The Ghana Enterprises Agency Unveils SME High Growth Programme Worth $20 million
The Ghana Enterprises Agency (GEA) has recently launched a new programme called the SME High Growth Programme, which aims to build on and consolidate the successes achieved under previous SME-focused initiatives. The GEA has partnered with the World Bank to provide a grant support of US$20 million (cedis equivalent) for this flagship programme. The programme targets SMEs across the country and provides general training, capacity upgrades, consulting, and financing.
The grant programme’s support is expected to help 2,000 SMEs become investment-ready, increase sales, build their capacities to export, and culminate into job creation and job sustainability. The CEO of GEA, Mrs Kosi Yankey-Ayeh, explained that the programme is designed to provide training and capacity building necessary to lead to the operational efficiency of the enterprises, boost their competitiveness, and scale up their operations for further job creation.
The programme would also provide SMEs with relevant tools in Business Development, including digital marketing tools, necessary to enable them to take advantage of the African Continental Free Trade Area.
The SME High Growth Programme is relevant to the vision of His Excellency Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo for SMEs through the GEA to optimize their potential to enable them to contribute meaningfully to the growth and development of the national economy and poverty reduction. The programme is open to small or medium enterprises (SMEs) with a majority Ghanaian shareholding of 51% or more and registered under Ghanaian law in sectors such as agribusiness/agro-processing, construction, education, food and beverage, healthcare or pharmaceutical industries, ICT, manufacturing, textile & garment, tourism & hospitality, trade/commerce of locally produced goods, transport and logistics.
Small enterprises should demonstrate an employee size of six to 30 and/or annual sales between GHS 180,000 and GHS 7.2Million, while medium enterprises should demonstrate an employee size of 31 to 100 and annual sales between GHS 7.2M and GHS 21.6M.
The GEA has already implemented three successful interventions under the Ghana Economic Transformation (GET) Project, including phases 1 and 2 of the COVID-19 Response Grant Programme and this current SME High Growth programme.
Over GHS 65 million has been disbursed/committed to more than 800 SMEs between September 2021 to December 2022, with almost 40% of the funding going to women-owned enterprises at a value of more than GHS 23 million. Based on an online survey conducted in March 2022, the scheme has achieved over 90% satisfaction rate. The application process is transparent and fast, and 3,195 jobs have been sustained by 311 firms supported with grants.
Launching the programme, Nana Ama Dokua Asiamah-Adjei, Deputy Minister for Trade and Industry, said the SME Growth Grant Programme, an initiative supported by the World Bank, is being implemented by GEA under the Ghana Economic Transformation (GET) Project. The programme aims to address the many challenges faced by SMEs because of the Covid-19 pandemic and enhance the productivity and competitiveness of high-growth export companies and viable firms owned by the vulnerable, such as women-owned enterprises, persons with disabilities, and the youth.
The second phase of the nationwide Grant Programme being launched this day will focus only on eligible SMEs in priority sectors that are still negatively affected by the COVID-19 crisis but have also shown positive signs of resilience to spur growth.
The main objective is to provide these SMEs with liquidity to enable them to readjust and bounce back to profitable businesses that contribute meaningfully to Ghana’s overall economic growth.
The Minister reiterated the Government’s commitment to fully implement all initiatives under the Ghana Economic Transformation Project