A $3.9 million program has been established by the Ghana Enterprises Agency (GEA) and the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) to scale up Ghana's national initiatives for the development of Micro, Small and Medium Sized Businesses (MSMEs).

The project "Expanding the Kaizen Initiatives by Improving Sustainable Agri-Business," financed by the government of Japan, aims to sustainably and continuously increase the quality and productivity of enterprises in Ghana. It is being implemented jointly by UNIDO and the GEA.

Developing appropriate enterprise performance management skills is essential for MSMEs and businesses to grow sustainably, according to project manager Marin Mizuno.

“In this difficult time, the only control at our disposal is our own internal resources, which we can maximize to improve enterprise performance. And in this regard, I strongly believe that the Kaizen approach, which leverages on the efficiency of internal resources, is the perfect tool for MSMEs to cope with the current difficulties,” he said.

He emphasised that UNIDO’s Smart and Sustainable Agri-business, an innovative enterprise performance management tool which leverages on digital solutions to productivity improvement will contribute to modernising enterprise performance management in the MSMEs space.

Coordinator for Economic Cooperation of the Embassy of Japan in Ghana, Tetsuya Imaoka, revealed the philosophy of Kaizen is to improve the enterprise performance by maximising the efficiency with the available resources, rather than resorting to huge capital investment.

“I believe Japanese technology, experience and wisdom through a variety of methodologies and approaches is exactly what is needed in Ghana, especially for micro, small and medium enterprises as we go through a very difficult time”, he stated

The Chief Executive Officer of the Ghana Enterprises Agency, Kosi Yankey-Ayeh, stated that the project is going to stimulate the National Expansion Drive for MSMEs with emphasis on production, efficiency, food safety and compliance to make them more efficient and competitive.

“We are committed, prepared and well-positioned to partner with UNIDO to ensure the smooth commencement and successful implementation of the project”, she maintained.

MSMEs who meet the selection requirement would be selected for Kaizen and SSAB training. The selected MSMEs will also benefit from the capital investment component of the project.

The ‘Call for Proposal’ for this programme will be open until April 30, for the enterprises to apply.

The selection will be duly conducted for the final nomination of the enterprises to be supported under the programme.