requirements apply to your classification.
What does ISO 22301 add beyond a disaster recovery plan?
It covers the whole continuity cycle: understanding critical activities through a business impact analysis, setting recovery objectives, writing strategies and plans, exercising them and reviewing results with top management. A disaster recovery plan for IT is one input. Auditors look for evidence the plans were exercised and improved, so keep exercise reports and corrective actions.
Does the Cybersecurity Act require business continuity certification?
No, the Act does not name ISO 22301. It requires owners of critical information infrastructure to report incidents within twenty-four hours and to have the infrastructure audited, and continuity planning helps an owner meet that response speed. Ask the Cyber Security Authority which audit approach and evidence it accepts for your sector.
Which Ghanaian organisations should consider ISO 22301 first?
Banks, payment firms and providers serving them, because the Bank's directive treats continuity as part of resilience, and BPO exporters whose overseas clients ask for continuity evidence. Critical infrastructure owners in telecom, energy and health follow. Start with a business impact analysis to see which activities cannot stop, then decide whether certification adds value.
More on ISO 22301 for Ghanaian organisations
Other standards Ghanaian businesses ask Sterling for
Organisations in Ghana often combine ISO 22301 with one of these, under one management system where the scopes allow.
Start with a free discovery call from the Lagos office
A Sterling consultant goes through your entities, your regulators and your target date with you. No proposal until the scope is agreed.
Sources
- Bank of Ghana Cyber and Information Security Directive, March 2026 — bog.gov.gh (accessed 11 Oct 2026)
- Cybersecurity Act, 2020 (Act 1038) — critical information infrastructure — csa.gov.gh; dpc.gov.gh (accessed 11 Oct 2026)
- Ghana Accreditation Service (GHAS) and Global ACI membership — global-aci.org; mofep.gov.gh (accessed 11 Oct 2026)
- Ghana Accreditation Service (GHAS) — global-aci.org; mofep.gov.gh; getgrm.mofep.gov.gh (accessed 11 Oct 2026)
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