Alan Kyerematen
THE MINISTER of Trade and Industry, Alan Kyerematen, has tasked the newly inaugurated board members of the Ghana Enterprises Agency (GEA) to seek the interest and active participation of micro, small and medium-scale enterprises in all economic programmes such as the Africa Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), Ghana- EU Interim Partnership Agreement and the World Bank’s Ghana Economic Transformation Programme.
Speaking at a ceremony in Accra on Tuesday, the minister described the inauguration of members as a very critical moment due to the expansion of the mandate and setting of new objectives for the organisation that had been transformed from the National Board Small Scale Industries (NBSSI) to GEA.
The initiation of a new MSME policy, coupled with the industrial transformation agenda which has a strategic objective of turning Ghana into a manufacturing hub in the region, sets a new paradigm for the board members to work towards ensuring that MSMEs are at the centre of the agenda.
“You cannot talk about industrial transformation without putting the MSMEs at the centre of that transformation especially when they make up 90 per cent of all enterprises in the country,” he noted.
He therefore urged the members to be guided by the10-point industrial agenda, five of which supports the growth of MSMEs.
Such components include the 1D1F, Development of SMEs, enhancing collaboration between large scale and small-scale businesses through industrial sub-contracting, export development and improving the domestic retail market infrastructure.
The relevance of the MSMEs, he continued, came to bear during the pandemic where such businesses were at the forefront of supplying the items needed to fight the disease.
“COVID-19 has taught us many lessons. But one of the painful lessons is that, with the disruption in global supply chain, unless we take up the responsibility of producing food for ourselves, the things that we use and eat in this country, there will come a time when our shelves will be empty,” he said.
The inaugurated 11-member board included Sylvester Tetteh as chairperson; Kosi Yankey-Ayeh as Chief Executive Officer; Seth Twum-Akwaboah, Alhaji Saeed Bawah Moomen, Nana Sammy Osei-Bonsu and Alexander Kwame Boadi as members.
Other members are Nana Dokua Asiamah-Adjei, Dr. Alphonse Kumaza, Paulina Dakua Addy, Ama Gyamfuah Abrefa and Rowena Fafa Amematekpor.
BY Issah Mohammed