By Christabel DANSO ABEAM
The Head of Marketing and Brand at Ecobank Ghana, Regina Ofori, has described the empowerment of women-led small and medium enterprises (SMEs) as a strategic economic imperative rather than a corporate social responsibility (CSR) initiative.
She said women entrepreneurs remain central to Ghana’s economic transformation, particularly in agribusiness, where they dominate value chains from production to distribution, but continue to face structural barriers that limit their growth potential.
Ms. Ofori made the remarks at the third edition of the Women in Business Dialogue Series held in Kumasi under the theme “From Market-to-Market Leader: Empowering Women SMEs and Young Women in Agribusiness for Sustainable Growth.”
She noted that addressing constraints such as limited access to finance, technical capacity gaps and restricted market linkages is critical to enabling women-led businesses to scale beyond subsistence levels.
According to her, Ecobank is positioning itself beyond traditional banking to act as an orchestrator of growth for women entrepreneurs across the continent.
“Through our Ellevate by Ecobank Programme, we have proven that capital alone is insufficient. True market leadership requires a ‘Plus’ factor—knowledge, access and innovation,” she said.
Ms. Ofori stressed that women-led SMEs have a far-reaching impact on economic development, noting that their growth extends beyond business performance to community transformation.
“When women prosper, the multiplier effect is unmatched. When a woman-led SME scales, it doesn’t just increase a balance sheet; it transforms a community, educates a generation, and builds a more resilient, inclusive economy,” she added.
She urged women entrepreneurs to shift their focus from survival-driven operations to scalable enterprises, positioning themselves as market leaders rather than just business owners.
The Women in Business (WIB) forum seeks to position women—particularly market traders, smallholder farmers, agro-processors and artisans—as key drivers of Ghana’s agrifood economy while addressing the persistent structural barriers limiting their expansion.
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