UBA Ghana and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to support youth and women-led micro, small and medium scale enterprises (MSMEs) in Ghana.
The partnership is expected to scale up youth and women-led MSMEs, increase jobs, drive revenue and contribute significantly towards the reduction of environmental footprint.
It will also help to access climate financing schemes and increase financial inflows from climate funding channels in order to support Ghana’s efforts to turn climate commitments into actions.
By this partnership, UNDP and UBA Ghana will co-develop and implement a suite of innovative programmes and mechanisms to strengthen the institutional capacity of UBA Ghana to access climate financing schemes including the Green Climate Fund (GCF).
the Managing Director of UBA Ghana and Regional Chief Executive Officer of UBA West Africa, Chris Ofikulu, highlighted the significance of the partnership, pointed out that the partnership is a welcome development as UBA Ghana specializes in providing innovative financing to businesses including SMEs.
He said, “Collaborating with UNDP demonstrates UBA Ghana’s commitment to supporting the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), with a particular focus on providing custom financial solutions and growth opportunities for businesses of all sizes to facilitate inter–and-intra-African trade”.
He explained that the businesses will also receive a tailored programme of service support and capacity development in areas including corporate governance, branding, marketing, financial support, and product design/development to enable easier access to markets for their products and services. They will also be supported with energy efficiency audits and remedial actions to minimise their carbon footprints.
The UNDP Resident Representative in Ghana, Dr. Angela Lusigi, said, “The UNDP is working to influence the flow of resources towards development by encouraging investors and businesses of all sizes to embed the SDGs and Climate action into their analytics, decision making and business practices,” she added.
The UNDP boss explained that the MOU will promote Inclusive, Resilient and Green Entrepreneurship, by leveraging UNDP’s expertise in working with MSMEs and innovators, and UBA Ghana’s expertise in supporting businesses.
UBA Group is the leading financial institution in Africa with its extensive network of 1000 branches in 20 countries in Africa and over 31 branch networks in Ghana
About United Bank for Africa (UBA) Ghana
UBA is a leading Pan-African financial institution, and a foremost player in the financial sector in Africa with a workforce of 25,000 employees, serving over 35 million customers globally. The bank also operates in the United Kingdom, the United States, France, and the United Arab Emirates, providing a broad range of retail, commercial, and institutional banking services, spearheading financial inclusion and employing cutting-edge technology. The Bank started operation in Ghana in 2005 and has 31 fully networked branches and a leader in Trade finance, cross boarder payments, remittance and ancillary banking services.
About United Nations Development Programme (UNDP)
UNDP is the leading United Nations organisation fighting to end the injustice of poverty, inequality and climate change. Working with our broad network of experts and partners in 170 countries, UNDP help nations build integrated, lasting solutions for people and the planet. Kindly visit undp.org/ghana for further information on UNDP Ghana and follow us on Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn @UNDPGhana
