Accra, August 19, GNA. Papa Owusu-Ankomah, Minister for Trade, Industry, PSD & PSI, on Tuesday urged managers of small and medium scale enterprises to improve on governance and accountability to shareholders and customers.

This, he said, will help enhance operational efficiency, improve access to finance, generate long-term prospects for growth and competitiveness and also ensure smooth succession for several generations of ownership and management.

The Minister was speaking at the launch of a project by the Private Enterprise Foundation in Accra on Tuesday. Mr Owusu-Ankomah said government was taking the necessary steps to address the issues of corruption within various organizations in the country.

Dubbed: "Capacity Development for Pro-Poor Private Sector-Led-Growth through Enhancing Corporate Governance," the project was to help address the challenges of micro and small enterprise development, anti corruption, and consumer protection.

The project which would be completed in the next two years would help to solve problems of capacity building for Directors and Boards and contract enforcement and debt recovery.

The capacity development project is being supported by the Government of Japan through the Japan-UNDP Partnership Fund and the Government of the Republic of Ghana.

Mr. Yutaka Nakamura, Counsellor and Deputy of Mission of the Embassy of Japan, said a significant number of small and medium scale organizations are dominating the economic scene of the country, which shows a strong potential for prosperity.

He expressed hope that the project would serve as a more attractive investment destination for the country and successfully achieve her development goals by improving the human capacity of the private business associations.

Mr. Nakamura said Japan had been focusing on promoting industrial development as one of its key priority development agenda in support of Ghana's efforts in reducing poverty through economic growth. On his part, the UN Resident Coordinator and UNDP Representative, Mr. Daouda Toure said a vibrant and thriving private sector was key to Ghana's development and growth.

He said: "the development of the Small and Medium Scale Enterprise sector is particularly important for employment creation and equitable distribution of wealth and opportunity and thus poverty reduction". He indicated that the UNDP has recognized the critical role of good governance in the fight against poverty and supported the government's commitment to good governance processes to meet increasing citizen demands for transparency, accountability, fighting corruption, and increased public participation in governance.

The Director-General of the Private Enterprise Foundation (PEF), Dr Osei Boeh-Ocansey, said PEF had in place strategies to address some of the objectives set by the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs).

Dr. Boeh-Ocansey said that Ghana had subscribed to the African Peer Review Mechanism (APRM) under the New Partnership for African Development (NEPAD) initiative to ensure good governance, and that good economic and corporate governance practices favour shared growth and promote pro-poor economic development.