President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, on April 5, announced a soft loan scheme of up to GH¢600 million for SMEs, which would sustain the country’s affected industries and address the disruption in economic activities caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.
This was followed by the development of an online portal by The National Board for Small Scale Industries (NBSSI) to enable small and medium-scale enterprises (SMEs) across the country to access the GH¢600 million stimulus package for businesses.
However, the Welfare Officer for the Ghana Union of Traders’ Association (GUTA), Ben Yeboah, has disclosed that members of the Association were having difficulty in applying for the loans through the online portal.
In an interview with Samuel Eshun on the Happy Morning show, he said: “Initially, GUTA requested to know the whole modalities of the registration process so that we can educate our members. We did not have it that way but we want our members to participate.
When we began, however, we realized that they were not that simple as people thought. You will not just give your name, GPS location and ID and be done”.
He explained that as a two-step registration process,the difficulty arose with the the second step where members were expected to respond to about fifteen (15) to eighteen (18) questions with detailed information.
“After the first registration,you will receive a code. You then use this code to now apply.That is where majority of the questions are; your 2018 sales, your expenditure for 2018 and 2019, your business registration number, your GPS number and a host of questions. This made it a bit difficult for our members to apply”.
He stated, however, that the Association is currently providing help for members who are unable to complete the online process.
“We are now working with IT-inclined persons to help them continue the process. As we speak, the process is ongoing”,he added.
By: Alberta Dorcas N D Armah