BY Mildred Siabi-Mensah
Takoradi, Oct.27, GNA – Mr. Frank Bednar, Managing Director of the West Africa Mills Company, (WAMco), has encouraged the 22 SMEs under the SNV, AGI, Duapa Werkspace B2B Tour to make regulatory compliance and safety issues utmost in their production line.
“Quality is something that you have to really prove every day if you want to be ahead of competitors and become the reference point in your chosen business.
Mr. Bednar said this when he hosted the team of young business professionals at the factory for firsthand interaction on their operations and how they could explore areas of collaboration for growth.
The B2B Tour, spearheaded by Duapa Werkspace and AGI, is sponsored by the SNV Ghana to create market linkages between the SMEs and already established industries in the Region.
Mr. Bednar narrated the tough times the company had to endure between 2014 and 2017 and how resilience and strategic partnerships had led to the revival of one of the two factories of the company.
He talked to the SMEs about technology and modification of tools in the factory to meet current socio-economic trends in business which would ensure that appropriate technologies inured to the overall profitability of the company.
The Managing Director said: “We want to drive these changes in line with renewable energy solutions to save cost, increase employment levels and expand market shares as we await our Certification into the African Continental Free Trade Area Programme.
Mr. Erasmus Ackon, the Chief Executive Officer of Duapa Werkspace, a Business Incubation Centre, said the trip was to display excellence in business practices from other industries in the Region for the young business owners to learn from.
He said, “We have really learnt a lot by observation during the tour of your facility and how standards and quality measures are top-notch, and we promise to incorporate bits and pieces into all activities to improve business performance.”
Mr. Albert Ababio, the Western Regional Manager for AGI described the tour as an eye-opener for the SMEs.
The team later visited and toured the production facility of GKV Investment, a virgin coconut oil producer situated at Eshiem in the Region.
There, Mr. Erasmus Nunoo, noted how in his quest to find solution to his high sugar/glucose levels was introduced to the coconut oil and why he decided to set up a factory in that field to promote the consumption of the product for health benefits.
The Business, he mentioned had received support from the SNV Ghana and the GIZ to retool aside collaboration with regulatory authorities for the necessary certification and standards.
Mr Nunoo thus encouraged the businesses to continue to explore areas of mutual interest to sustain their business irrespective of the economic turbulence.
GNA