The Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of National Entrepreneurship and Innovation Programme (NEIP), John Kumah has revealed that about 5,000 Business Start-Ups are set to benefit from Government’s GH¢50 Million funding prospects across the country.
According to Mr. Kumah, the move which forms part of the Presidential Business Support Program (PBSP) intends to provide a combined nationwide funding for start-ups likewise small businesses. Speaking at the launch of the Third Presidential Business Window in Accra, Mr. John Kumah said “We are seeking to train an average of 100 beneficiaries per district, so when you multiply that by the 260 districts that we have in the country it will be 26,000 beneficiaries. It starts tomorrow and ends on June 31.”
He added that his NEIP will assisting beneficiaries to nurture their new trades with monetary and commercial growth services. “The objective of this is also to provide 5000 beneficiaries a funding opportunity of 50 million cedis,” he explained. The NEIP Boss further explained that beneficiaries who qualify for the support will be receiving monies between GH¢5000 to GH¢50,000cedis. “Previous year we gave out high amounts, but this year we have decreased the amount beneficiaries can get but we have also increased the number of people who can benefit. These are not grants but funds that will be repaid.” The Mr. Kumah however noted that the funding which is set to be given to the beneficiaries comes with a 10% interest. “We know that all over the world nobody is able to run a business with his or her own pocket money. So we have to inculcate the culture of repayment in young entrepreneurs so that when they know how to work with borrowed funds, they will be able to work with funds from commercial banks too”
The NEIP Boss also called on Municipal and District Chief Executives across the 260 Constituency to make the programme flexible and affordable for the populace in their jurisdiction.
However, Minister for Business Development, Minister for Business Development, Dr Ibrahim Mohammed Awal said “Ghana is a youthful population. About 60% of Ghanaians are below the ages of 30. Most of them have the good ideas but do not have the collateral to go to bank for loans”
The Sector Minister further added that since the youth were face with such challenges, President Akufo-Addo deemed it fit to introduce the third face of the PBSP which seeks to build a capacity of young people, train and give them funding to scale up their own businesses.
He revealed that about 19,000 Ghanaian youths have already benefitted from the windows 1 and 2 training out of which 4,315 were provided with loans at a 10% rate.
“This training is very important because of the Covid-19 pandemic. Even before the pandemic, most start-ups were struggling around the world including Ghana. The training will bring them back into business and also give them access to markets” he added.
Background The National Entrepreneurship and Innovation Programme (NEIP) is one of Government Flagship Programmes which seeks to provide a combined nationwide funding for beneficiaries likewise small businesses. The NEIP is bent on providing business growth amenities such as Start-Up Incubators and support for beneficiaries to see them to progress and become fruitful.
Story by: Joshua Kwabena Smith
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