Delegates at the conference on small business ecosystems have called on small and medium enterprises (SMEs) to build strong collaborative efforts and adopt technological know-how to stay competitive in the market and unlock their potential into global giants.
They maintained that with the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic impacting SMEs in unprecedented ways, collaborations and digitalisation emerged as a knight in shining armour for small businesses’ survival.
Consequently, the participants said SMEs needed to spread their wings and open their minds to the international market.
The participants made the call at the opening of the Annual West Africa Regional Conference by the Aspen Institute of Development Entrepreneurs (ANDE) in Accra on July 19.
Themed “Accelerating Small and Growing Business Growth in Africa,” the two-day (July 19-20) conference which hosted 200 participants seeks to propel entrepreneurship in developing economies and promotes networking for more robust entrepreneurial ecosystems in Africa.
It was made up of an interactive agenda with sessions focused on cross-cutting sector issues such as gender equality, climate and environmental action, employment, and economic growth.
Professional speakers including Group Head Business at Access Bank Ghana, Kafui Bimpe, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of National Entrepreneurship & Innovation Programme (NEIP), Kofi Ofosu Nkansah, General Manager of Venture Capital Trust Fund, Hamdiya Ismaila, Director of Enterprise Development Centre of Pan-Atlantic University, Nigeria, Peter Bamkole and Deputy CEO of Development Bank of Ghana (DBG), Michael Mensah Baah.
Mr Bamkole stated that although the competition was a recognised part of doing business which could drive small business owners to do better and achieve more yet, this does not mean entrepreneurs needed to work exclusively on their own.
He said it could be very useful for an SME to partner with other small businesses for mutual success.
“Some of the hindrances to the survival of SMEs in Africa is the lack of access to market, infrastructure, information and technology,” he said.
He said SMEs must begin to adopt technology or digitalisation of their operations from supply, delivery and after-sales services.
He said there was also the need for small businesses to collaborate and focus on their core area to become competitive.
Corroborating the views of the director, Ms Ismaila said SMEs needed to be transparent, collaboration and an open mind to overcome the challenges impacting on their growth.
“I think SMEs in the country still lack information on where to access information.
“We need to ensure that there is key information available for SMEs to access. We also need to show these SMEs that entities such as the Ghana Enterprises Agency (GEA) were established to support their needs and help them to be profitable,” she said.
She stated that SMEs should be able to assess their businesses and seek advice on the kind of funding which was appropriate for them.
“At Venture Capital Trust Fund, we provide equity type funding which is long-term because we provide funds to startups for them to grow,” she said.
Source: Alfred Ankrah
