SMEs Owners Trained On Capacity Building By Umb

Small and Medium Enterprise (SMEs) owners have been schooled on capacity building to strengthened their businesses to support the country economic growth by UMB.

The program held in Kumasi brought together about 400 SME owners in the Ashanti, Bono and Ahafo regions who are also customers of the Universal Merchant Bank.

UMB SME clinic is a program tailored by the bank to support its customers with requisite skills, capacity building, and facilities to increase their business.

The workshop seeks to building capacity of Small and Medium enterprise customers forms part of the company corporate responsibility to enhance customers business performances.

Mr Eryam Atsu, credit consulting director of Universal Merchant bank (UMB) in his presentation at the workshop says, "the UMB SME clinic program will help foster stronger partnership with customers, to understand the methods of analyzing their business for growth".

According to him, SME businesses form about 70% to 72% of the Gross Domestic Products (GDP) on the country economic drive's, and support to elevates unemployment rates.

He said the training will equip customers with tools and factors to enhances SMEs business such as performing, bookkeeping, quality management factors, among others.

In his presentation, Mr. Eryam Atsu took participants through managing the cycle of business and highlighted on the means of cash cycles of business saying "is an integral part of every successful business to survive".

Participants were fetched with tools to master Supply risks, production risk, Demand risks, collection risks, diversion risks and management risks.

Also, Industry and impact of profitability is a place of priority to customers.

Speaking in an interview with Modern Ghana, Mr. Atsu commenting on some challenges confronting the banking sectors says the nonperforming attitudes of some customers has led to the declined of performing banks and the increase in its pricing.

"Non-performing loans in the banking sector has increased from 10% to about 18% in the country for decades now". He stated.

He added that " the increase of non-paying loans by customers has affected the pricing in the banking sector".

He, however, task business investors to develop their skills and capacity to use the Owner manager concept.

"The fact that you invest in a business does not mean, you understand the business". He stated.

Adding that, " investors should develop their capacity to manage or hire an expect for business sustainability.

He charged customers to master customer pretension, to aid them retain cash in their businesses.

According to him, UMB has set up SME centre to support local businesses grow.