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Business Development Services helps
enterprises
Accra, Sept. 18, Ghanadot/GNA - The Business Development
Services (BDS) Fund has within the last five months
supported 52 Micro Small and Medium Scale Enterprises (MSMEs)
with funds totalling 650,000 dollars to enhance their
operations.
The fund, which begins operations in May this year, was set
up as part of the MSMEs project, to assist with matching
funds to improve on the ability of the small scale business
to get expert advice from consultants to improve their
operations.
Currently, the value of the fund stands at 6.5 million
dollars. Out of this, 4.5 million is earmarked for MSMEs and
the remaining two million dollars for banks.
BDS Fund intends supporting up to 400 companies and
associations with grants to enable them to become more
competitive in the local and international market place and
enhance their access to loans.
The Ghana Micro, Small and Medium Enterprise Project aims to
enhance the competitive and employment levels of Ghanaian
MSMEs through supporting entrepreneurship development and
developing and strengthening the capacity of local
intermediaries to deliver financial and non-financial
services to MSMEs as well as building the capacity of MSMEs
to make productive use of these services.
MSMEs account for 90% of registered businesses in the
country and account for the bulk of private sector
employment.
Speaking at a seminar for consultants, who offered services
to SMEs, Mr Francis Kusi, Coordinator of the Micro Small
Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) project, said the rate of
collapse of SMEs in Ghana was so high because of inadequate
funding to enable them to get expert advice in the running
of their businesses.
He said in most cases MSMEs were unable to outsource
expertise or get those that they did not have because they
lacked the resources to do so.
Mr Kusi, therefore, appealed to Service providers to lend
their support to the sector to speed up the rate of economic
development.
He appealed to consultants to assist their clients (SMEs) to
write good proposals in order to win contracts or projects
for their clients to achieve the aim of accelerating the
development and growth of the sector.
Mr Alexis Fritz Kwabena Aning, Fund Manger of BDS, said the
Fund sought to support MSMEs in businesses such as agric,
textiles, furniture, horticulture all in either the public
or private sector as well as NGOs through a matching grant
scheme.
He added that the BDS Fund would assist eligible financial
institutions and intermediaries to develop and make
available additional financial instruments to MSMEs.
Mr Ato Simpson, a specialist at BDS, briefed the
participants on the mode, stages and procedures in applying
for the funds.
He added that grant applications will be accepted from
training institutions, business membership, organisations,
consultants, NGOs and private Ghanaian and foreign-owned
firms after being registered with the BDS Fund.
BDS are providers of business support and advisory services
to businesses in terms of technical and professional
services.
GNA
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