The Ghana Investment Promotion Centre (GIPC) in partnership with European Union (EU), have had discussions and explored the potential of private equity (PE) being a source of investment for agribusinesses in the country.
The discussion held on the back of the maiden edition of GIPC’s Ghana Boardroom Breakfast, on Thursday, July 8, spearheaded a discourse on the challenge in accessing finance for agribusinesses, and the role that relevant stakeholders can play to fill the financing gap.
Issues regarding access to funding, and cost of finance for agribusinesses, have been of major concern to stakeholders in growing economies. The African Development Bank (AfDB) estimated the annual financing gap for Agri-SMEs within the continent at $100 billion.
In Ghana, demand for agribusiness funding has soared, most-especially now, when the government embarks on a drive to spur the growth of the sector through initiatives such as the Investing for Food and Jobs (IFJ) program.
The event therefore steered conversations on private equity as a source of investment finance for agribusinesses, and its vast opportunities on which investors can leverage.
Key to the discussions, was the need to prepare local companies adequately to attract investment from private equity firms. It was generally established that many agribusinesses seeking funds from private equity firms lacked the necessary documentation and organizational setup to foster the investment process.
Touching on the issue of low number of private equity firms in Ghana, some stakeholders called on the government to implement policies to support their establishment, and operations in the country.
Stakeholders present at the function, further called for a predictable regulatory framework, which is not subject to change in different political regimes.
The Ghana Boardroom Breakfast meeting held under the Chatham House Rules, is the first in the series of five Boardroom Breakfast meetings, aimed at engendering discussions between key players on pertinent issues regarding on-going improvements in Ghana’s investment climate.
