The Association of Ghana Industries (AGI), has expressed worry over the prevailing high interest rates charged by the banks, which it says, is suffocating small-scale and medium enterprises.
Mr. Robert Kwakye Nketia, Ashanti and Brong-Ahafo Zonal Manager, said most of the local businesses were under-performing largely because they �simply cannot access bank credit�.
He said that would have to change to enable the private sector to become the main pillar - anchoring the growth of the nation�s economy.
Financial institutions must take steps to make credit more affordable, he said at an annual general meeting of the association in Kumasi.
�Accessing credit facility from other sources� was the theme.
Mr. Nketia noted that interest rates in the country ranked as one of the highest in the West African sub-region, something, he said, was making Ghanaian companies uncompetitive.
He said deliberate efforts must therefore be made to bring down the cost of doing business to give the local companies competitive edge over their counterparts in the sub-region.
The AGI Zonal Manager also complained about frequent power outages and said that was affecting the operation of businesses and productivity.
He said priority should be given to finding solution to the energy crisis to bring stability to the nation�s power supply.
Mr. James Asare Adjei, President of the AGI, in a speech read for him, said the Association would continue to focus efforts on building the capacity of its members to aid them to stick to good business practices.
He described the general business environment in the country as not encouraging, citing high inflation, unaffordable credit and the lack of ready market for locally-manufactured products.
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