MTN Ghana, SMEGA & Sanlam Allianz Empowers 200 Women Entrepreneurs

• MTN Ghana, in association with SME Grow Africa (SMEGA) and Sanlam Allianz, organized an SME Business Clinic in Tamale
• The program was intended to empower 200 women entrepreneurs in the Northern Region
• The clinic aimed to enhance business capabilities, offer strategic advice, and provide women-led SMEs with networking

MTN Ghana, in collaboration with SME Grow Africa (SMEGA) and Sanlam Allianz, held an empowering SME Business Clinic to empower 200 women entrepreneurs in the Northern Region.

The project is part of MTN Ghana's SME Accelerate initiative, which commenced on April 10, 2025, with the theme "Business done smarter, faster and better." It is not just a training initiative but, in fact, a strategic platform whereby the potential for growth of Ghana's small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) can be unlocked, especially with emphasis on women-run firms.

During her welcome address, Adwoa Offeibea Ackonor, MTN Ghana Manager of Enterprise Business, reconfirmed the firm's dedication to supporting SMEs. "SMEs such as yours are the pulse of Ghana's economy. You generate jobs, stimulate innovation, and drive community development," she stated. Yet, she also recognized the ongoing problems—too little access to finance, markets, and technology—that confront numerous entrepreneurs.

MTN's Northern Business Regional Sales Manager, Eric Antwi, spoke about the larger mission of the SME Accelerate initiative. Implemented in four key cities—Accra, Kumasi, Tamale, and Takoradi—the initiative tries to build SMEs through capacity building, digital solutions, and financial products. In Tamale, the emphasis is on everyday business efficiency, aligning business with global trends, and long-term business sustainability.

Eric also unveiled two flagship products under the initiative. EDWUMAPA is an enterprise development support package explicitly for women and comes with insurance access via Sanlam. YELLOWBESS, in contrast, is a digital starter pack that gives SMEs a website, call centre access, Microsoft software, and 10GB of free data. "Women make up 70 percent of the SME landscape, and EDWUMAPA is here to empower them to grow in a sustainable manner," he continued.

Kwesi Ofori Jnr, SMEGA Executive Director, reinforced that the clinic is more than traditional training. "This is about transforming Ghana's entire SME ecosystem," he indicated. He raised a very essential gap in business practice, stating that most SMEs fail to maintain good financial records. The clinic takes real-life situations and employs them to educate on key topics such as bookkeeping, cash flow, and financial literacy.

Ofori also indicated regulatory barriers that hinder the survival of startups. "Only one or two in every ten companies survive beyond five years," he stated. With fewer barriers and more structure from the start, we could have as many as five or six survive.