ICTs and Supply Chain: The Competitiveness of Small and Medium Scale Enterprises (SMEs)
Gabriel Nyame1, Francis Ohene Boateng2, Nana Kwame Gyamfi3, Nana Yaw Asabere4
1Gabriel Nyame, Department of ICT, Apostolic University College, Kumasi Ghana.
2Francis Ohene Boateng, Department of Information Technology Education, University of Education, Winneba Ghana.
3Nana Kwame Gyamfi, Department of Computer Science, Kumasi Polytechnic, Kumasi Ghana.
4Nana Yaw Asabere, Department of Computer Science, Accra Polytechnic, Accra Ghana.
Manuscript received on 10 July 2013 | Revised Manuscript received on 18 July 2013 | Manuscript Published on 30 July 2013 | PP: 203-209 | Volume-3 Issue-2, July 2013 | Retrieval Number: B0972073213/13©BEIESP
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© The Authors. Blue Eyes Intelligence Engineering and Sciences Publication (BEIESP). This is an open access article under the CC-BY-NC-ND license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/)
Abstract: The number of Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) operating in the Adum Central Business District (CBD) of Kumasi, Ghana continues to grow at an increasing rate, but still they do not conform to the right standards and appropriate parameters. No matter what business activities they embark on some Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) can be effectively used to enhance their operations. This paper finds out the adequacy of dissemination of ICTs and its level of deployment in the operations of SMEs of trade businesses in the Adum CBD and establishes the level of awareness of computers and their related technologies among owner-managers. In order to do an in-depth assessment of the situation, the CBD was put into zones A, B, and C and enterprises were selected at random. Interview procedures and administered questionnaires were used to obtain data for analysis. In effect, the study established that though the level of awareness is high, only 23% of these SMEs use computers whilst 49% use mobile phones to support their businesses. Also, 54% of these enterprises do not have access to the Internet. Thus, the exploitation and deployment of ICTs remain a greater challenge to these enterprises. It is recommended that the Ministry of Trade and Industry and other stakeholders organize programmes to enlighten owner-managers on the prospects of using ICTs to gain competitive advantage. In addition, the ICT industry must be revamped and freed from bottlenecks surrounding access to hardware and software.
Keywords: Awareness, Competitiveness, Digital Enterprise ICTs, Owner-Managers, SMEs, Supply Chain.
Scope of the Article: Small Batch Manufacturing