\nSolomon Quaynor \u2014 AfDB Vice-President for Private Sector, Infrastructure and Industrial Complex <\/p>\n<\/div>\n
The African Development Bank (AfDB) has provided financial and technical support to the Development Bank Ghana (DBG) in a strategic step to promote industrialisation and private sector development in the country.<\/h2>\n
\u201cOur strategy in Ghana as the African Development Bank includes supporting Ghana\u2019s industrialisation and private sector development,\u201d the AfDB Vice-President for Private Sector, Infrastructure and Industrial Complex, Solomon Quaynor, said in an interaction with the media.<\/p>\n
Mr Quaynor explained that the African Development Bank\u2019s support was being provided in a number of ways, including the provision of a $40 million grant to the government of Ghana by way of investor\u2019s equity to DBG to contribute towards capitalising the institution.<\/p>\n
The bank will also nominate a board member to deepen the governance process of DBG, of which it has been a part of from the beginning, especially with the leadership recruitment process. <\/p>\n
\u201cThe government of Ghana has put out a \u2018Beyond Aid\u2019 vision, and this is really something that we are very supportive of, particularly in the context of post-Covid-19 recovery where we have to rapidly create jobs,\u201d the AfDB official said.<\/p>\n
Job creation<\/strong><\/p>\n Mr Quaynor emphasised job creation as an important pillar of the support to DBG.<\/p>\n \u201cNinety-eight per cent of the private sector in Ghana, I understand, is micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs), and this creates 83 per cent of jobs. Therefore, increasing access to finance for the MSME space, where there has really been a finance gap, should begin to actually provide more resources for these MSMEs to grow, enhance their operations and create more jobs,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n Ghana is pursuing an economic transformation agenda that requires the availability of affordable capital for medium and long-term investment by the private sector.<\/p>\n However, there are constraints to private sector development, particularly for MSMEs, which account for the majority of businesses in the country, due to the lack of access to medium and long-term credit.<\/p>\n AfDB projection<\/strong><\/p>\n Mr Quaynor said \u201cthe African Development Bank essentially expects to reduce the access-to-finance gap for MSMEs in Ghana in another three to five years, and we do hope the Development Bank Ghana will provide a lot of funding to financial institutions, both commercial and non-banking institutions, to on-lend to MSMEs over the period\u201d.<\/p>\n He, however, warned that this in itself would not be enough.<\/p>\n \u201cSo, we specifically want to ensure that the lending goes to MSMEs that can stimulate and increase jobs for Ghanaians. For us, it is about access to financing and creating jobs, which is really the ultimate goal.<\/p>\n \u201cThe African Development Bank\u2019s view is that good governance and robust internal structures are key to putting DBG on the right path to success to support industrialisation and private sector development in Ghana,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n