Increased capitalisation of Venture Capital Trust Fund critical for SMEs growth – AGI

Chief Executive Officer of the Association of Ghana Industries (AGI), Seth Twum Akwaboah, is advocating for increased capitalisation of the Venture Capital Trust Fund to boost Small and Medium Scale Enterprises growth in Ghana.

The VCTF, which is backed by an Act of Parliament (VCTF Act 2004 (Act 680) deploys funds to promote venture capital financing to create a vibrant and well-structured venture capital industry with investments in various sectors which will result in wealth and job creation.

Speaking with journalists on the sidelines of a SME Roundtable to discuss Venture Capital as an alternative Finance Source for SME Growth, the AGI CEO said a recapitalisation of the VCTF is necessary to ensure that the right mechanisms are in place to allow businesses to access the needed support for their growth.

“If you look at the number of businesses that are registered in Ghana and their growth trajectory, its huge…Today we have the Africa Continental Free Trade Agreement which provides the opportunity of exporting to other African markets and we must take advantage of this to recapitalize to conduct big ticket business to operate in a commercial and competitive manner,” the AGI CEO stressed on September 13.

He continued,“…We need to recapitalize the Venture Capital Fund by putting in more money to allow for more disbursement to SMEs and businesses while putting in the needed mechanisms for businesses to gain access to funding”.

He, however called on businesses and SMEs in the country to play the significant role of tackling the needed steps to access the funds.

“Governance, management, transparency, record keeping and the other necessary issues which are essential elements of business operations and principles must be tackled by the SMEs’ to secure the needed funding from the VCTF,” he pointed.

The AGI CEO further called for technical support for particularly new SMEs in order to boost their in-depth knowledge of business operations to propel their growth.

MA/NOQ