The United Nations Capital Development Fund (UNCDF), in partnership with the United Nations Resident Coordinator's Office, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), and the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), has convened donors, investors, and financial service providers to showcase five market-ready digital financial solutions designed to expand access to finance for women entrepreneurs and youth-led micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs) across Ghana.Held in commemoration of Micro, Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (MSMEs) Day, the event, themed “Beyond the Blueprint: Putting Digital Finance to Work for MSMEs,” highlighted how innovative finance, digital solutions and strategic partnerships can help overcome persistent barriers to finance.  MSMEs account for approximately 92 percent of businesses in Ghana, provide nearly 80 percent of employment, and contribute around 60 percent of the country's Gross Domestic Product (GDP). Yet many enterprises, particularly those owned by women and young people, continue to face significant challenges in accessing affordable capital due to stringent lending requirements, high interest rates, and limited collateral.The event formed part of the Joint SDG Fund Programme on Leveraging Digital Ecosystems for Increased MSME Productivity, a three-year initiative aimed at strengthening Ghana's digital economy and improving access to financial services for underserved businesses.Five Innovative Solutions Ready for ScaleDuring the event, five financial institutions competitively selected for the programme's first phase presented fully developed and tested digital financial solutions tailored to the needs of MSMEs. Fido is developing a digital lending product designed specifically for small businesses; Adehyeman Savings and Loans, in partnership with Oze, a Ghanaian fintech startup specializing in digital recordkeeping and financial services for MSMEs, is introducing rural savings and loan products supported by digital credit scoring technology; Mobile Money Limited is developing merchant services and digital bookkeeping solutions for MSME agents; Solis Finance is building a digital savings and loans platform targeting informal enterprises and; Opportunity International is expanding microfinance products tailored for women and youth-led businesses. The solutions were developed to address key barriers that limit MSMEs growth, including access to credit, financial management, savings opportunities, and business expansion support.Moving from Innovation to ImpactWhile the event celebrated the successful development and validation of these prototypes, the focus now shifts to implementation and scale.Under the next phase of the programme, the two top-performing institutions will each receive up to US$200,000 in catalytic funding to pilot and expand their solutions, providing an opportunity for development partners and investors to support innovations capable of transforming financial inclusion for Ghana's entrepreneurs.For thousands of entrepreneurs operating within Ghana's informal economy, improved access to finance can enable entrepreneurs to invest, expand their businesses, create jobs and strengthen local economic growth.Building a More Inclusive Digital EconomyThe event highlighted the importance of collaboration among development partners, financial service providers, investors, and innovators in advancing inclusive economic growth.As Ghana continues its digital transformation journey, initiatives such as the Joint SDG Fund Programme demonstrate how catalytic finance and technology-driven financial solutions can help bridge financing gaps and create new opportunities for women and youth entrepreneurs who remain underserved by traditional financial systems."Beyond the Blueprint" served as a reminder that innovation creates meaningful impact only when it reaches those who need it most. By bringing together builders, partners, and donors, the programme is helping turn digital finance solutions into real opportunities for Ghana's MSMEs and paving the way for a more inclusive and resilient economy.About the Event The event was co-organised by UNCDF Ghana and the United Nations Resident Coordinator's Office, in collaboration with UNDP and UNCTAD, under the Joint SDG Fund Programme on Leveraging Digital Ecosystems for Increased MSME Productivity, which seeks to strengthen digital ecosystems and improve productivity, access to finance, and economic opportunities for MSMEs across Ghana.

