The Development Bank Ghana (DBG) is to disburse an amount of one billion cedis to Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs) to support their business.

The Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of DBG, Kwamina Duker said this in an interview with the Ghanaian Times after a training programme for SMEs in Accra on Thursday.

The training was on the theme "Empowering SMEs with key strategies for resilience and business sustainability."

It was jointly organised by DBG, Ghana Stock Exchange (GSE), and the Association of Ghana Industries (AGI).

Mr Duker said DBG would in the next one year disburse the aforementioned amount through the partner financial institutions.

He said the bank had already disbursed about GH¢250 million to some SMEs through some participating financial institutions.

Mr Duker said DBG was supporting the development of SMEs through long-term and competitive cedi financing.

Mr Duker explained that less than five per cent of the banking sector loans currently were longer than five years. Adding that it was extremely difficult to grow a business with short term loan.

"DBG is also building capacity. We are helping our local businesses not only to access just our loans but loans within the banking sector, "he said.

He said DBG was helping to de-risk the economy and make it easier and efficient for banks to support local businesses.

The Deputy Managing Director of the GSE, Ms Abena Amoah, in her remarks, said SMEs were the engine and backbone of the Ghanaian economy.

She said SMEs constituted 90 per cent of businesses in the country and contribute about 70 of the country's Gross Domestic Product, and held the solution to the country's sustainability.

Ms Amoah urged businesses in the country to use the GSE to raise long-term capital to finance their business operations.

She said the GSE had created the Ghana Alternative Market to help SMEs to raise long-term capital to fund and expand their businesses, stressing business owners should not be afraid to open their business for private participation.

The Deputy CEO of GSE said businesses needed long-term and equity instead of debt to thrive.

The CEO of CBG, Daniel Wilson Addo, said the mandate of his outfit was to support businesses in the country and that mandate aligned with that of DBG, GSE and AGI.

He said CBG had been supporting SMEs since it was established.

"CBG on the average disburses GH¢15 million every month to SMEs," Mr Addo, said.

He said SME funding remained key in the bank's operations, saying non-performing loans was low in the SME sector of the bank's lending portfolio.

The President of AGI, Dr Humphrey Ayim-Darke, said the training programme was designed help SMEs to grow.

He said the training was meant to build the capacity to access long-term fund to finance their businesses.

Dr Ayim-Darke said AGI advocated the establishment of a Development Bank and was happy the dream had come to pass.

He entreated SMEs to take advantage of the DBG, CBG and GSE to raise long-term capital to finance their business.

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