The Food and Drug Authority (FDA) last Friday signed an agreement with the National Board for Small Scale Industries (NBSSI) to facilitate business development platform for Micro Small and Medium Enterprise (MSME) in Ghana.
Per the deal, both parties are to ensure that products of clients placed on the Ghanaian market are manufactured taking cognisance of good manufacturing practices.
Additionally, FDA would train NBSSI Staff in basic procedures, labelling requirements and registration procedures to ensure they have a better understanding of the FDA requirements to enable them pass the information on to the clients of NBSSI.
Speaking at the signing ceremony, Mrs Delese A. Darko, Chief Executive Officer of FDA, expressed gratitude for materialisation of discussions raised few months ago.
“I am happy that a discussion that started some few months ago between myself and the Executive Director of the NBSSI, on giving support to the development and growth of small and medium scale enterprises has culminated into what we are here to observe today,” she stated.
Statistics, she noted, showed that more than 90 per cent of local industries that fell under the purview of the FDA were SMEs, majority of which are operated by women and young entrepreneurs with such businesses usually operating from homes.
Mrs Darko observed that beyond the financial challenges they faced, many of those SMEs experience difficulties in meeting regulatory requirements needed to obtain market authorisation.
“Efforts made by the government through the NBSSI to see to the development and growth of SMEs stalled, preventing such businesses access to the market and growth.
“To push the national industrialisation agenda forward there has to be a synergy with FDA whose mandate include ensuring quality ,wholesomeness and safety in all products and NBSSI an agency created for promotion and development of MSME sector to ensure products manufactured are of right quality, safe, efficacious and meet acceptable and international standards,” Mrs Darko emphasised.
The Executive Director of NBSSI, Mrs Kosi Yankey-Ayeh, who signed on behalf of her organization, said the two parties would increase work efficiency by facilitating renewed co-ordination not just at the national level but at regional and district levels between designated focal persons for each side.
She indicated that the collaboration was important for the NBSSI Master Card foundation towards young Africa works partnership that sought to strengthen MSMES, young Ghanaians and women focused interventions.
BYBENEDICTA GYIMAAH FOLLEY
