Twenty two thousand defunct companies face deregistration by the Patents and Companies Registration Agency (PACRA).
PACRA Chief Executive Officer and Registrar Anthony Bwembya says the companies and businesses face deregistration for failing to remit annual returns.
Mr Bwembya says the twenty two thousand companies and businesses have been dormant for quite some time.
He says this came to light when the agency recently conducted an exercise to ascertain how many companies and businesses are dormant.
Mr Bwembya states that the agency has since started issuing notices to find out if the owners of the businesses still want them to stay on the PACRA registers.
He explains there is a cost associated with maintaining of business records which he says are done electronically.
Mr. Bwembya says if the owners of these companies do not respond within thirty days from the date of notice, all defunct companies will be de–registered without compromise.