AMEX provided assistance in Ghana as part of the Trade and Investment Reform Program (TIRP). This assistance resulted in the establishment of 2,122 business linkages and over 1,500 instances in which managerial and technical constraints were reduced thanks to support provided by AMEX. In addition, a total of 1,818 Ghanaian firm operators were trained, contributing to increased export earnings of US$63.31 million in the Agriculture/Agribusiness sector, US$14.74 million in the value-added wood sector, and US$13.56 million in the garment/handicraft sector. Overall, technical assistance from project staff produced increases in management capacity, production and marketing, and in the use of improved technologies.
AMEX implemented a pyramidal, three-level strategy to achieve the mission’s Increased Private Enterprise Performance objectives, linking the Ghanaian small and medium-size enterprises with international markets, improving production quality control, and fostering cluster building, grouping product association subsector support, and building sectoral alliances. Work was carried out with exporters of agricultural, horticultural, and value-added wood products, as well as garments, textiles, and handicrafts.
AMEX provided various services, including in-plant and on-farm advisory services to increase operating efficiency and decrease costs; assistance in identifying appropriate production and processing technologies and adapting them to actual practices and procedures; training in quality control programs, such as ISO 9000 and HACCP certification requirements; business planning and investment, with assistance in management improvements; training in basic business and administrative procedures; product and market research; product costing and pricing; cash flow forecasting and analysis; and business plan preparation. Other services included pre-feasibility analyses; identification of joint-venture partners; assistance in structuring joint ventures; assistance in sourcing loan and equity funds; and support to firms preparing bankable projects.
