Accra, Ghana//-MTN Ghana today opened a three-day SME fair in Accra to provide support to SMEs and create a platform for SMEs to showcase their products and services.
The event held outside the Accra Mall area which is partnered by the Association of Ghana Industries to commemorate the MTN SME month would end on Sunday 7, July 2024.
Products on display at the Accra Mall fair included clothes, beads, beauty and cosmetic products, fruit juice, food beverages like cocoa drinks, and cereal products. Companies like FNBank, Prudential Insurance, and MTN were also at the SME fair to offer their services to SMEs and the public.
Opening the fair, Senior Manager of SME Sales at MTN Ghana, Saddick Abubakari said a similar fair was held last year 2023 which was the maiden edition.
“This year is the second year, so the second edition of the MTN SME Fair. We are welcoming all of you here and we so much appreciate you and your businesses. We did capacity building for some of the SME owners by taking them through financial literacy which included insurance, accessing for funds, and using digital solutions to able to push your businesses to a greater height”, he said.
Mr Abubakari noted that the SMEs were also here to assemble and display their products for potential buyers and for good networking which is very important in business. He urged the SME operators to take advantage of the three-day fair to market themselves and their products and services to the world.
Mr Abubakari further encouraged them to use the fair to sign on to MTN’s business solutions for SMEs to maximise their profits.
The Greater Accra Regional Chairman of the Association of Ghana Industries (AGI), Tsonam Akpeloo who toured all stands at the fair expressed gratitude to MTN Ghana for partnering with the Greater Accra Region AGI to roll out the fair.
According to him, it has been established that SMEs constitute a significant and critical component towards the growth journey of the country.
“So, it is important to always create the avenue for SMEs to showcase their product and services to get many more people to patronise them. So, for us, this is a strategic move to ensure that everybody in the country has together to appreciate the work of our small businesses and together we support them”, he said.
“Another critical point is that no nation developed without holding its businesses and industries. So, we are always eager to encourage our citizens to buy made-in-Ghana. Almost all the products displayed at the fair are made by Ghanaians. It is only when we patronise them that we can create jobs for the many who are unemployed”.
Some SMEs who participated in the fair in an interview thanked MTN for bringing relevant business and digital solutions to the doorsteps of entrepreneurs and business owners to help grow and scale their businesses.
Other activities undertaken during the month included a fair for SMEs in Kumasi, market storms, pop shops, training, focus group discussions, customer appreciation programs, and “Our Women Roadshows” which sought to emphasise female businesses.
So, it was the opportunity to connect with their female entrepreneurs to train and give them skills to build and formalise their businesses and take them to the next level.
The rationale behind the SME month is to offer support to SMEs with relevant digital tools to promote their businesses and create a conducive environment for SMEs to access world-class solutions at affordable costs. MTN, over the years, has strategically invested in the growth of the SME ecosystem in diverse ways.
