Selorm Adadevoh, MTN Ghana CEO
MTN BUSINESS, a subsidiary of a leading telecommunication company, MTN Ghana, has embarked on a campaign to create awareness on how small businesses could use technology to enhance the management of their businesses.
The small and medium-scale enterprise (SME) campaign, launched in Accra on Wednesday, intends to accelerate the digitisation of the informal sector by exposing businesses to the benefits of innovative technologies such as e-payments, business management suites, e-commerce, marketplace and Apps, among others.
Chief Executive Officer of MTN Ghana, Selorm Adadevoh, said supporting the growth of smaller businesses, known to account for 50 per cent of gross domestic product globally, should be regarded as one of the company’s lasting legacies.
“Being fully aware of the enormity of the accelerated digitalisation, we are investing a total of $149 million in network expansion and modernisation this year to meet the demand for digital services from consumers and MSMEs,” he said.
The implementation of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) agreement, he said, meant that Ghana could no longer focus on serving the immediate geographical market but rather, get competitive on the African continent.
“MSMEs must be ready to compete with companies outside Ghana and can no longer only think ‘local’ if they are to survive, but must also think ‘regional’ and ‘global’,” he added.
Activities earmarked to mark the 6-month long campaign include digital thought leadership programmes, engagement with SMEs across the country, product and services promotion as well as a digital make over where SMEs with 50 employees are entitled to packages such as a free smart phone, a free set up on hubtel e-commerce site and a free mobile money merchant set up.
The CEO of Hubtel, Alex Bram, advised businesses to go into partnerships in order to consolidate efforts at becoming competitive, build data base on clients and also reduce their over dependence on cash for transactions.
By Issah Mohammed