Some 150 entrepreneurs, including members of the Dressmakers and Tailoring Associations, business groups and sole proprietors, have benefited from MTN Ghana’s SME Business Clinic in Takoradi in the Western Region.
The two-day programme, held on the theme: “Setting up your business for growth”, is part of MTN’s flagship SME Accelerate Programme to build SMEs capacity in areas such as financial inclusion to boost the growth and competitiveness of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs).
Mr. Abubakari Sidick, Senior Manager for SME Sales at MTN, said SMEs were not taking advantage of digital tools to grow their businesses, adding “For any SME in this country to be where it ought to be, there must be digital adoption and transformation and that is the essence of this clinic we are organizing.”
The SME Business Clinic has been held in Kumasi, Tamale and Accra for entrepreneurs to learn, share experiences and explore digital solutions that could accelerate their operations.
The initiative, he said, also formed part of MTN’s long-term agenda to drive innovation, competitiveness and sustainability within the SME sector.
He said MTN had partnered with organizations such as SME GrowAfrica (SMEGA) and Sanlam Alliance to ensure continuity and sustainability of the programme.
After the training, SMEGA would work with selected SMEs through structured programmes that prepared them for opportunities both locally and internationally.
“We don’t end the programme here. We collect participants’ contacts to monitor implementation, and those who successfully apply what had been taught are supported with additional opportunities,” Mr. Abubakari-Sidick said.
Although MTN did not directly provide capital to SMEs, the company and its partners supported entrepreneurs in preparing bankable business plans, making them eligible to access funding from financial institutions.
Meanwhile, MTN’s Mobile Money platform offered six different loan products, including quick loans, that SMEs could conveniently access to support their operations.