Become A Client
The Facility Investing for Employment is an investment mechanism for job creation that provides co-financing grants for private and public projects in its eight African partner countries. On 1 June 2023, a competition round will launch in Ghana. The Call is open to all sectors of the economy.
Private companies as well as public and non-profit organisations are invited to submit investment proposals. Applications are accepted in four categories. They range from purely private sector investments to public infrastructure projects. The Facility supports the projects with grants ranging from 1 million to 10 million euros per project. The amount of the grant depends on the project category and ranges from 25% to 90% of the investment volume. It is essential that each project contributes to sustainable job creation in the private sector in Ghana. The Facility only finances mature projects that have not yet started and that offer reasonable chances for being operationally and financially sustainable.
Candidates can apply individually or in a consortium with other candidates, provided they are based in African countries or in the EU/EFTA.
This is how the application process works
Applications for the competition round can be submitted from 1 to 30 June 2023. In the first step, the Facility will make a pre-selection from the submitted concept notes. In a second phase, the selected applicants will be asked to submit elaborated project proposals, which will then be evaluated in detail.
Successful applicants will be offered a grant contract. Potential applicants can contact the IFE Helpdesk from May 2023: helpdesk-ife@invest-for-jobs.com.
General information on the application process is available at https://invest-for-jobs.com/ife.
The competition criteria for this Call for Proposals and the dates of the online information sessions are published in the Key Information Sheet and the Guidelines for Applicants. Both documents will be made available in the Download Center at https://invest-for-jobs.com/en/ife-download-center.
If you have questions about this competition round, please write to: cfp-ife.june2023@invest-for-jobs.com
The Facility Investing for Employment is an investment mechanism created by the KfW Development Bank on behalf of the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) as an integral part of the Special Initiative "Decent Work for a Just Transition". The Special Initiative, which also operates under the brand Invest for Jobs, aims to team up with companies to create good jobs in the eight African partner countries, and to improve local working conditions.
General Information and further support services are offered by the Special Initiative: https://invest-for-jobs.com.
On February 20th, 2023, the Ghana Enterprises Agency (GEA) and Alliance for Integrity signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to implement the GEA Business Integrity (Pepeye) Project.
The objective of the Project is to adopt a multi-sectoral strategy through advocacy and business development services that make it easier for Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs), particularly women-owned/led to establish the foundation of a successful Anti-Corruption and compliance programme.
The signing of the MoU to implement this Project solidifies our partnership which started in 2018, a few months after Mrs. Kosi Antwiwaa Yankey-Ayeh’s appointment as the first female Chief Executive Officer of GEA, formerly National Board for Small Scale Industries (NBSSI).
In 2022, Mrs. Kosi Antwiwaa Yankey-Ayeh was elected as the Chair of the Advisory Group in Ghana to lead and champion the Anti-Corruption crusade. The continuous and active engagement with GEA testifies to the fact that we find solutions and become stronger through collective actions.
From the very first meeting, the relevance of the work of Alliance for Integrity with the Ghana Enterprises Agency and above all for GEA’s clients, MSMEs in Ghana, was very clear to Mrs. Kosi Antwiwaa Yankey-Ayeh. Alliance for Integrity's practical approach to strengthening compliance and integrity in the day-to-day activities of firms resonates with the mandate and the priorities of GEA: “The government of Ghana is really committed to Anti-Corruption and transparency and is taking serious steps to address these issues and our Agency has a concrete mandate for a transformation that supports MSMEs”.
One of her priorities has been looking at Anti-Corruption with a gender lens: “There is a growing share of women entrepreneurs in Ghana who want to do things right and are keen to support each other”. Mrs. Kosi Antwiwaa Yankey-Ayeh is convinced that women are powerful change agents in the promotion of integrity and has therefore been a driving force behind the Alliance for Integrity Women for Integrity Series (WISe). Together with Alliance for Integrity Ghana and other partners, considerable work has already been done with others in progress and even more to be taken up. The WISe series has grown up to have more participants, partners, and a focused working group for designing an “Ethical Negotiation Training Toolkit” and Regional Exchanges with Asia and Latin America. Mrs. Kosi Antwiwaa Yankey-Ayeh said that “GEA is interested in actively using the WISe platform to reach out to stakeholders and work together in transforming the business environment. She argues that the degree of involvement of the informal sector in trade is often underestimated. Companies are extremely intertwined nowadays, and these linkages are rapidly expanding.
