Women entrepreneurs urged to embrace digitization, technology to reduce corruption

Kumasi-Ghana, March 16, GNA – Women entrepreneurs have been urged to embrace the use of modern technological tools to strengthen their business integrity and increase revenue generation.
Mrs Kosi Yankey-Ayeh, Chief Executive Officer of Ghana Enterprises Agency (GEA), who made the call, said business digitization and use of appropriate technology were necessary tools in an effort to promote transparency and bridge the corruption gap in the business transaction space.
Mrs Yankey-Ayeh was speaking at the launch of the GEA Business Integrity Project ‘PEPEYE’ in Kumasi.
The project, which is being funded by the German Development Cooperation GIZ) in partnership with the Alliance for Integrity and the GEA aimed at promoting inclusive, responsible and clean business environment.
It is also to help entrepreneurs, especially those in the small and medium-sized business supply chains navigate issues relating to gender, negotiations and regulatory, while strengthening compliance capacities in their daily business operations.
Again, the project seeks to increase knowledge and awareness in the field of integrity promotion and corruption prevention, bring sanity and direction to business operations to help increase access to markets and grow businesses.
Mrs Yankey-Ayeh said the project which had already been launched in Accra was being piloted in the Greater Accra and Ashanti regions for the next six months, and was targeting about 40 women entrepreneurs in the Ashanti region.
She said stakeholders were finding sustainable ways to bridge the gap and increase revenues of women entrepreneurs, adding that, the government was keen in promoting female-led business.
Mrs Yankey-Ayeh said in the last few years, over GHS 600 million had been pumped into supporting businesses, and more than 60 percent of the beneficiaries were women-owned businesses.
Mr. Abdul Rauf, GIZ Advisor for Alliance for Integrity, said in a broader business ecosystem, integrity was an essential tool.
However, this tool had been neglected in most businesses and paved the way for corruption in the business, adding that the growing insanity must be tackled head-on.