MTN Business Breakfast Series: Industry players commit to bridging credit gap for SMEs

Industry players and Stakeholders at the MTN Ghana Business Executive Breakfast series have made significant commitments to address the critical issue of credit gap for Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) in the country.

They highlighted the major challenge facing SMEs in accessing credits and presenting strategies to overcome these obstacles.

The Chief Executive Officer of MTN Ghana, Stephen Blewett, expressed optimism about a potential credit revolution driven by the country’s thriving fintech ecosystem, despite Ghana’s high interest rates compared to other key African economies.

Bridging the credit risk gap for SMEs in Ghana is the role of the ecosystem stakeholders and the part we all play. Despite these barriers, Ghana is on the verge of a potential credit revolution propelled by a promising tech ecosystem.”

The panellists at the event expressed their commitment to bridging the credit risk gap for SMEs through various strategies and initiatives.

Kosi Yankey-Ayeh, the Chief Executive Officer of the Ghana Enterprise Agency, pledged to strengthen associations and collaborate with technology providers to support SMEs more effectively.

She also announced the imminent launch of an SME fund aimed at bolstering financial support for SMEs through technological integration and strengthened associations.

“It’s been quite clear that the Current Minister of Finance has been speaking about the SME fund. In our act, we are supposed to set up the MSME fund there’s a direction and there’s work, which is far advanced the actually get the fund rolling by next month.”

Shaibu Haruna, the Chief Executive Officer of Mobile Money Limited, is also committed to developing digital solutions to ensure integration across the entire value chain, supporting SME transactions and enhancing financial inclusion through digital payment channels.

“It’s been quite clear that the Current Minister of Finance has been speaking about the SME fund. In our act, we are supposed to set up MSME fund there’s a direction and there’s work, which is far advanced the actually get the fund rolling by next month.”

The Chief Enterprise Business Officer at MTN, Angela Mensah-Poku, also emphasised MTN’s dedication to supporting SMEs through practical solutions.