The President of the Association of Ghana Industries (AGI), Dr Kofi Nsiah-Poku, has stated that his organisation is lobbying the secretariat of the 24-Hour Economy to extend incentives to the agriculture and agribusiness sectors.

The move, according to Dr Nsiah-Poku, is aimed at ensuring that small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) can fully benefit from the policy to grow their businesses.

Dr Nsiah-Poku made this known when he spoke to the media at a day’s training workshop for SMEs organised by the AGI in Ho.

“AGI is working closely with the 24-hour economy to ensure that we can expand in the area of agriculture and especially agri-processing,” he said.

He explained that the association was preparing its members to become investment-ready so they could access incentives expected to be provided under the policy.

“Therefore, we want to prepare our members to be investment-ready so that when incentives are made available to them, they will have the right records to be able to access the incentives that will be provided,” he said.

Support for SMEs

On his part, the AGI Volta, Oti, and Eastern Region Chairman, Dela Gbeve, said the association was not focused only on large companies but was equally committed to helping smaller businesses grow.

“The AGI does not only belong to the big organizations but also to the small organisations, so the main intent is to groom them and make them grow up to be a future giant or global giant in the Volta Region,” he said.

He expressed hope that the training would help produce businesses capable of competing globally and put the Volta Region on the map.

“We hope to get global giants soon through this training to be in the map,” he added.

Access to credit

The AGI Vice-President responsible for Small and Medium-Scale Enterprises (SMEs), Dela Gadzanku, also said access to credit remained critical to the sustainability of businesses.

He said the workshop was one of the practical interventions being used to support SMEs to grow.

“So this workshop is one of the practical ways our president wants to grow and help our businesses grow,” he said.

Mr Gadzanku stressed that businesses needed access to credit, rather than finance alone, to remain sustainable.

“That is why we know that access to credit, not only finance, is key to our sustainability as a business. So he has championed the programme," he said.

The AGI’s training programme is intended to equip SMEs with the knowledge and capacity needed to strengthen their businesses and position them to benefit from opportunities under the 24-hour economy policy.