48 green SMEs in the Western Region supported with 6-Day GrEEn Regional Trade Show

The Boosting Green Employment and Enterprise Opportunities in Ghana (GrEEn) project has organised the second of its GrEEn Regional Trade Show in the Western region, supporting a total of 48 green SMEs who are either enrolled or have graduated from SNV Ghana’s 6-month GrEEn Incubation and GrEEn Acceleration Programmes.

The GrEEn Incubation and Acceleration Programmes provide business advisory support to green and eco-inclusive businesses and entrepreneurs and aims supporting green businesses to exhibit and sell their products and services that are made using methods that do not harm the environment, is eco-friendly or makes use of waste materials.

Green Entrepreneurs
According to Genevieve Parker-Twum, Senior Incubation and Acceleration Advisor on fhe GrEEn Project at SNV Ghana, the GrEEn Regional Trade Shows seek to support growth of local businesses, “In partnership with the European Union, we want to stimulate growth of the local Micro, Small and Medium-sized Enterprises ecosystem in the Ashanti and Western regions by promoting expansion in MSMEs productions and ultimately increase income for entrepreneurs as well as their access to finance. As the business grow, they also create jobs for youth.”

The 48 green businesses are specialised in SNV Ghana’s three sectors: Agriculture, Renewable Energy and Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH)

In the Western Region, the GrEEn Regional Trade Show started from Tuesday, 4th October to Sunday, 9th October 2022 at the Takoradi Mall and follows a just-ended GrEEn Regional Trade Show in the Ashanti Region that occurred from 27th September to 2nd October 2022 at the Kumasi City Mall and included exhibition from 59 green and sustainable businesses from SNV’s GrEEn Incubation and GrEEn Acceleration Programmes in the region.

Hilda Abambire, Business Development and Market Linkages Advisor at SNV on the GrEEn Project in the Western Region added that the Project had more activities planned out for green SMEs.

“Last year, we awarded a total matching grant of GHS 1.75 million to 12 green businesses as part of the GrEEn Innovation Challenge. Five (5) of these green businesses are from the Western region, like Joana Arthur of Mending Papers, who produces paper bags from plantain and banana stems and Jesse Roland Prah of Roland Rice, a local rice producer in the Shama District who is part of our GrEEn Incubation Programme and received GHS 175,000 (one hundred and seventy five) to construct a state-of-the-art facility to produce 100 (one hundred) bags of rice daily. Most importantly, he is using rice husk, which is a waste material and turning it into pellet, a clean form of fuel. This year, we have launched the GrEEn Innovation Challenge and once again, will be rewarding matching grants to SMEs from our training programmes who have applied and have innovative ideas to make use of waste materials and combat the effects of climate change.”

SNV Ghana partnered with the Ghana Export Promotion Authority, Association of Ghana Industries, Ghana Investment Promotion Centre, Ministry of Trade and Industry, OTEC FM, Connect FM, Citi FM and Citi TV to organise the trade shows.

About SNV
SNV Netherlands Development Organisation is a not-for-profit international development organisation that makes a lasting difference in the lives of people living in poverty by helping them raise incomes and access basic services. SNV specialises in three sectors: agriculture, renewable energy and Water and we are present in over 25 countries. SNV has been working in Ghana since 1992.

About GrEEn Project
The Boosting Green Employment and Enterprise Opportunities in Ghana (GrEEn) project is a four-year action from the European Union, the Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, SNV Netherlands Development Organisation and the United Nations Capital Development Fund (UNCDF). The project aims at creating greater economic and employment opportunities for youth, women and returning migrants by promoting and supporting sustainable, green businesses and providing employable skills training to youth job seekers in two selected regions in Ghana: Ashanti and Western in partnership with the Ministry of Local Government, Decentralisation and Rural Development. GrEEn is implemented under the European Union Emergency Trust Fund (EUTF) for Africa with a total contribution of EUR 20,600,000 The GrEEn Project has 4 result areas: SNV handles Result 2 and 4 and UNCDF handles Result 1 and 3. Under Result 4, SNV works at providing incubation and acceleration services to entrepreneurs and business owners who are in the green and circular economy. The 6-months training is carried out by SNV’s business hub partners in the two regions: Recycle Up! Ghana and Women’s Haven Africa in the Ashanti Region, and U-hub from the University of Mines and Technology-Tarkwa, Social Entrepreneurship (SE) Hub and Duapa Werkspace in the Western Region.