Over US$158 million has been unlocked in private capital for 2,846 agribusinesses under the USAID Financing Ghanaian Agriculture Project (USAID FinGAP).

Forty (40) per cent of these enterprises are women-led. The five-year project aims to improve financing and investment in agribusinesses operating in the maize, soy, and rice value chains in the Northern Regions.

A press statement signed by Rick Dvorvin, Chief of Party, USAID FinGAP, said it had brought benefits to 162,000 smallholder farmers.

The statement came at the end of a workshop jointly organized by the Project and the Ghana Stock Exchange (GSE) on “Leveraging the capital market to drive business growth for enhanced economic development” in Takoradi.

This brought together more than 100 participants from the Ghana National Chamber of Commerce and Industry, the Association of Ghana Industries, the Federation of Association of Ghanaian Exporters, the Institute of Financial and Economic Journalists (IFEJ), and the Kosmos Energy Innovation Centre.

The goal was to discuss sources of alternative financing and opportunities for Ghanaian businesses.

There were presentations on the benefits of listing securities on the GSE, Ghana Alternative Market (GAX) and Ghana Fixed Income Market (GFIM). These focused mainly on the pre-conditions for listing and raising funds from the capital market.

The high point of the event was the registration of businesses interested in listing securities on the capital market.”

The statement said the USAID FinGAD was the United States (US) Government’s global hunger and food security initiative - to increase access to finance by agribusinesses and smallholder farmers.

It added that through this there would be improved agricultural productivity, food security, and inclusive economic growth.

The statement said USAID FinGAP was pursuing the development of alternative sources of financing for agribusinesses through the listing of debt or equity securities on the GFIM and GAX.