Government is stepping up efforts to unlock large-scale investment in women-led enterprises, with officials urging coordinated action from public and private sectors to convert participation into ownership and business growth.
Speaking on behalf of Vice President Jane Naana Opoku-Agyemang at the Women’s Investment Summit in Accra, Trade Minister Elizabeth Ofosu-Adjare said Ghana risks undermining long-term prosperity if it fails to back women entrepreneurs with capital and structural support.
“The theme, ‘Give to Gain,’ speaks to a simple yet important reality, which is that we cannot achieve sustained prosperity while under-investing in the women who drive our markets, households, businesses, and communities,” she said.
The Vice President cited the scale of women’s contribution to the economy, noting that “women-owned businesses comprise about 44% of our Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises,” yet “participation does not always translate into opportunity.”
She made note of structural constraints including “limited access to finance, gaps in investment, exclusion from supply chains, constrained access to export markets, limited asset ownership, or gender bias,” warning that “resilience, under these conditions, is not enough. Without the right support, it leads to fatigue rather than growth.”
A central plank of the government’s strategy is the planned launch of a Women’s Development Bank, aimed at expanding access to finance for underserved entrepreneurs.
According to the Vice President, the bank “is structured to provide concessional, collateral-free loans, financial literacy, business development services, credit guarantees, and rural economic outreach among others for women entrepreneurs at the base of the pyramid.” She added that “The case for investing in women is already established, adding that it will happen under this government”.
The administration’s broader priorities include “unlocking patient and scalable capital for women-led businesses,” “integrating women into supply chains,” and “expanding access to export markets and cross-border trade.”
The Vice President further stressed that inclusion must translate into economic control and scale. “All this is so that we move from inclusion to investment, participation to ownership, and potential to scale.”
Private sector stakeholders echoed the call for stronger financing mechanisms. Odelia Ntiamoah, Chief Executive Officer of the Oxford Africa Women Leadership Institute, said ” women need catalytic funds to support their business while calling for closer partnership to transform women led businesses.”
The renewed policy focus comes as Ghana seeks to deepen financial inclusion and expand its small business base, with women entrepreneurs seen as a key driver of job creation and economic resilience.
