UN in Ghana and Partners Convene to Drive Next Phase of MSME Digital Transformation in Ghana

Building on the progress of the Joint SDG Digital Transformation (High-Impact) Programme, the UN in Ghana and its stakeholders convened for the second Project Steering Committee meeting to assess achievements, strategize for the year ahead, and finalize the 2026 Annual Work Plan.

Launched in September 2024 as a joint UN initiative involving the United Nations Capital Development Fund (UNCDF), the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), the project is now entering a pivotal phase of its 2024–2027 goal: to have MSMEs, especially women and youth-led and those from the informal sector, grow and increase resilience via an inclusive digital economy, strengthen digital skills and financial health.

Speaking on the joint programme, the UN Resident Coordinator, H.E. Zia Choudhury, commended the agencies involved and emphasized that the real value of a joint programme such as this is “shared ownership, shared contribution, and shared results. While it requires coordination and consensus, this collaboration ultimately leads to more sustainable and impactful outcomes.”

The Director of Small and Medium Enterprises (SME) at the Ministry of Trade, Agribusiness and Industry, Mrs. Cynthia Djokoto, stressed that collective action is essential to addressing key challenges within the MSMEs sector, particularly access to markets, finance, and digital tools.

Some of the key achievements of the programme to date include the formal validation of the Ghana National E-commerce Strategy in 2025, as well as the operationalization of the MSME Digital Gateway—a national platform co-developed with GI-KACE and the Ghana Enterprises Agency (GEA). The platform, soft-launched during MSME Day 2025 and now live in beta, centralizes MSME access to business formalization services, financial literacy content, advisory support, and a marketplace for e-commerce integration.

So far, the project is on course to create a transformative and sustainable impact in Ghana’s MSME landscape by building enduring resilience and growth for some 25,000 MSMEs.

The steering committee comprises the Ministry of Trade, Agribusiness and Industry, the Resident Coordinator’s Office, UNCDF, UNDP, UNCTAD, government institutions, the Civil Society Platform on SDGs, as well as the European Union.