Small and informal firms in remote places are often connected to international supply chains in one way or another. Corruption increases the costs of business, especially for MSMEs, and hinders their ability for business and trade. Promoting transparency and integrity means creating more opportunities for small firms to do business, including for women-led firms. The MSMEs in Ghana widely share the view that there is a business case for integrity, but the case can only be won if all relevant actors work together. The MSMEs are interested in participating because collective action provides the leverage to deal with administrative and procurement integrity obstacles that cannot be solved individually. More so, they welcome having a forum to discuss challenges and co-create solutions to navigate difficult situations.
GEA continually underscores that the goal of its Anti-Corruption engagement is to create a business environment in which Ghana’s MSMEs can succeed and thrive. Working at the grassroots level and using the convening ability of GEA to create a space for difficult conversations have been key elements for the successful collaboration with the Alliance for Integrity. Even the smallest of firms in Ghana is in a position to name corruption challenges, but the issues do not come up and cannot be systematically addressed without a safe forum for discussions and the stewardship of the public sector. This can be done by providing training materials, developing exchange formats, and fostering the international exchange of experiences in dealing with corruption.
The Alliance for Integrity Secretariat has been instrumental in making the best use of these spaces. Going forward, GEA will be engaging with partners within the Alliance for Integrity network and those others in the Ghanaian business environment to continually push the collective action agenda for more complaint business engagements based on its partnership with AfIn and in line with its mandates.
Following the successful implementation of the First Phase of the SME Digitalisation Project which focused on sustaining existing jobs, GEA proposes to implement another phase of the Digitalization Project for SMEs with a focus on women-owned and women-led SMEs. The objective of this Second Phase is to increase operational efficiency and business growth leading to job creation. The Project will be implemented through a combination of targeted demand-based support for SMEs in digitalizing their procedural models as well as encouraging innovative business processes. The support will comprise facilitating a detailed assessment of the beneficiaries’ needs, virtual and non-virtual demand-based capacity-building programs, access to digital solutions, online visibility as well as in-depth knowledge of digitalization and process innovation.
This Project includes the development of an integrated solution for the survival, improvement, and growth of SMEs with the aim to provide targeted support in digitalizing their operations. This will provide a centralized platform involving a detailed assessment of SMEs’ needs, challenges, and potentials, virtual and non-virtual demand-based capacity-building programs, access to digital solutions, virtual visibility, and in-depth knowledge in digitalization and process innovation.
Download ToR - Digital Tools Development Final - D4J ↓
Based on the above and following the successful implementation of the First Phase of the SME Digitalisation Project which focused on sustaining existing jobs, GEA proposes to implement another phase of the Digitalization Project for SMEs with a focus on women-owned and women-led SMEs. The objective of this Second Phase is to increase operational efficiency and business growth leading to job creation. The Project will be implemented through a combination of targeted demand-based support for SMEs in digitalizing their procedural models as well as encouraging innovative business processes. The support will facilitate a detailed assessment of the beneficiaries’ needs, virtual and non-virtual demand-based capacity-building programs, access to digital solutions, online visibility, and in-depth knowledge of digitalization and process innovation.
This Project includes the development of an integrated solution for SMEs’ survival, improvement, and growth with the aim to provide targeted support in digitalizing their operations. This will provide a centralized platform involving a detailed assessment of SMEs’ needs, challenges, and potentials, virtual and non-virtual demand-based capacity-building programs, access to digital solutions, virtual visibility, and in-depth knowledge in digitalization and process innovation.
Download TOR - Online Operational and Digital Visibility D4J ↓
The Ghana Enterprises Agency in partnership with the German Cooperation's 'Invest for Jobs' (an initiative of the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development), is implementing a Women SME Innovation Programme – Digitalize for Jobs.
