Mr Joao Monteiro Paes, leader of an European Union (EU) Technical Support Team, has said more governmental effort is needed to boost the Small and Medium Scale Enterprise (SME) sector.

He said in the absence of companies with strong network with SME’s, it is going to be very difficult to promote agriculture and help farmers to be self-sustaining.

Mr Joao was speaking to the Ghana News Agency after a training organized for over 35 agribusiness firms in the Eastern Region.

The training forms part of a three-year project which is a partnership between the Ghana Government and the EU and is being championed by the Association of Ghana Industries (AGI).

The project seeks to provide technical assistance to support the implementation of investment promotion and business linkages in agri-businesses in Ghana.

The support will be in the areas of agri-business linkages strategy, improving collaboration with new suppliers, investment promotion and business linkages, international trade and export to ECOWAS countries and investment promotion and partnership.

The project would as well look at investment in the Ghanaian agribusiness value chains and collaboration between agri-processing companies and their suppliers.

The project is targeting agri-businesses which have been in operation for three years or more and have a medium sized turnover and total asset exceeding US $ 500,000; with employees of at least 20 people, three executives and middle level managers.

Mr Joao said so far, they have received 40 applications from companies in the four regions that they have visited and expressed the hope that they are going to hit 50 after their encounter in the Eastern Region.

Mr Daniel Aladi, the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Volta Veg, and a participant at the training, expressed his concern with the target of agri- businesses that has a turnover of $500,000.00 .

He said for more to benefit from the training, there is the need to reduce the expected turnover amount.

Source: GNA