A former official at Ghana's National Entrepreneurship and Innovation Programme has urged the current government to abandon strategies that distribute minimal funding across large groups of business owners.
Joseph Osei Oppong Brenya, who previously led corporate communications at NEIP, argued that grants ranging from 10,000 to 20,000 cedis prove insufficient for launching or growing legitimate commercial operations. During a discussion organized by the Entrepreneurs and Innovators Network Ghana examining government support for young business developers, he recommended concentrating resources on smaller cohorts of recipients who would receive between 200,000 and 500,000 cedis each. Brenya said this approach would better enable owners to build companies capable of hiring workers rather than spreading assistance across numerous individuals for appearances.
The administrator observed that NEIP has recently overlapped with the work of the Microfinance and Small Loans Centre by providing similar small amounts. He suggested entrepreneurs seeking modest sums should instead apply through MASLOC, while NEIP focuses on substantial investments. Brenya called on incoming director Eric Adjei to emphasize quality over quantity when selecting beneficiaries to help the program achieve its mission of developing successful employment-generating businesses nationwide.
Joseph Osei Oppong Brenya, who previously led corporate communications at NEIP, argued that grants ranging from 10,000 to 20,000 cedis prove insufficient for launching or growing legitimate commercial operations. During a discussion organized by the Entrepreneurs and Innovators Network Ghana examining government support for young business developers, he recommended concentrating resources on smaller cohorts of recipients who would receive between 200,000 and 500,000 cedis each. Brenya said this approach would better enable owners to build companies capable of hiring workers rather than spreading assistance across numerous individuals for appearances.
The administrator observed that NEIP has recently overlapped with the work of the Microfinance and Small Loans Centre by providing similar small amounts. He suggested entrepreneurs seeking modest sums should instead apply through MASLOC, while NEIP focuses on substantial investments. Brenya called on incoming director Eric Adjei to emphasize quality over quantity when selecting beneficiaries to help the program achieve its mission of developing successful employment-generating businesses nationwide.
