BusinessEconomyGhanaHotels & Catering

Hotels in Ghana face prospect of more layoffs

Hoteliers are calling on the government to let them tap in to the GHC600 million fund set up to cushion businesses in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic

More workers in the hotel industry risk being laid off in the coming weeks, the Ghana Hotels Association (GHA) has said. The president of the association, Edward Ackah-Nyamekeh, says hotels are struggling to stay afloat under the continuing weight of COVID-19.

He is therefore urging the government to allow them access to the Coronavirus Alleviation Programme Business Support Scheme (CAPBuSS), the stimulus package of GHC600 million set aside to cushion small and medium-sized businesses.

Speaking on 3FM’s Sunrise morning show, Dr Ackah-Nyamekeh explained that many hotels are still struggling hard because of the pandemic.

“Two months after the applications [to CAPBuSS] commenced, we are yet to receive anything and the two months after the applications means five months in to the pandemic,” he said.

“We have been on the roof shouting but the excuse that we have been given is that they started with the microbusinesses – those who requested for GHC1,000 and GHC1,500.”

Direction of redundancy

Dr Ackah-Nyamekeh said the government’s failure to support hotels with funds from the stimulus package could lead to further layoffs.

The National Board for Small-Scale Industries (NBSSI) is in charge of the GHC600 million stimulus package to businesses affected by the pandemic. However, the Ghana Hotels Association believes the NBSSI has been too slow in disbursing the money.

“They are also talking of the numbers that applied, hundreds of thousands, and so they are having to move in phases,” Dr Ackah-Nyamekeh said.

“Right from the beginning we said the idea of giving the NBSSI that money to share was a non-starter. They promised that once you get the application in two weeks, you will get the disbursement, but two months and no show.

“As we speak now, some of the hotels are talking of redundancy. From March up to June, we all played the wait-and-see game, that maybe government will come in, but it is becoming obvious.”

Eligibility criteria

The government-backed coronavirus stimulus package is intended to cushion micro, small and medium-sized enterprise (MSMEs).

Businesses in nine sectors overall are earmarked to benefit, having been severely affected by the lockdown and its spillover into business. The beneficiary areas are health care and pharmaceuticals, manufacturing, agriculture/agribusiness, water and sanitation, tourism and hospitality, education, textiles and garments, commerce or trade, and services.

The executive director of the NBSSI, Kosi Yankey-Ayeh, announced in May that all applicants must first meet the eligibility criteria.

Businesses must show proof of membership of a recognised association or trade group, or proof of registration with the NBSSI, before they would be able to access the stimulus package, she said.

E A Alanore

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Source
3news
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