Danish gov’t ready to partner Ghanaian businesses

The Danish government will continue to build partnerships with Ghanaian businesses to enable them become manufacturing giants, Tove Degnbol, Danish Ambassador to Ghana said on Thursday.

Speaking at the 25 anniversary celebrations of the Margins Group, an Identity Security and Associated Transactions Company, Ms Degnbol said the private sector was key to accelerating the country's economic development and need to be supported.

The margins group although, a private sector player, has put Ghana on the world map in the area of printing of Identification Cards.

The event was also used to unveil a plaque for Ashie Driveway within the premises of Margins Group in honour of Mr Ashie who reposed confidence in the vision of the company and awarded them the first international contract and this marked a turning point in the growth of the company.

The Ambassador said the story of the Margins Group should be an inspiration to other Ghanaian companies that with hard work, commitment and dedication they could also achieve their set goals and objectives.

She said the outlook for the company was very bright as there was a huge demand for hi-tech integrated solutions globally.

She pledged her support to the Margins Group to assist the company to meet its goal of being the first and the only full service Ghanaian-owned company certified in card and security printing in sub-Saharan Africa.

The Margins Group today is unsurpassed in the West African sub-region in the area of the production of intelligent cards operations which are dependent on modern sophisticated machinery.

It has been receiving direct and indirect support from the Danish Government since 1999.

Under the then Private Sector Development Project, Danida assisted with the start-up of the company by contributing additional funds to top up the equity investment of Danish and Ghanaian partners in a start-up company known as Margins ID Group.

Since then, various types of financing and grants have been made available at various stages of the growth of the Group and its subsidiary, by the Danish Government and its agencies.

Mr Moses Baiden Jnr, Executive Chairman, Margins Group, said after 25 years of hard work the company which he started with only 100 dollars had grown to be a trail blazer in Ghana.

The company, he recalled, started as a small business in his father’s house but has since then expanded to its present status as a leader in the area of intelligent card production and other security needs.

“The dream and thought of having a globalised identification printing company which started in way back in the Law School has come into reality,” he said.

Mr Baiden said there was the need for the country to give opportunities to young talents to fulfil their dreams.

Mr Frank Oye, Executive Director, Margins Group, announced that the Group was instituting an entrepreneurial award in Information Technology to help prop up the skills of entrepreneurs to grow their businesses.