400 SMEs get GH¢28 million from World Bank

Funds available for SMEs in tourism, Pierre Laporte

We are ready to support you technically, World Bank to SMEs

World Bank commits to supporting Ghanaian SMEs

World Bank Country Director, Pierre Laporte, has disclosed that an amount of GH¢28 million in grant has been pumped into 400 Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) in Ghana to help them recover from the shocks of the global coronavirus pandemic.

The grant was disbursed to these beneficiaries between November 2021 to January this year by the Ghana Enterprises Agency (GEA).

Mr Pierre Larporte, while speaking at the 7th IFEJ-Flamingo Awards for Business and Financial Journalism in Accra on Friday, February 25, 2022, noted that the World Bank is available to assist these SMEs technically to improve their productivity.

This, he explained will assist these SMEs create more jobs and give employment opportunities to the teeming unemployed youth in the country.

"We have been working closely with the Ghana Enterprises Agency as part of the Ghana Economic Transformation Project...Additional World Bank financing will also be available for technical assistance and grants to SMEs with high growth potential to improve their productivity and support job creation,” he said.

“We are doing a lot to support firms at the ground level, so to speak. I want to highlight the importance of macroeconomic stability for growth and investment. I think this is now the challenge of the day and the key to Ghana’s ability to emerge stronger from the crisis and in the years to come,” Larporte stated.

He also noted that money has been made available to support SMEs in the tourism sector under Tourism Development Project.

Since the outbreak of coronavirus, several businesses collapsed while others were stumbling due to their inability to pump capital injection into their businesses.

Government rolled out some policies to disburse funds to some traders to help them stay in business.

Other organizations, including the World Bank have supported government and businesses financially.