President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo has presented GH¢2 million to 1,000 disabled male entrepreneurs under the Presidential Empowerment for Male Entrepreneurs with Disability (PEMED).
The initiative, which was launched at the Jubilee House in Accra yesterday, seeks to, among other things, provide relief and empower persons with disabilities to improve their living condition.
“You, the beneficiaries, have already undergone training in areas such as financial management, business management, risks, marketing, and operations”.
“It is expected that you will be guided by the structured training you have undergone, to enable you scale-up your businesses, and create job opportunities for people,” he said.
President Akufo-Addo said 50 per cent of the financial support were grants while the rest were interest free loans payable over two years.
The President indicated that the initiative was a demonstration of government’s commitment to empower the 1,000 beneficiaries of the initiative, and help mainstream them into national economic activity.
The Ministry of Business Development, through the National Entrepreneurship and Innovation Plan, will continue to provide mentorship, training, and monitoring, to ensure the successful execution of the businesses of the 1,000 beneficiaries, he said.
In 2019, he said the government provided similar funding to 1,000 disabled women entrepreneurs and provided them with training to build-up their capacity and enhance their competitiveness under the Presidential Empowerment for Women Entrepreneurs with Disability (PEWED).
As a result of the intervention, the President said “the beneficiary entrepreneurs had been able to expand their businesses, and had created about two hundred and eighty (280) direct and indirect job opportunities for Ghanaians.”
“Government is committed to building an inclusive society in which every citizen has the opportunity to develop his or her God-given talent to the full, where the circumstances of one’s birth are not barriers to a citizen’s participation in the process of national development,” he added.
President Akufo-Addo noted that the policies and programmes introduced by government since 2017 had been geared towards enhancing the productive capacity of all Ghanaians, enabling them to contribute meaningfully to the nation’s social and economic transformation.
He said initiatives such as the Free Senior High School policy, the Planting for Food and Jobs, the National Entrepreneurship and Innovation Plan, One District One Factory policy, and the One Village One Dam policies were aimed at improving the lives of the citizenry, and help develop a knowledge-based society to make Ghanaians globally competitive.
The Minister of Business Initiative, Mohammed Awal, said the President had demonstrated leadership by believing in the ability of persons with disabilities to contribute to the development of the country.
He said President Akufo-Addo had created opportunities for persons with disabilities to contribute to nation building and added that despite their weaknesses, the President has decided to focus on their strengths.
BY YAW KYEI
