Small Scale Industries and Services

Most of the SSI’s are agro based - 54% The predominant mode of skills acquisition is apprenticeship training All SSI’s are owned either individually or by family members 60% of SSI’s finance their business from own sources Products of SSI’s are mainly sold within the  Most SSI’s do not keep record Most SSI’s obtain their raw material.

TYPES OF SMALL SCALE INDUSTRIES

Information collected from twenty-two settlements  shows that there are four main small-scale and non- farm production activities. These four categories and the proportion of peoples involvement in each category is shown in table one. These are Agro-processing, agricultural and forest products, primary fabrication and services.

Fifty-four percent (54%) of the establishments interviewed are into Agro-processing. These include soapmaking, Pito Brewing, Chop bar operators and Gari processing. The next major group is the service sector. This constitutes twenty three percent (23%) of the small-scale industrial sector. They are made up of mainly Tailors, dressmakers, hairdressers and traders of agricultural products.

The primary fabrication sector, which also constitutes Carpenters, Mechanics, Blacksmiths, Welders and Auto Electricians also, constituted fourteen percent (14%) of the districts small-scale industries. The agricultural and forest products which also constitutes Beekeeping, snail rearing, Mushroom cultivation and Poultry farming also constituted nine percent.

Table one indicates the number and types of small-scale industries in the Municipality.The next section will focus on the particular features of the owners, their problems and potentials. The survey, which covered twenty-two industries, was conducted in twenty-two settlements.The types of industries surveyed are show in table two.

SEX AND QUALIFICATION

Seventy-two percent (72%) of the entrepreneurs interviewed were females and eighteen percent (18%) were males. With regard to skill acquisition eighty percent (80%) get their training through apprenticeship, ten percent (10%) through vocational training and ten percent (10%) through technical workshops. This shows that the major form of skill acquisition is through apprenticeship either directly or indirectly through the family line.

All enterprises are owned individually or by family members. The practice of partnership and other forms of organization were not reported. Sixty-three percent (63%) of these SSI interviewed served a total number of one to five clients. Eleven percent (11%) served six to ten clients and twenty-six percent (26%) served more than fifteen clients.

Sixty percent (60%) of the SSI is interview pays taxes or levy, whiles forty percent (40%) do not pay any form of levy or tax. Sixty-two percent (62%) of these SSI pays a tax or levy below ¢10,000 per month.

MARKETING OF SSI PRODUCTS

Most SSI owners sell their products at their work sites and directly to theircustomers. Information collected about marketing outlets of small non-farm enterprises shows that the products of all the establishments interviewed are sold in different settlements within the Municipality and also other projects are sold at their work sites and directly to their customers.

Fifty-three percent (53%) of the SSI’s interviewed do not belong to any trade association whiles the remaining forty-seven SSI are members of a trade association. The survey also indicated that ninety-six percent (96%) of SSI’s obtain their raw materials within the Nkoranza South while only four percent (4%) of the SSI obtain their raw material. This is due to the fact that most of the SSI’s are agro based.

RECORDS KEEPING AND MEMBERSHIP OF ASSOCIATION

Eighty-eight percent (88%) of the SSI interviewed do not keep records of any sort about their activities whiles twelve percent (12%) keep records.

PROBLEMS OF SMALL SCALE INDUSTRIES

As demonstrated in the foregoing discussion, these small enterprises have many functions such as: mobilising small savings and channeling them into production, generating jobs, diversifying market potentials and serving as schools from which skills of entrepreneurship and professionalism are disseminated. They are mostly dependent on local resources and hence contribute substantially to local development. However their growth is constrained by several problems which are enumerated below.

Raw Materials

Most small Scale Entrepreneurs in the municipality complain of non-availability, seasonally and high cost of raw materials as a problem. Enterprises such as soap making, batik and tie-dye making and dressmakers have to travel to Kumasi to buy their raw materials. Those enterprises which are agro based such as gari processing and pito brewing finds it difficult to acquire their raw materials during the lean season.
 
Finance

Most enterprises  do not have adequate capital to enable them expand their enterprises to enable them enjoy economies of scale. Entrepreneurs who have acquired skills in profitable ventures also finds it difficult having money to start their own ventures.

