Small-Scale industries to benefit from four million DM grant
Nsoatreman Rural Bank donates region's anniversary
Small-Scale industries to benefit from four million DM grant
Kumasi (Greater Accra) 26 Oct. '99
The governments of Ghana and Germany have agreed to grant four million Deutsche Marks to small-scale entrepreneurs under the small and micro-enterprises promotion fund.
The Ghana government will contribute two million Deutsche Marks while the German Government will cater for the remaining amount.
The Reverend S. K. Fugah, National President of the Association of Small-Scale Industries (ASSI), said this in Kumasi on Sunday when he briefed the GNA on the impact of external assistance and interventions on the quality of small-scale industrial products.
The funds will be channeled through the National Board for Small-Scale Industries (NBSSI) for disbursement to the beneficiary industries.
Rev. Fugah mentioned the establishment of industrial estates and various training schemes as some of the interventions that have contributed significantly to the growth of the sector.
This notwithstanding, the small-scale industrial sector has also encountered problems like the absence of a policy that will ensure that a percentage of loanable funds in the financial institutions are allocated solely to small-scale concerns.
Rev. Fugah, therefore, appealed to the government to consider evolving a policy guideline on loanable funds to small-scale industrial concerns.
It must also grant tax holidays to new entrants into the sector.
Rev. Fugah said in the coming years, the ASSI plans to work much harder for the creation of credit unions and guarantee schemes at all levels.
GRi../