Gov’t Committed to Grow SME Sector – Nana Addo

President Akufo-Addo has assured Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) of government’s commitment to grow the sector.

According to him, five modules are being implemented with a seed fund of $10 million, under the National Entrepreneurship and Innovation Plan, targeted at helping young people who intend to set up businesses.

He made this known on Wednesday, at a media encounter to mark his first year in office at the Flagstaff House.

“It is no secret that our private sector often lacks the expertise that would enable it to operate competitively. Practical help is being offered to SMEs by way of advisory services, access to finance and access to market”, he stressed.

Agriculture

Touching on agriculture he said government has set five priority areas which they believe will transform the country.

President Akufo-Addo expressed excitement about the institutional sub–programmes, where twenty (20) Senior Technical High Schools, National Service Scheme and the Prison Services were supported to cultivate their own farms.

He mentioned that “under the Youth in Agriculture programme of Planting for Food and Jobs, ten thousand (10,000) youth were supported to cultivate eight hundred (800) hectares and ten thousand, three hundred and twenty (10,320) hectares of rice and maize, respectively”.

Citing some benefits the country has gained under the Planting for Food Campaign, he said average yields of maize and rice have increased, causing warehouses to fill up.

Whilst the full picture of this success is yet to emerge, he said “it is noteworthy that many farmers have expressed their satisfaction that, for the first time in a long while, a deliberate government policy has helped to boost their harvest. We are doing things differently, and we are getting results.”

By: Emmanuel Yeboah Britwum/ thePublisher