Author: Maame Owusuaa
Ghana has reaffirmed its strong commitment to empowering small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), women and youth as the backbone of Africa’s industrialisation and intra-African trade under the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA).
The Minister for Trade, Agribusiness and Industry, Hon. Elizabeth Ofosu-Adjare, made this known while delivering the keynote address on Day Two of the 2026 Africa Prosperity Dialogues (APD) at the Accra International Conference Centre.
According to the Minister, inclusive trade and industrial growth remain critical pillars of Africa’s long-term development agenda.
“Inclusive trade and industrial growth are central to Africa’s Agenda 2063 and the continent’s long-term prosperity,” she stated.
Hon. Ofosu-Adjare commended the Africa Prosperity Network for selecting the theme “Empowering SMEs, Women & Youth in Africa’s Single Market: Innovate. Collaborate. Trade,” describing it as both timely and strategic.
“This theme is not only relevant, it is perfectly aligned with Africa’s shared ambition for integration, transformation and shared prosperity,” the Minister noted.
She highlighted the steady progress made since the commencement of trading under the AfCFTA in January 2021, pointing to key milestones achieved across the continent.
“Since trading began, Africa has recorded nearly 50 ratifications, expanded participation in the Guided Trade Initiative, and adopted the Protocol on Women and Youth in Trade,” Hon. Ofosu-Adjare said.
She explained that the Protocol on Women and Youth in Trade represents a decisive step towards inclusivity within the continental market framework.
“This Protocol is a binding commitment to remove structural barriers and to expand access to finance, skills, digital trade opportunities and regional value chains for women and young people,” she stressed.
The Minister further underscored the importance of micro, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) to Africa’s economies, noting that they form the overwhelming majority of businesses on the continent.
“MSMEs account for over 90 per cent of businesses across Africa, and in Ghana alone, women lead nearly half of these enterprises,” she revealed.
Touching on government interventions, Hon. Ofosu-Adjare said Ghana has placed gender equity and inclusive growth at the centre of its trade and industrial policies.
“More than 2,800 businesses have been sensitised on export procedures and market access, while targeted interventions have increased the participation of women-, youth- and disability-led enterprises in cross-border trade,” she disclosed.
She added that nationwide enterprise development programmes have had significant impact on entrepreneurship and innovation across the country.
“Over 155,000 entrepreneurs have been equipped with relevant skills, more than 6,000 start-ups supported, and access to finance improved—especially for women- and youth-led MSMEs—through grant and financing mechanisms under the World Bank-backed Ghana Economic Transformation Project,” the Minister concluded.