Marketing

SSI’s also face the problem of ready market. Due to the smallness of the population, entrepreneurs who produce on a large scale finds it difficult selling all their products. This is extremely severe in the town which are far from the  capital.

Transportation

Most of the roads in the municipality are in a deplorable state. Entrepreneurs find it extremely difficult conveying their raw materials and products to their production sites and marketing centres. Most of the roads are virtually unmotrable during the rainy season.

Potentials

There are a lot of raw materials such as watermelon, maize and cassava available abundantly in the municipality at low prices which can be processed for sale. Through the activities of government, non-governmental organizations and financial institutions there are a lot of credit lines available to credit worthy entrepreneurs. 

The Nkoranza South abounds in a lot of master craftsmen with knowledge in improved technologies which can be transformed into profitable ventures when given the necessary support. With the proposed project of constructing the Ejura- Jema Junction trunk road. This will help open up  to the southern and northern sector of the country hence expanding the market size of entrepreneurs in the municipality.

   NYEP

Skills and Entrepreneurial Development
Youth Employment Scheme

The youth employment scheme has the broad objective of empowering the youth to be able to contribute more productively towards the socio-economic and sustainable development of the nation. It also has specific objectives as:

1. Identifying projects with economic potential that can generate enormous employment for youth;
2. Checking the drift of the youth from the rural to urban communities in search of jobs by creating those opportunities in the rural areas;
3. Creating employment opportunities for the youth through self-employment, and
4. Inculcating into the youth, a sense of patriotism, self-discipline and hard work so as to promote good morals and help reduce deviance.

Four programmes were initiated out of the ten modules under the Youth Employment Scheme. The programmes that were initiated were:

Community Protection Systems

The Community Protection Units in the district comprised of young men and women who were engaged to support law enforcement agencies in maintaining law and order and keeping peace. They received their basic training in community protection. The members of the CPS were to be provided with uniforms and basic accessories. They were also to be permanently engaged in this scheme with reasonable remuneration that does not compete with that of the regular law enforcement agencies. The above were however not true in this case and posed as a problem. The reason for this is due to the fact that the remuneration and basic accessories to these personnel were not forth coming hence most of the youth  employed under the scheme were quitting.   

Waste and Sanitation Management Corps

The corps was enforced to assist the District Environmental and Health Teams as well as heads of any other institutions, community leaders and non-governmental organizations that have an interest to maintain a clean healthy environment for their constituents. The day-to-day activities include cleaning, collecting of garbage, spraying of gutters and small water bodies to get rid of mosquitoes and other germs and diseases and also desilting of drains and gutters and  in the district , the corps do the daily inspections.  

Rural Education Teachers Assistants

The young men and women in this area were generally involved in the teaching of pre- and basic school level pupils. These young men and women work with trained teachers. Those who were selected as beneficiaries were young men and women who had met the requisite educational qualifications such as basic passes at the SHS level and are of good character and committed to working with the programme for at least one year. In the district not all but some of the SHS graduates who are recognized as hard working and intelligent are recruited this is because of the scarce resources of the district assembly to support every SHS graduate in the district.

Auxiliary Nursing Assistants

These assistants help professional health service providers with basic support activities such as basic nursing and generally being available in the absence of the health professionals to give first aid services. They also undertake public health education and hygiene campaigns at the community levels. Those who were however selected into this category were SHS and JHS or technical institutes who have basic aptitude and analytical ability. They usually fell within the youth age brackets, hailed from the communities and/or were committed to working in the communities to which they were assigned.
     
The scheme is however, faced with a number of problems which include delay in payment of allowance and no incentives for those who want to further their education in the in-formal sector. These were however due to situations such as non-adherence to proper financial management practices, ineffective monitoring and evaluating mechanisms, personality problems, favouritisms and nepotism.

It is recommended that the government of should mechanized their allowances so that they can also contribute to the government’s chest e.g. SSNIT contribution, deduction of income tax etc.

Skills Developed

Beneficiaries in the teaching field acquire the skill impacting knowledge 
Beneficiaries gain the spirit of commitment  
Gain the ability to render good service.

