In a recent Investor Market Place Finance Forum held in Accra, finance experts emphasized the importance of women entrepreneurs formalizing their businesses through documented results to attract funding from financial institutions and investors.

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The advice particularly targeted women-led micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs), encouraging them to assemble professional teams dedicated to handling the documentation processes, showcasing their financial viability.During the forum, experts urged women entrepreneurs to shift their mindset and take risks to scale up their businesses by exploring available funding and investor opportunities.

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The event aimed to accelerate the success of women-led businesses in the agribusiness sector by fostering meaningful connections and partnerships between these businesses, financial institutions, and non-financial institutions.

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Organized under the auspices of the United Kingdom Trade Partnerships (UKTP) Programme and implemented by the International Trade Centre (ITC), the forum was part of the UKTP's efforts to support women-led businesses in Ghana. The program focuses on building the capacity of these businesses to be competitive, resilient, and investor-ready while enhancing their export potential and access to finance for expansion.

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According to the World Bank, 44% of MSMEs in Ghana are female-owned, constituting about 92% of all businesses and contributing approximately 70% to Ghana’s Gross Domestic Product.Madam Augustina Damete-Yeboah, Managing Partner of Alpha and Escamore, a snail farming and consultancy firm, highlighted challenges such as high-interest rates and a lack of flexible funding opportunities faced by women-led MSMEs.

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She encouraged women entrepreneurs to explore partnerships, join cooperatives, and seek alternative funding sources to reduce operational costs.Dr. Loretta Sarpong, Head of the Women’s Desk at Ecobank, urged women-led MSMEs to adopt a daily routine of documenting their cash flow and leverage digital payment platforms to facilitate financial institutions' assessment of their progress.

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“You must separate your working capital from operational expenses. Have a personal account and use that for your personal expenses, and pay yourself as a business owner,” she said.Madam Evelyn Sena King, Lead of Coverage and International Business at C-Nergy Ghana Limited, highlighted that while women entrepreneurs aspire to grow their businesses, many struggle to present them in a way that attracts investors.

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She emphasized the importance of engaging professionals to handle specific aspects of the business to ensure a professional approach and enhance investor confidence.Mr. Chris Amponsah Sackey, Head of the National Export and Development Secretariat at the Ghana Export Promotion Authority, pointed out that the high-interest rates faced by Ghanaian MSMEs impact the competitiveness of their products on the global stage.

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“The challenge is not about access to financing but at what cost. It is a bigger conversation that we need to have,” he said.

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