At least 100 small-scale businesses in the Upper West Region are set to enjoy financial and technical support from the Small and Medium Enterprises Growth and Opportunities (SME GO) programme being rolled out by the government.
This was disclosed by Dr. Abudu Abdul-Ganiyu, Technical Advisor to the Finance Minister, on the sidelines of a Stakeholders Sensitization Forum held in Wa on Monday, September 2, 2024.
He said “we should have about 100 SMEs from each of the regions benefiting under this programme. So, we are talking about 1,600 SMEs from the get-go.” This, he said, is an indication of government’s commitment to bringing “transformational effect to the SME sector”.
According to him, government is being deliberate about supporting the transformation of the SME sector given that it constitutes 90% of all registered businesses and accounting for 85% and 70% of Ghana’s manufacturing jobs and Gross Domestic Product (GDP) respectively.
Dr. Abdul-Ganiyu also disclosed that the initiative is targeting to unveil the first batch of beneficiaries by the end of September, 2024.
“Our schedule is that, by mid-September, we should be done with all sensitization [across the country]. And then we can open the portal for people to apply. So, hopefully by end of September, we should see the first batch of SMEs benefiting under this programme” he noted.
Beneficiaries who meet the criteria “and qualify along each of the financing windows (GEA, EXIM Bank or DBG)” will be able to access funding after they are given additional technical training, he stated.
The Government of Ghana under the Growth and Opportunity Initiative for Small and Medium Enterprises project has allocated an amount of GH₵8.2 billion to support small-scale businesses across Ghana. The amount comprises $4 billion from the International Finance Corporation (IFC), GH₵1.4 billion from the Development Bank Ghana (DBG), and counterpart funding of GH₵700 million from government.
The initiative, which is under the purview of the Ministries of Finance and Trade and Industry, has key driving agencies, including the Ghana EXIM Bank, the DBG, the IFC, and the Ghana Enterprises Agency (GEA).
It is intended to address the financial challenges faced by the country’s small-scale enterprises and create opportunity for them to access financial and technical support to enhance their business operations.
As part of the programme, Stakeholder Sensitization Forums are being held across the country. In Wa, participants numbering about 500 were taken through the eligibility criteria and the application process. They were urged to put their documents together in readiness for application when the portal is open.
Some participants who spoke to this network expressed gratitude to the government for initiating the SME GO programme. They indicated it was long overdue for such attention to be focused on the SME sector. They, however, bemoaned the failure of previous initiatives that targeted small businesses, thus, urged the government to ensure that SMEs that meet the eligibility and qualify are offered support and tightly monitored.
Filed by: Hafiz Timbile Adams
