By Sandra Agyeiwaa OTOO
The Director of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) Advisory Unit at the Office of the President, Dr. Eugene Owusu, has underscored the crucial need for innovative solutions to improve access to financing for micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs).
He made this statement during the launch of the Société Générale (SG) Women Club, an initiative organised by Société Générale Ghana in partnership with the African Guarantee Fund (AGF).
The club aims to address the specific needs of female entrepreneurs by identifying their unique challenges and opportunities, offering tailored solutions to support their growth and success.
The SG Women Club also seeks to provide financial assistance of up to GH₵1,000,000 with a 12-month repayment period for women-owned enterprises. Members enjoy exclusive benefits such as competitive interest rates, reduced Commission On Turnover (COT) charges, Visa card privileges and comprehensive banking solutions.
To qualify, businesses must have at least 51 percent female ownership.
“We urgently need to find innovative ways of enhancing access to and unlocking capital for MSMEs. Lack of access to capital has been a perennial challenge to the growth of the MSME sector and in particular, for start-up businesses. We must take the bull by the horn and deal with this challenge once and for all,” noted Dr. Eugene Owusu, Director of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) Advisory Unit at the Office of the President.
“A number of financial institutions still consider MSMEs unattractive and risky to do business with. Yes, many MSMEs suffer from low financial management skills and a lack of proper documentation to support loan and investment applications, but this belies the significant opportunities and returns within the sector. Even for those MSMEs that are investment ready, they are held back by high interest rates,” added Dr. Eugene Owusu, Director of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) Advisory Unit at the Office of the President.
According to Mr. Owusu, MSMEs contribute significantly to employment and wealth generation, employing over 60 percent of the total workforce.
Against this backdrop, he stated that MSMEs are crucial to the SDG agenda; and that the country’s chances of achieving the SDGs are closely tied to the performance of the MSMEs sector.
“Despite the thriving entrepreneurship culture and the buoyant MSME ecosystem, along with relative improvements in the business environment, significant constraints still hinder the sector from fully unleashing its potential. Notable among these are the weak institutional and regulatory framework, the high cost of doing business, weak value chain integration and interaction, and limited access to credit and long-term business development services,” stated Dr. Owusu
On his part, the Managing Director of Société Générale, Hakim Ouzzani, emphasised the pivotal role women play in society and highlighted the stark reality of their exclusion from essential financial services, despite their significant contributions.
According to him, the programme intends to overcome Ghana’s financial gender gap by delivering specialised financial solutions to meet the diverse needs of women across the country, including corporate professionals, aspiring entrepreneurs and innovative young minds.
“As a society, women represent not just half of the population, but they form the cornerstone of our families, communities and economy. However, despite their invaluable contributions, a stark reality persists – many women are excluded from accessing essential financial services. This exclusion not only stifles individual potential but also hampers the growth and prosperity of our nation as a whole,” stated Hakim Ouzzani, Managing Director of Société Générale.
Mr. Ouzzani also reiterated Société Générale’s commitment to harnessing the transformative potential of finance to create opportunities and drive equitable growth.
He stated that through focused activities, tailored packages and customised banking solutions, SG Ghana will empower women to take control of their financial futures, thereby unlocking their full potential and fostering a more successful and inclusive society for all.
On his part, Germain Dodor, the Head of Region and Senior Business Development Officer of African Guarantee Fund (AGF), reiterated his organisation’s commitment to driving gender equality and women’s empowerment. He emphasised that initiatives like the Affirmative Finance Action for Women in Africa (AFAWA) aim to close the financing gap for women-owned enterprises, thereby fostering economic growth and social development across the continent.
“At African Guarantee Fund, we are committed to the drive for gender equality and women’s empowerment. We firmly believe that empowering women economically is not only a moral imperative but also a strategic investment for our continent’s future,” he stated. “In line with this, AGF is proud to be implementing the Affirmative Finance Action for Women in Africa (AFAWA) initiative, supported by the African Development Bank and an integral part of today’s launch. AFAWA aims to bridge the financing gap for women-owned businesses, supporting them through three key pillars: access to finance, technical assistance and an enabling environment,” he added.
Mr. Dodor highlighted research suggesting an estimated US$42billion financial deficit for women in Africa and addressed the misconception that women are unsuitable for loans due to a lack of collateral and financial expertise. He underlined his organisation’s commitment to providing significant support to Société Générale, enabling them to extend more loans to women-owned businesses.
Margaret Boateng Sekyere, the Board Chair of Société Générale Ghana, stated: “The SG Women’s Club heralds a changing landscape for women in Ghana. Women entrepreneurs, businessowners and innovators will no longer list financing as a hurdle to achieving their dreams; and we, at SG Ghana, are dedicated to reaching as many eligible women as possible. If we [women] are at the forefront of our economic revolution, we are arming ourselves with the arsenal to triumph”.
In a speech read on her behalf, Elsie Addo Awadzi, the 2nd Deputy Governor of the Bank of Ghana, further solidified the initiative’s alignment with sustainable banking principles while applauding Société Générale’s proactive stance in promoting gender equality and financial inclusion. She urged the exploration of avenues to leverage sustainability efforts for greater impact.
“The launch of the SG Women’s product supports the Bank of Ghana’s policy initiative on sustainable banking principles, particularly principles 4 and 5, which focus on promoting gender equality and financial inclusion, respectively. I believe the launch of the SG Women’s product is a key initiative toward ensuring compliance with Principles 4 and 5, and I would like to applaud SG,” she stated. She encouraged the bank to explore the possibility of developing other products that serve other vulnerable segments of the market.
“I would like to encourage SG to leverage their sustainability efforts to attract green funds to support their lending activities. For example, the Green Climate Fund (GCF) has allocated US$1.26billion for climate action in developing countries, and I would like to encourage SG to get accredited by the GCF to take advantage of the funding opportunities it offers,” Madam Awadzi stated.