UPDATE ON CRITICAL 
DEVELOPMENT AND POVERTY ISSUES

The National Youth Employment Program (NYEP) The NYEP was implemented in the Nkoranza District after its launch in 2006.  The District envisages a youth employment target of 1,286 in 2009.  Table 3.1 provides information on the target achievement by work modules of the program.  The District recorded 22.1% modest achievement under the NYEP in creating employment for the youth in 2009.  The District has a 77.9% gap to cover to achieve its target of employing 1,194youth by end of 2009.

Challenges of the NYEP at the District Level The effort of the district to achieve its target is challenged by the following among others:

1. Inadequate budget allocation for the program
2. Delay in the payment of allowances / wages to the patrons of the program
3. Influx of applicants from other districts to register
4. Non implementation of other modules to which applications have been received.

These challenges are to a large extent beyond the control of the district.  It is expected that the implementation of the communication service tax, the program will be adequately resourced to cover the target population.

Free Ride Mass Transport

For School ChildrenThe Metro Mass Transport operates a shuttle service between Nkoranza, (the District Capital) Techiman and Sunyani.  Data to track the actual number of children (especially school children) benefiting from its free ride was lacking.  However, indications were that school children shuttling between communities along the transit route of the Metro Mass Transport (MMT).

Incentives for Business

Development in the DistrictNkoranza District Assembly offers some kind of incentives to business entities coming into the district.  These incentives are usually given businesses that promise employment generation.  These include:

• Facilitating the acquisition of land at a minimal cost.  This, for instance has been extended to the Anglican Church which wants to establish a campus at Nkoranza for its Anglican University.
• Tax rebate:  The rate is dependent on the potential number of people to be employed and the potential use of locally produced materials.
• Reduction in the chargeable rates on exportation of locally produced goods, in large quantities, eg. Yam
• Provision of credit / capital
• Creation of enabling environment for business development including, massive electrification, road construction and rehabilitation; facilitating provision of Telephone and ICT facilities.

Implementation of District

M&E Plan A three year M&E Plan to track the progress of the District Medium-Term Development Plan (DMTP) under the GPRS II has been prepared for 2006 to 2009.  it’s implementation is on course.  One of its output is this Annual Progress Report (APR).  Its implementation is however challenged by the following;

1. Inadequate funding for M&E activities
2. Inadequate logistical and equipment support 
3. Inconsistencies in some data provided by sector Departments
4. Low commitment of DPCU members
   

Draining from the above challenges, the following recommendations are made to enhance implementation of the M&E Plan.

Decentralized Departments and Agencies should be required to prepare sector APRs of the DMTDP to feed into the District APRs.There should be a vehicle allocated to the District for M&E activities.  Some of the donor funds should be channeled to the district for implementation of M&E Resource and refurbish the DPCU with ICT equipment to facilitate data analysis, storage and reporting.

The Capitation Grant

Implementation in the District Full implementation of the Capitation Grant Scheme started in the District in 2005.The scheme currently continues to play important role by increasing school participation and attendance.  However, disbursement to the District dropped over its first three year period of implementation between 2005 and 2007.The district’s total receipts for 2006 dropped from 2005 receipts by 13%; and in 2007 receipts also dropped by 51% over 2006 disbursements. It more than doubled in 2008 over the 2007 figure by 145%.  In 2009 the district received a total grant of GH¢232,950.90 which represent 54% increase over 2008 receipts. Table 3.2 shows the District’s total receipts between 2005 and 2009.

Table 8: Capitation Grant Received between 2005 and 2009
2005 (GH¢)    
2006 (GH¢)    
2007 (GH¢)    
2008 (GH¢)    
2009 (GH¢)

101,813.75    
88,519.53    
43,778.47    
107,133.00    
232,950.90

Source:  Nkoranza District 
Directorate of G.E.S, (2005-2009)

General reports from the Heads of various schools indicate that the amount is woefully inadequate, especially at the Junior High School (JHS) level.  Information gathered is that schools with low enrolment figures do not derive the full benefits of the scheme.  The suggestion made by Heads of schools is that every school should be given a minimum basic amount (equity) before the enrolment figures come to play.