Staff of GEA and BOI in a group photograph
A DELEGATION from Nigeria’s Bank of Industry (BOI), a development financing institution, has paid a courtesy call on the Ghana Enterprises Agency (GEA) to get first-hand information on the implementation of the Coronavirus Alleviation Programme Business Support Scheme (CAPBuSS).
The visit also afforded both entities the opportunity to start a relationship and share ideas on ways to enhance and expand operations of MSMEs in both countries. It will also allow the two organisations to take advantage of the African Continental Free Trade Agreement (AfCFTA) and strengthen bilateral trade between MSMEs of both countries.
A plan was devised to create a link between MSMEs in both countries to learn from each other or collaborate, through an intra-African trade show.
The team, led by Senior Analyst – Internal Operations, Growth and Partnerships Micro Enterprises, Nwosu Nnaemeka, also congratulated the leadership of GEA for the hard work in transforming the National Board for Small Scale Industries (NBSSI) to the GEA which has a mandate reflective of modern time.
The bank, which was wholly-owned by the Federal Government of Nigeria, he said, was reconstructed in 2001 out of the Nigerian Industrial Development Bank (NIDB) Limited, which was incorporated in 1964.
He said that the bank’s mandate was to transform Nigeria’s industrial sector by providing financial and advisory support for the establishment of large, medium and small projects/enterprises and the expansion, diversification, rehabilitation and modernisation of existing enterprises.
“We target sub-sectors include agro-processing, solid minerals, information technology, oil and gas and creative industry. As a bank, it funds the equipment needs of businesses in the production or manufacturing sector,” he said.
Executive Director of GEA, Kosi Yankey-Ayeh for her part disclosed that the GEA has established the largest footprint of any agency or organisation in Ghana as it worked with entrepreneurs and women led MSME development.
This she said was possible with operationalisation of 190 Business Advisory Centres (BAC) and 37 Business Resource Centres (BRCs) across Ghana.
She also mentioned that the agency has over the last four years been able t support over 700,000 businesses while offered over GH¢800 million credit and grant facilities to MSMEs through projects and programmes.
These programmes she mentioned to include, CAPBuSS, Mastercard Foundation Covid-19 Resilience and Recovery Program (Nkosuo Programme), Mastercard Foundation Young Africa Works, SME Innovation and Digitalisation Support Scheme, among others.