Italy has pledged more financial support to players in the Ghanaian private sector to enhance their growth.
The move is also intended to afford the small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in particular the opportunity to create more job avenues.
The Italian Foreign Affairs Minister, Madam Emma Bonino, made the pledge when she paid a visit to Phastor Limited, a leading concrete products and roofing sheets manufacturer in the country.
Phastor Limited was chosen because the company is one of the beneficiaries of the Ghana Private Sector Development Facility (GPSDF), a programme of the Italian Development Co-operation under the Ministry of Trade and Industry.
The Italian government has since 2004 granted loans amounting to 30 million euros through the GPSDF to support the private sector and 20 million euros has so far been disbursed to 54 companies in Ghana.
Madam Bonino said Italy was one of Ghana’s strong allies and was prepared to help grow the private sector to enable it to play a meaningful role in the growth of the economy.
Welcoming the Italian Foreign Minister, the Managing Director of Phastor Limited, Mr John Stephen Sam, said the company secured a loan of 257,000 euros from GPSDF in 2005 to undertake expansion works.
He said through the loan facility, the company acquired a pre-stress beam machine, a culvert pipe machine and paving/building blocks machines, which had enabled the company to produce quality and standard products.
‘Before the loan, we had engaged about 50 members of staff but now we have about 150. We have also started exporting our products to neighboring countries,” he said, and added, “The company is also a proud recipient of two major awards which include the “Input Supplier of the Year (2013) Awards”.
The company also received an award for its sterling contribution to the building sector at the Ghana Business and Financial Services Awards.