The project seeks to provide capacity-building to women-owned/led SMEs on different aspects of digitalization and how their companies can grow from its use and increase their process efficiency and competitiveness by providing access to knowledge, digital tools, and expertise in the field of digitalization and innovation management challenges. It will Create a digitalized business environment conducive to the rapid growth of SMEs in Ghana, ensuring that they are creating jobs after the program.
The purpose of issuing this ToR is to select competent and highly qualified consultants who have sufficient capability and experience in implementing an operational visibility (including social media) pack for virtual engagement and service marketing. Also, the Consultant should be able to recommend innovative solutions that could be considered for adoption. The solution should enable or deliver the following at a minimum:
The scope of work of this role under the project covers:
Informational Website: The Consultant shall develop, using a recommended template/theme and an easy-to-configure website for SMEs with a modern user interface that delivers an excellent user experience for customers and partners.
The website should have the following sections and components at a minimum:
Social Media Presence: The Consultant shall create/update one (1) of the under-listed social media accounts for digital engagement of customers and marketing visibility.
A. Proactively create editorial content (stories, photos, advocacy images, contests, campaigns, audio, video, infographics, etc.) in cooperation with web and social media, posting daily to respective channels; Adapt multimedia assets from beneficiaries.
B. Social Media Content Calendar: The Consultant shall develop a comprehensive year-round social media content calendar to deliver engaging content and value to sustain and grow followers and generate excitement for events.
C. Social media strategy and account growth framework: The Consultant shall develop a holistic social media strategy and account growth framework such that SMEs can grow their follower base and generate leads for more business and consequently higher revenues.
D. Interactions: Train account holders to actively engage with online audiences through social media channels.
E. Generate and analyze reports on web traffic and KPIs using Google Analytics and other social media-focused analytic channels.
Considering the Scope of Work of this project, the consultant would provide a complete list of all deliverables that will be produced throughout the entire project timeline whether those are plans, reports, solutions, etc. in a table format mentioning the stages, activities, and timelines.
Some examples of the deliverables are mentioned here for your reference.
This assignment is of utmost importance to GEA hence, The Consultant must prove that they have a solid technical background and operational strength to deliver the assignment without any hindrances. The consultant must also have adequate technical ability, material, and human resources. As such, the following are defined as minimum eligibility criteria:
The CV shall be submitted by 12:00 pm/noon (GMT) on Monday, September 12, 2022, in a sealed envelope delivered to Procurement Officer, GEA, and be clearly marked "Social Media and Digital Visibility Consultant"
Applicants may obtain further information on the requirements including the criteria for shortlisting by applying to procurementgea@gmail.com, procurement@gea.gov.gh during office hours.
Wednesday, 15th March 2023
Detailed Terms of Reference for this project may be downloaded HERE (Click Here).
The Ghana Enterprises Agency in partnership with the German Cooperation's 'Invest for Jobs' (an initiative of the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development), is implementing a Women SME Innovation Programme – Digitalize for Jobs.
The project seeks to provide capacity-building to women-owned/led SMEs on different aspects of digitalization and how their companies can grow from its use and increase their process efficiency and competitiveness by providing access to knowledge, digital tools, and expertise in the field of digitalization and innovation management challenges. It will Create a digitalized business environment conducive to the rapid growth of SMEs in Ghana, ensuring that they are creating jobs after the program.
As part of this project, GEA seeks to engage a competent and highly qualified IT consultancy firm / Digital Services Provider, that has the required capability and experience in the development of digital solutions for SMEs, to lead the development or customization of (Open Source) software solutions based on key needs and demands of selected SMEs in Ghana.
The objective of this assignment is to support the digital transformation of selected women-owned SMEs in Ghana thereby increasing their process efficiency and competitiveness by providing access to demand-based digital software solutions complementing the technical assistance in terms of training and mentoring that the project offers.
The IT consultancy firm should be able to identify the needs and challenges of the target SMEs, advise on appropriate solutions to support their businesses operations, to recommend innovative open-source solutions - without license costs - that could be considered for adoption/customization to address SME’s constraints in the following areas but not only limited to these.
The software solutions shall be easy to handle, user-friendly, and simple but include necessary core functions, a very affordable model, context-specific and modular.
The underlying approach is not to develop new software solutions from scratch but to explore whether appropriate and effective existing open-source solutions are available on the local market that can be customized to the needs of Ghanaian SMEs.
