Vice President joins GEA CEO Margaret Ansei to promote SMEs at GWES ‘26

The Vice President, Professor Jane Naana Opoku-Agyemang, joined the CEO of the Ghana Enterprises Agency (GEA), Ms Margaret Ansei, at the opening of the 5th Ghana Women Entrepreneurship Summit (GWES 2026).

She reaffirmed the government's commitment to empowering women entrepreneurs through improved access to financing, business development support and expanded market opportunities.

Addressing participants at the summit held under the theme “Empowering Women to Drive Trade, Innovation and Industrial Growth,” the Vice President emphasised the critical role of women entrepreneurs in driving Ghana's economic transformation through increased production, value addition, agro-processing and industrial development.

“Ghana’s economic transformation depends on increasing production, processing more of what we grow, and building stronger links between local enterprises and larger industries. Women are central to this effort,” she stated.

Professor Opoku-Agyemang underscored the need to move women-owned businesses beyond small-scale operations into commercial production, manufacturing and industrial supply chains, stressing that women must have the opportunity to establish factories, expand their enterprises and compete in domestic and international markets.

She also highlighted the proposed Ghana Women's Development Bank as a significant government intervention to address the persistent financing challenges facing women entrepreneurs and improve their access to affordable financial services.

The Vice President further stressed that access to finance must be complemented by the necessary skills, quality standards, packaging, safety compliance and market opportunities to enable women-led enterprises to meet the requirements of larger buyers, supermarkets and export markets, adding that strengthening the capacity of women-owned businesses to participate in productive sectors would contribute significantly to job creation, industrial growth and Ghana's broader economic transformation.

The Chief Executive Officer of the Ghana Enterprises Agency, Ms Margaret Ansei, in her welcome address, called for stronger institutional support, affordable financing and improved market access to unlock the growth potential of women-led businesses.

She highlighted the financial pressures facing women entrepreneurs, particularly the difficulty of securing adequate working capital to fulfil large orders and meet business obligations.

Ms Ansei observed that many women-owned businesses struggle to fulfil large contracts because buyers often operate on extended payment terms, while suppliers require immediate payment.

This creates significant cash-flow constraints, limiting businesses' capacity to expand production, fulfil orders, and take advantage of emerging market opportunities.

She emphasised the need for financial institutions and business support organisations to develop more responsive financing solutions that reflect the operational realities of women-led enterprises. She also called for stronger institutional collaboration and market linkages to improve the competitiveness and sustainability of women-owned businesses.

The summit brought together government officials, development partners, financial institutions, industry leaders, and women entrepreneurs to deliberate on strategies to strengthen women's participation in entrepreneurship, trade, innovation, and industrial development.

The 5th Ghana Women Entrepreneurship Summit reaffirmed the importance of sustained collaboration among government, the private sector, financial institutions and development partners in addressing the structural barriers confronting women-owned businesses and creating an enabling environment for their growth.

Through its mandate to promote the development of micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs), the Ghana Enterprises Agency remains committed to strengthening enterprise development, enhancing business competitiveness, promoting job creation and advancing inclusive economic growth.

The Agency will continue working with stakeholders to expand opportunities for women entrepreneurs, strengthen their business capacities, and position them to contribute meaningfully to Ghana's trade, innovation, industrialisation, and economic transformation.