Accra, Ghana//-The Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of MTN Ghana, Stephen Blewett today called on businesses to continue to work together using technological advancement, partnerships, and innovations to create a more inclusive financial landscape in the country.
This he believes will help mitigate credit risk, improve access to finance, and empower small and medium enterprises (SMEs) to fuel Ghana’s social economic growth and development.
Mr Blewett made this call when he opened the 2024 MTN Business Executive Breakfast Series in Accra.
He noted that bridging the credit risk gap for SMEs in Ghana is the role of all the key ecosystem stakeholders and partners.
Speaking on the topic: ‘Bridging the Credit Risk Gap for SMEs in Ghana’, the CEO said: “With the growing interest in the fintech space and need for more innovative financial solutions among consumers, there is the need for more collaboration among stakeholders which will unlock pathways and opportunities in Ghana’s credit market”.
Mr Blewett was delighted to add that despite barriers in the country’s SME sector, “Ghana is on the verge of potential credit revolution propelled by promising fintech ecosystem”.
According to him, over the years, Mobile Money Limited, MTN Ghana subsidiary responsible for mobile financial services, has played an integral role in accelerating financial inclusion with innovative mobile and digital financial solutions and partnerships in the country.
“Since 2017 and 2018, we have been able to provide tailed mobile credit solutions for the Ghanaian market with strategic partnerships”.
So, as you participate in the session, I hope that this esteemed panel will highlight the critical role that SMEs play in the socio-economic development of Ghana, and the key need to bridge the credit risk gap within your sector, he told the participants.
“We also need to look at the opportunities mobile money and other services play in working to mitigate credit risk and enhance financial inclusion for SMEs in Ghana.
I believe this panel will also talk about partnerships, and collaborations with banks, micro-finance institutions and other fintech companies that can create a robust ecosystem for SME financing in our country Ghana”.
Mr Blewett observed that access to credit is a significant challenge for SMEs and it is important to use forums like this to address the issue and work towards finding solutions together for the sector.
It is important to consider the critical role SMEs play in the country’s social and economic development.
Looking at the overview of Ghana’s SME sector and across the continent, the backbone of Africa’s economy, that sector alone contributes 40% of Africa’s GDP, according to him.
Despite its significant contribution, the World Bank indicated that about 40% of SMEs in Sub-Saharan Africa are still struggling to access finance for their operations.
Access to finance is a significant constraint in their operations, the bank noted in several reports.
Micro enterprises which constitute 80% of these SMEs in the sector received only 2% of the total credit available with large corporations account 4% of the business population securing 60% of the total credit.
One major factor that has resulted in this imbalance is Ghana’s high interest rates as compared to other key African economies.
During a panel discussion, the CEO of MobileMoney Limited, Shaibu Haruna; Chief Enterprise Business Officer of MTN Ghana, Madam Angel Mensah-Poku; CEO of Ghana Enterprises Agency, Mrs Kosi Kankey-Ayeh; and CEO of AS Farms, Kwame Anim-Somuah agreed that value chain challenges in the SME sector should be addressed to unlock more funding to players in the sector.
