ProcCredit opens business centre

Published in the Daily Graphic on 19/02/2010, pg 33


Story: Matilda Attram
ProCredit Ghana Limited, a non-bank financial institution, has opened a new business centre in Accra to advance credit to small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in the country.
The centre, which is the second of its kind to be established in the capital, is to enable entrepreneurs to acquire the necessary information and financial assistance that will help them manage and expand their businesses.
At the inauguration ceremony, the Managing Director of ProCredit Ghana Limited, Ms Edwige Takassi, stated that SMEs contributed immensely to the growth of the nation but lacked the needed support to improve on their businesses.
She said SMEs, apart from providing profit for individuals, also provided employment in the country, adding, "Their development boosts economic development. They are the engine of Ghana's economy."
She stated that although there were financial institutions that assisted SMEs, the country continued to have a gap in its economic growth due to the little assistance given to the sector.
"Savings and loans companies generally focus on micro-finance activities, while commercial banks usually prefer big and already well-established corporate clients," she stated.
Ms Takassi pointed out that ProCredit was a determined non-bank financial institution which focused on micro and agro lending to help grow SMEs in the country.
"ProCredit started increasing its attention to SMEs a year ago. We strive to provide responsible products and services with transparent pricing for all," she added.
The Vice President of the Association of Ghana Industries (AGI), Mr Samuel Appenteng, called for policies to promote access to finance by SMEs to enable them to grow their businesses.
He said access to loans, inadequate planning processes, management efficiency-related problems and lack of collateral had been the major challenges facing SMEs in the country.
"Because of these problems, SMEs are considered a high risk sector and for that reason financial institutions impose a higher cost of credit on the few successful ones in the form of higher interest rates,” he said.
He called on financial institutions to examine their interest levels, as well as implement structures that would reduce the cost of borrowing in the country to enable SMEs to have access to finance to improve their businesses.
Mr Appenteng commended the management of ProCredit for its initiative, adding, “I believe the objective is to give something extra, go beyond the strict credit delivery to a more proactive financial service that will build the capacities of SMEs."
He urged entrepreneurs to organise and manage their businesses efficiently in order to improve their access to credit and assured ProCredit of the AGI's support in its initiative.