Selected Small and Medium-scale Entrepreneurs in the Ashanti region have been equipped with skills to help expand their businesses. 

Ten SMEs entrepreneurs benefitted from the six-month business skills training.

The GrEEn incubation project, was organized by SNV Ghana for entrepreneurs in Agriculture, Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency, and Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH) sectors. 

The project, under the theme, “Boosting Green Employment and Enterprise Opportunities in Ghana” hopes to bolster start-ups across the country. 

Senior Incubation and Acceleration Advisor of the GrEEn Project, Genevieve Parker-Twum, revealed that most of the participating SMEs have seen drastic improvements in their enterprises. 

“We’ve exposed them to potential customers and helped them find out what exactly investors are looking for and how they can prepare themselves to be able to access investment. 

“We‘ve also helped them expand their market. It’s difficult to find opportunities that help start-ups to grow when they find themselves in their small corner. So, we’ve helped them to find market opportunities.

“Some of them have explored, they’ve been able to expand. And, some are even exporting now. Some have gotten institutional supplies now. 

“They’re all doing well. We hope these SMEs continue to build their businesses to become stronger and more environmentally focused businesses that would make impact in the societies they find themselves and create jobs,” she said.

The training programme funded by the European Union, comprised sessions with Recycle Up Ghana, Kumasi Hive, Women’s Haven, and HapaSpace. 

The entrepreneurs were taken through business formalization, resource acquisition, business plan writing to access funds and grants, employability skills, product planting and development skills.

The incubation programme linked participating SMEs to profitable markets and innovative financing, provided funds for resource procurement, and facilitated them to attract investors. 

One of the outstanding SME awardees, Foster Osae, indicated that the training programme has had a tremendous impact on his start-up business. 

“We were exposed to mentorship sessions during the 6-month training. Through the mentorship, I’ve been able to network with different businesses and entrepreneurs. This has widened my market. 

“The training also provided me with services like an office space. I now have an office to accommodate my partners who may visit my company from any destination,” he said.