Partnerships are essential for the creation of a robust SME ecosystem - MTN Ghana CEO

Executives of MTN Ghana have reiterated the company's commitment to supporting the growth of local SMEs in Ghana at the recent MTN Ghana Business Executive Breakfast held under the theme "Bridging the Credit Risk Gap for SMEs in Ghana."

In his keynote address, Mr. Stephen Blewett, Chief Executive Officer of MTN Ghana, emphasized the importance of supporting SMEs in accessing funds through strategic partnerships.

He stated that fostering partnerships with banks, microfinance institutions, and FinTech companies is essential to creating a robust ecosystem for SME financing. Collaborative efforts can lead to the development of innovative financial products and services specifically designed to meet the needs of SMEs.

Shaibu Haruna, Chief Executive Officer of MobileMoney Ltd shared the company's plans to develop digital solutions to support SME transactions and enhance financial inclusion through digital payment channels. He mentioned MobileMoney transactions as one of the digital footprints that could help profile customers and enable tailor-made solutions to address specific customer needs regarding access to credit.

He cited access to Qwikloan as one source of credit that has been enabled by technology, thereby eliminating bureaucracy and credit risk issues, while admitting that there may be some defaulters.

"We have learned our lessons from Microcredit, and we are ready to provide a basic foundation for financial players to support the ecosystem. We need to evaluate how we use digital footprints to address issues around risk and progressively provide lending for SMEs. By leveraging digital technology, we can create a more inclusive lending ecosystem that supports the growth of SMEs in Ghana," said Mr. Shaibu Haruna.

Angela Mensah-Opoku, Chief Enterprise Business Officer of MTN, reiterated the company's commitment to facilitating the development of small and medium enterprises through enhanced financial accessibility and technological empowerment.

Highlighting the importance of technology in addressing the challenge of creditworthiness for businesses to drive growth, she emphasized that technology provides a platform that helps standardize business processes and avoid paper processing.

"Digital disruption also involves changing what we believe are the standards for financial inclusion; using technology is an authentic way to go," she added. She stated, "MTN is open to collaboration across the SME value chains. We must work together to support informal SMEs seeking access to working capital for growth. Information asymmetry is a big challenge for them, and we need to be more inclusive. Digital insights and access to data will change the requirements for lending."

The MTN Executive Breakfast Meeting brought together key stakeholders to explore solutions to bridge the credit risk gap for SMEs. The event highlighted the importance of SMEs to Ghana's economy and the need for support.