Ghana is close to establishing a dedicated Women’s Bank aimed at expanding financial access for women entrepreneurs, particularly in underserved northern communities, President John Dramani Mahama has announced.
Speaking at the launch of the Sheapark Resource Hub Project at the Wa Naa’s Palace in Wa on Saturday, President Mahama disclosed that preparatory work has reached an advanced stage and would soon be presented to Cabinet for consideration.
Vice President Professor Jane Naana Opoku Agyemang, who is spearheading the process, has confirmed that the proposed structure and operational framework of the Women’s Bank are ready for Cabinet review, according to the President.
The proposed institution is expected to focus on women led enterprises, with special attention on sectors where women dominate but remain financially excluded, including the shea industry in northern Ghana.
President Mahama said the Women’s Bank would support women entrepreneurs, especially in the northern sector, where the shea industry remained a major source of livelihood for many women. He noted that in regions like Upper West, the bank will deliberately target mothers engaged in the shea value chain.
The initiative, championed by Speaker of Parliament Alban Sumana Kingsford Bagbin and development economist Professor Kwame Addo, forms part of broader efforts to strengthen value addition and productivity within the shea sector.
President Mahama explained that the bank would provide seasonal micro credit to women during shea nut harvesting periods, enabling them to collect nuts more efficiently and safely. Under the model, cooperatives would be supported to hire tricycles to transport women into harvesting areas and back, reducing the physical burden traditionally borne by women who often carry heavy loads on their heads.
The 2026 budget allocated 401 million cedis for the bank, in addition to the 51.3 million cedis seed fund allocated in 2025. Finance Minister Dr. Cassiel Ato Forson said during the budget presentation that the funding will enable the bank to expand its lending portfolio across all 16 regions once fully operational.
Government has already begun practical interventions to improve safety in the sector. President Mahama said 3,000 pairs of Wellington boots and 3,200 gloves have been distributed to women shea pickers in the Upper West Region to protect them from snake and scorpion bites.
The President emphasized that women were not merely beneficiaries but the foundation of the initiative, given their central role in the shea industry over the years.
The Sheapark Resource Hub is envisioned as a world class phased agro industrial ecosystem built on sustainability, innovation and inclusion. It will host modern shea processing facilities for cosmetic, food, nutraceutical and pharmaceutical production.
At full maturity, the Sheapark ecosystem is expected to empower more than 7,000 women in the Upper West region while creating thousands of additional jobs for youth. The hub will anchor value chains not only for shea but also for associated products such as groundnuts, soya beans, sorghum, dawadawa, cotton and honey.
Access to affordable credit remains a major challenge for women led businesses, which account for more than 44 percent of Ghana’s micro, small and medium enterprises.
The Women’s Bank will use part of the funds to de risk women focused lending, develop credit guarantee schemes, and strengthen partnerships with rural and community banks to reach underserved communities nationwide, according to the Finance Ministry.
President Mahama explained that the Sheapark Resource Project aligns with the government’s Reset Agenda, which focuses on adding value to products before export. This value addition drive would extend to several commodities nationwide, including shea nuts, cashews, cotton, cassava, oil palm and minerals.
During his address to the Global Leaders’ Meeting on Women in Beijing, China in October 2025, President Mahama outlined Ghana’s commitment to women’s economic empowerment. He cited the Affirmative Action (Gender Equity) Act, 2024 (Act 1121), which mandates a minimum of 30 percent female representation in public appointments by the end of 2026, rising to 50 percent by 2030.
The initiative represents a shift in government approach to women’s economic participation. Rather than viewing women solely as beneficiaries of social programmes, the Women’s Bank positions them as key economic actors whose labour and entrepreneurship can drive sectoral growth and national development.