Sustainability is key - The proposed software solutions need to be adapted to the local market so that maintenance and IT Support in Ghana are guaranteed.
The customization/configuration of the software solution shall be complemented by training/capacity building of SMEs as users but also administrators (for later adaption/configuration).
The scope of work of this assignment includes the following:
Considering the scope of work of this project and based on the proposed project development & implementation methodology, the Consultancy Firm must provide a complete list of all deliverables that will be produced throughout the entire project timeline whether those are plans, reports, applications, etc. in a table format mentioning the stages, activities, and timelines.
Some examples of the deliverables are mentioned here under for your reference.
This is a national assignment with utmost importance to GEA, thus the Consultancy Firm must prove that they have a solid technical background and operational strength to undertake and take this work forward without any hindrances. The Consultancy Firm must also have adequate technical ability, human resources, and processes. As such, the following are defined as minimum eligibility criteria:
The CV shall be submitted by 12:00 pm/noon (GMT) on Monday, September 12, 2022, in a sealed envelope delivered to Procurement Officer, GEA, and be clearly marked "Digital Tools Development / Customization or Acquisition"
Applicants may obtain further information on the requirements including the criteria for shortlisting by applying to procurementgea@gmail.com, procurement@gea.gov.gh during office hours.
Wednesday, 15th March 2023
Detailed Terms of Reference for this project may be downloaded HERE (Click Here).
The Ghana Enterprises Agency (GEA) has launched a new SME High Growth Programme to build upon and sustain the successes attained under several SME-focused support programmes.
The SME High Growth Programme's objective is to assist high-growth potential SMEs in boosting their productivity and competitiveness in order to hasten their growth. Women-owned businesses, businesses utilizing green technology, SMEs owned by young people, and businesses run by People with Disabilities (PWDs) will receive higher priorities.
Additionally, a sum of US$20 million (in cedis equivalent) has been allocated for the flagship SME High Growth Program, and the program's key distinguishing features include the provision of training in business and financial management, taxation, and regulatory compliance because the goal is to provide SMEs with practical knowledge of the Ghanaian tax system and the basic principles of taxation, information technology in business, and regulatory compliance.
The CEO of Ghana Enterprises Agency, Mrs. Kosi Yankey-Ayeh, cautioned and urged all recipients of the grant to utilize every Cedi of it for its potential purposes during the programme's official launch. She reaffirmed her unwavering conviction that SMEs will be able to expand their business activities and do so profitably. She continued by declaring that;
Small and medium-sized businesses (SME) in industries like agribusiness/agro-processing, construction, education, food and beverage, healthcare or pharmaceutical industries, ICT, manufacturing, textile & garment, tourism & hospitality, trade/commerce of locally produced goods, transport and logistics that are registered under Ghanaian law and have a majority Ghanaian shareholding of 51% or more are eligible to participate in the programme.
Smaller enterprises should also show that they have six (6) to thirty (30) employees and/or yearly sales of between GHS 180,000 and GHS 7.2 million, while medium-sized businesses should show that they have between 31 and 100 employees and GHS 7.2 million to GHS 21.6 million in annual sales.
In accordance with the Ghana Economic Transformation (GET) Project, the GEA has so far successfully carried out three interventions, including this current SME High Growth Programme and phases 1 and 2 of the COVID-19 Response Grant Programme.
The program will enable these businesses to become not only more competitive and export-oriented, but also to create new jobs, according to Nana Ama Dokua Asiamah Adjei, Deputy Minister of Trade & Industry, who also encouraged all qualified SMEs to take advantage of this initiative in order to build and scale their businesses.
All qualified applicants can apply to by completing a registration form via the GEA website: https://gea.gov.gh/getp/smegrowth.
On Tuesday, 20th December 2022, the Board, Management, and Staff of the Ghana Enterprises Agency held an End of Year Thanksgiving Service at the Saint James Catholic Church in Accra to express gratitude to God for His bountiful blessings on the Agency within the year.
Clad in white, the staff sang, prayed, and danced to show appreciation to God for how far He has sustained and protected them in 2022.
