Kumasi, Feb. 14, GNA - The National Board for Small Scale Industries (NBSSI) is undergoing a major restructuring exercise to enable it provide the needed technical and expert support to Small and Medium Scale Enterprises (SMEs).

It involves the recruitment of appropriate expertise to the Board and provision of the needed logistical support to enable it build the capacities of SMEs and offer appropriate business advice to improve their output.

Mr Kofi Afresah Ishaque Nuhu, Deputy Director at the Ministry of Trade, Industry, Private Sector Development and President's Special Initiative (PSI), who announced this, said the Ministry was also developing an industrial policy to provide appropriate framework and guidelines for the country's industrial sector. He was addressing a forum for trade and business associations in Kumasi on Thursday.

It was organised by management of Private Enterprises Foundation (PEF) under the theme "strengthening capacities of trade and business associations to help in accelerating the growth of the private sector". Mr Nuhu said the Ministry recognized the immense contribution of the private sector to the development of the nation, that was why it had initiated programmes such as the trade sector support programme to assist SMEs.

He said with the restructuring exercise, NBSSI would be able to offer the needed support to SMEs.

Mr Kwame Buor, Ashanti Regional Chairman of Association of Small Scale Industries (ASSI), said one of the major challenges facing small industries was access to credit facilities. He stressed the need for government to establish mutual guaranteed funds to help SMEs since implementation of the current forms of credit support schemes had been fraught with bureaucracies. Mr Buor called for dialogue between government and other agencies for a change in favour of SMEs, while at the same time introducing effective integration of ICT in the operations of SMEs. Mr Sal Doe Amegavie, Chief Executive Officer of Ghana National Chamber of Commerce and Industry (GNCCI), stressed the need for private entrepreneurs to be interested in the activities of their business associations to enable the associations champion their cause effectively.

He said the private sector was the engine to create wealth for the nation and urged members to strengthen their skills and take advantage of numerous opportunities to expand their operations. Dr Osei Boeh-Ocansey, Chief Executive Officer of PEF, said the forum organised in collaboration with Konrad Adeneuer Foundation of Germany, was to identify specific challenges facing the various business associations to help find solutions to some of them.