ENGINE supports 45 entrepreneurs in Northern region

The Enhancing Growth in New Enterprises (ENGINE), a programme implemented by Technoserve Ghana to help budding enterprises with capital, has supported 45 promising entrepreneurs from the three northern regions of Ghana with some of them receiving seed capital.

The award follows a similar ceremony done in Accra a fortnight ago to support 108 entrepreneurs from the other seven regions where 19 of them received seed capital of between £3000 and £6000.

The award ceremony, which was held in Tamale, awarded seven of the entrepreneurs, of which three were females with the same seed capital of between £3000 and £6000.

Speaking at the ceremony, the Acting Country Director of Technoserve Ghana, Samuel Baba Adongo, encouraged the entrepreneurs to put in all the necessary efforts which would enhance their capacity to expand and grow their businesses sustainably.

He further advised the budding entrepreneurs to employ ethics in their businesses in order avoid any consequences from regulatory bodies as a result of non-compliance with some requirements.

Mr. Adongo however, bemoaned the prevailing behavior among small businesses where they do not keep accurate records, which he argues, is holding back many financial institutions from advancing loans to them.

The Chairman of the programme, Augustine Adongo also challenged the entrepreneurs to take their businesses to the next level since they are bound to face challenges which would test their resilience and ability to run a successful business, adding that, passion for their business is what will help surmount the challenges they will face.

One of the awardees, Mohammed Yakubu, owner of Moyab General Metal Works, who was awarded with £6000, thanked ENGINE for their support and said he will make sure that the money will be put to a judicious use.

He recounted how he heard about ENGINE. “A client of mine who has once won the ENGINE award, came to my shop and saw my works. So he encouraged me to apply for their support so I can expand my business. I applied and now here I stand as an award winner.”

Another awardee, a poultry farmer, Sadia Wuntima Yakubu, who also had £6000 to grow her business had this to say: “Apart from the money ENGINE has given me to support my business, they have also helped me with technical and managerial knowledge which would aid me to run my business smoothly.”

Almost all the entrepreneurs however, complained of difficulties in obtaining the needed approvals for their operations, citing regulatory agencies such as the Food and Drug Authority (FDA) for unnecessary delays.

Commenting on this, Victor Parbi, Regulatory Officer for Tamale, however admitted that sometimes the delays come as a result of capacity challenges on the part of the FDA, but maintained, a major challenge they face is that most of the entrepreneurs do not have the needed knowledge about the requirements they must meet before they apply for the FDA approval.

“Because we do not have some of the laboratories in the region, sometimes we have to go to Accra and present the samples for analysis, and all these take time.”

Mr. Parbi added that his outfit, realizing the need for more education for entrepreneurs, occasionally organizes training programmes to brief them on how to organize their operations in order to qualify them for the FDA approval.