Mrs. Kosi Yankey-Ayeh, the CEO of the Agency, said the thanksgiving service was an opportunity to express gratitude to God for His blessings and commended the Staff for their efforts and commitment to the Agency’s mandate to promote and develop the Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) sector in Ghana.
Mrs. Kosi Yankey-Ayeh further used the opportunity to thank all stakeholders for their continuous support and reiterated the Agency's support in churning out innovative interventions to the sustainable growth of the MSMEs Sector.
The Ghana Enterprises Agency in partnership with the German Cooperation's 'Invest for Jobs' (an initiative of the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development), is implementing a Women SME Innovation Programme – Digitalize for Jobs.
The project seeks to provide capacity-building to women-owned/led SMEs on different aspects of digitalization and how their companies can grow from its use and increase their process efficiency and competitiveness by providing access to knowledge, digital tools, and expertise in the field of digitalization and innovation management challenges. It will Create a digitalized business environment conducive to the rapid growth of SMEs in Ghana, this will ensure that they are creating jobs after the program.
The objective of this assignment is to engage an experienced and qualified individual who will help with the development of knowledge management, communication, and public relation strategy for the project and make known to the public what the Project seeks to achieve, and reach out to potential beneficiaries.
The Communications / Public Relations Consultant will be responsible for drafting and implementing the communication and publicity strategy of the Women SME Innovation Programme – Digitalize for Jobs (D4J). He/she will oversee all information circulation concerning the project
Progress report on challenges and achievement periodically as well as media and communication output.
The period of the assignment is 6 Months.
Consultant shall act under the direction of the Chief Executive Officer of GEA or an appointed Representative and report to the Lead Project Consultant. The Consultant shall be expected to provide periodic reports on activities to the Chief Executive Officer of GEA.
This is a National Assignment of utmost importance to GEA so the Consultant must have a solid technical background in communication and knowledge of the SME landscape and operational strength to undertake this work assignment without any hindrances. As such, the following are defined as minimum eligibility criteria:
The CV shall be submitted by 12:00 pm/noon (GMT) on Monday, September 12, 2022, in a sealed envelope delivered to Procurement Officer, GEA, and be clearly marked "CV for Communication & Public Relations Consultant for Women SME Innovation Programme – Digitalize For Jobs (D4J)"
Applicants may obtain further information on the requirements including the criteria of shortlisting by applying to procurementgea@gmail.com, procurement@gea.gov.gh during office hours.
The Ghana Enterprises Agency in partnership with the German Cooperation's 'Invest for Jobs' (an initiative of the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development), is implementing a Women SME Innovation Programme – Digitalize for Jobs.
The project seeks to provide capacity-building to women-owned/led SMEs on different aspects of digitalization and how their companies can grow from its use and increase their process efficiency and competitiveness by providing access to knowledge, digital tools, and expertise in the field of digitalization and innovation management challenges. It will Create a digitalized business environment conducive to the rapid growth of SMEs in Ghana, this will ensure that they are creating jobs after the program.
The main objective of this assignment is to lead the Project Implementation and Coordination of the “Women SME Innovation Programme – Digitalize for Jobs” from a technical perspective. The Lead Digital Consultant plays a key role in the successful implementation of the Project and quality assurance of the Project:
The Consultant will:
The expected deliverables for this Project will include.
The assignment is expected to be concluded over a period of up to 100 working days within a 6-month time frame from the date of commencement to the date of reporting. The Lead Consultant supports the project full-time in the implementation.
The consultant must be available for regular meetings with GEA and the Funding Partner to discuss the progress of work and further planning.
Consultant shall act under the direction of the Chief Executive Officer of GEA or an appointed Representative and report to the Project Coordinator. The Consultant shall be expected to provide periodic (monthly) reports on activities to the Chief Executive Officer of GEA.
The CV shall be submitted by 12:00 pm/noon (GMT) on Monday, September 12, 2022, in a sealed envelope delivered to Procurement Officer, GEA, and be clearly marked "CV for Lead Digital Consultant for Women SME Innovation Programme – Digitalize For Jobs (D4J)"
Applicants may obtain further information on the requirements including the criteria of shortlisting by applying to procurementgea@gmail.com, procurement@gea.gov.gh during office hours.
