Ghana supports female entrepreneurs to take advantage of African free trade area

Ghana is nurturing women entrepreneurs to take advantage of opportunities brought by the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) to expand their businesses, a Ghanaian official said.

The AfCFTA has been offering great opportunities for women, Agnes Adjei-Sam, Director for Market Development and Promotion at the Ghana Export Promotion Authority (GEPA), said.

“Many Ghanaian women are in innovative businesses that, when well-developed, could become continental and global brands through participating in the free trade area.

“The AfCFTA makes provision for helping women to formalise their businesses, and that makes the woman more secure in trading, more secure to look for partners.

“At GEPA, we will nurture Ghanaian women to take full advantage of opportunities,” Adjei-Sam said.

The official said that many Ghanaian women’s products did not require much capital or complex and expensive machinery.

According to the director, most of them are the daily necessities people depend on.

“In every capacity-building programme we do, a good percentage of participants are women.

“Whether it is training, market access, product development or trade information, there is always a good representation of women,” she said.