The United Nations in Ghana today released its 2025 Annual Results Report, documenting a year of meaningful progress across poverty reduction, health, education, food security, and peacebuilding, even as constrained global financing and a new government transition created headwinds for development delivery.Working alongside the Government of Ghana, civil society, the private sector, and development partners, the UN Country Team deployed USD 113.3 million in programmatic expenditure against USD 140.8 million in available resources, achieving an 80% delivery rate, up from 64.6% in 2024."What stands out clearly is the strength of collaboration," says the UN Resident Coordinator in Ghana, H.E. Zia Choudhury. "The UN system in Ghana increasingly works as one team, bringing together different mandates and areas of expertise to support national priorities." He noted that the UN Country Team remains fully committed to supporting Ghana's development ambitions, from strengthening resilient institutions to unlocking the financing needed to accelerate progress on the SDGs.The Coordinating Director of the Ministry of Finance emphasized Ghana's vision for a more mature partnership with the UN, shifting from traditional aid to strategic co-investments that support long-term development. He noted that, as fiscal stability improves, priorities are shifting toward youth employment, agricultural transformation, climate resilience, and stronger social protection systems. He also emphasized the importance of innovative financing, public-private partnerships, technology and data-driven solutions. “We will continue to provide the necessary fiscal leadership and enabling environment to ensure that our partnership with the United Nations flourishes.” He stated. Report HighlightsPoverty and Human DevelopmentUN-supported efforts contributed to a significant reduction in multidimensional poverty, falling from 24.9% in the fourth quarter of 2024 to 21.9% in the third quarter of 2025, representing approximately 950,000 people moving out of poverty. Maternal mortality improved from a baseline of 310 to 234 deaths per 100,000 live births, and child marriage rates declined from 19% to 16.1%.Health and EducationThe UN supported nationwide HPV vaccination, reaching approximately 1.8 million girls, and deployed 1.8 million doses of cholera vaccine and 33,000 doses of Mpox vaccines in high-risk areas. Viral load testing for people living with HIV increased from 50% to 63%, with over 90% suppression rate achieved. In education, more than 41,000 young people accessed Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET), and 79,000 learners benefited from improved teaching materials.Climate Resilience and LivelihoodsUN-supported efforts contributed to reducing ozone-depleting substances consumption by 85%, surpassing the 74% target, and restored over 13,000 hectares of degraded land, including 300,000 trees and 30,000 mangroves planted. Over 30,000 farm and fisheries value-chain actors, 59% women, received support to strengthen productivity and financial resilience, yielding USD 283,000 in additional revenue and USD 4 million in savings.Peace and SecurityWith UN support, Ghana's immigration service expanded border patrols from 12 to 22 kilometres per day, with response times under 30 minutes. The UN trained 1,203 stakeholders in early warning and conflict management, reached 100,000 radio listeners with peace messaging, and supported registration of 3,875 newly arrived Burkinabè refugees, contributing to a total refugee and asylum-seeker population of 32,410.Financing and PartnershipsThe Government of Ghana remains the UN’s most important partner, alongside a broad network of development partners. The UN implemented seven joint programmes and developed four new ones, including initiatives on climate-resilient value chains, AI-enabled health systems, and child labour elimination.Looking AheadLooking ahead to 2026, the UN will continue to work closely with the Government of Ghana to deliver on current priorities while advancing the next Cooperation Framework.”Three priorities will guide collective action: peace, security, and stabilization; food systems, nutrition, and health; and digitalization as a cross-cutting enabler.The report also acknowledges the impact of the UN80 reform agenda, which may result in changes to entity configurations and a more constrained funding environment. The UNCT has committed to engaging transparently with staff, Government, and partners as these changes unfold.The full report is available at Ghana.un.org

The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP), in partnership with the Lions Clubs International Foundation (LCIF) and World Food Program USA, today launched a pilot Home-Grown School Feeding (HGSF) project aimed at improving child nutrition and strengthening local food systems in two districts in Ghana.The pilot programme will be implemented in Karaga District in the Northern Region and Sekyere Central in the Ashanti Region, reaching 33,598 kindergarten and primary school children in approximately 100 selected schools. Through this project, children will receive safe, nutritious, and locally produced meals daily, helping to reduce short-term hunger and improve learning outcomes. At the core of the project is a home‑grown approach, which prioritizes the procurement of food from local farmers and suppliers. By building structured linkages between schools, smallholder farmers, aggregators, and local markets, the programme not only enhances children’s diets but also creates reliable demand for locally produced food, strengthens rural livelihoods, and stimulates local economies. “This partnership between the World Food Program USA and the Lions Clubs International Foundation is both timely and impactful, as it strengthens the home-grown school feeding approach by increasing farmer participation, creating market opportunities, and enabling schools to provide diverse and nutritious meals” said Ms. Aurore Rusiga, WFP Ghana Country Director and Representative. Funded jointly by LCIF and World Food Program USA, the initiative underscores a shared commitment to addressing child hunger, improving nutrition, and supporting inclusive economic development. The project is also aligned with national priorities to enhance the effectiveness and sustainability of the Ghana School Feeding Programme (GSFP).A representative from the Lions Clubs International Foundation highlighted the importance of the partnership:“Lions are driven by service, and for generations, our members have worked with communities around the world to help children and families access the nutritious food they need,” said Fabrício Oliveira, chairperson of Lions Clubs International Foundation. “We are proud to expand our collaboration with WFP, strengthening our shared commitment to people facing hunger and food insecurity by serving side by side and delivering sustainable solutions that nourish children today while strengthening local farmers and communities for the future.”  The project will be implemented in close collaboration with Lions Club District 418 and key government stakeholders, including the Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Protection and the Ghana School Feeding Programme Secretariat, ensuring strong national ownership and coordination.Through this pilot, WFP and partners aim to demonstrate a scalable model that not only improves access to nutritious meals for schoolchildren but also strengthens local food systems and contributes to long-term community resilience.LCIF and World Food Program USA first supported WFP homegrown school feeding through a four-country pilot project ending in 2025. Today’s announcement is part of a new three-year, $12 million joint commitment, with both organizations contributing $2 million each year. World Food Program USA is a nonprofit organization based in the United States that supports WFP’s mission by mobilizing American policymakers, businesses and individuals to advance the global movement to end hunger. LCIF is the global foundation supporting 1.4 million members of Lions Clubs International through grant funds that empower their service at home and around the world.

Senior leaders of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) from across Africa gathered in Accra today for the opening of the 15th FAO Regional Management Team (RMT15) Meeting, with a strong focus on innovation, improving efficiency, accelerating delivery and scaling impact for Members across the continent.Held under the theme Driving Efficiency for Delivery and Impact: Innovate. Accelerate. Scale, the three-day meeting brings together senior leaders from FAO headquarters, FAO Representatives from across Africa, Subregional Coordinators, and Regional Office teams to examine how the Organization can strengthen performance and deliver more effectively in an increasingly complex operating environment.Opening the session, FAO Deputy Director-General Godfrey Magwenzi highlighted Africa’s central role in the Organization’s future success and global relevance."Africa is where many pressures converge most visibly and where FAO must show that it can deliver with ambition, discipline and innovation. In this context, Africa is central to FAO's relevance, credibility and future impact," he said. "If we can demonstrate effective, coherent and scalable delivery in Africa, we strengthen the organization as a whole."FAO Deputy Director-General Maurizio Martina underscored the importance of organizational coherence and integrated delivery in achieving greater impact.“If FAO is to scale its impact in Africa, we must strengthen our ability to deliver as one integrated system, avoiding duplication, shortening decision chains and operating as one coherent institution, as One FAO,” Martina said.Deputy Director-General Beth Bechdol echoed the message that delivery matters more than ever and that FAO needs to deliver with greater speed and coordination. “Success is not measured by securing resources but how effectively we turn those resources into results,” she said. Ghana hosts top continental meetingRepresenting the host country, the Deputy Minister for Food and Agriculture of Ghana, Hon. John Dumelo welcomed participants to Ghana and highlighted that agriculture is at the centre of Ghana’s transformation agenda. “Let us use this meeting to renew our collective commitment to delivery. Let us ensure that our work brings real change to farmers, fishers, processors, youth and disadvantaged communities,” he said.The Minister for Fisheries and Aquaculture Development of Ghana, Hon. Emilia Arthur, emphasized the importance of strong partnerships and praised the collaboration with FAO. She urged participants to "innovate boldly, accelerate delivery and scale what works". African Union Commissioner Moses Vilakati, joining the meeting online, emphasized that partnerships are essential for progress, and that Africa must prioritise inclusive and climate-smart agriculture.  “We call on FAO and all partners to strengthen collaboration and coordination and support implementation on the ground with speed and scale,” he said.Keynote address urges concrete actionIn his keynote address, FAO Assistant Director-General and Regional Representative for Africa, Abebe Haile-Gabriel, challenged participants to focus on concrete actions at all levels of the Organization, outlining five priority areas:Firstly, sharper prioritization, ensuring that management attention and resources are focused on the activities that matter most for delivery and impact.Second, stronger portfolio oversight, enabling managers to identify implementation challenges, emerging risks and critical decisions earlier and more systematically.Third, earlier escalation of bottlenecks and clearer ownership of problems, emphasizing the importance of timely action and accountability.Fourth, learning more deliberately from country experiences, identifying successful approaches and adapting them across the region to improve performance at scale.Finally, he stressed the need for stronger follow-through, ensuring that decisions are translated into action and that progress is tracked more rigorously.“When we prioritize better, monitor more intelligently, escalate earlier, learn faster and follow through more rigorously, then we will improve delivery where it matters most: at country level,” he said.FAO delivering better for AfricaThe Regional Management Team Meeting comes at a pivotal moment for FAO in Africa as the Organization works to deliver on the FAO Strategic Framework 2022–2031 amid declining core resources and growing levels of hunger and malnutrition.Over the next three days, discussions will focus on key areas including: operational effectiveness, people and leadership, analytics and evidence, supply-chain management, risk-smart management and fiduciary oversight, and measuring results that matter to Members and partners.The programme also includes sessions on FAO’s flagship initiatives, including the Hand-in-Hand Initiative, One Country One Priority Product, Digital Villages and Green Cities, as well as discussions on gender, youth, monitoring and evaluation, science and innovation, and preparations for the 4th FAO Global Working Conference which will be hosted in Accra in December.