← All training manualsMoney Skills for Small Business · read-onlyGet the PDF with Teacher Copy (GH¢50)
Training module · National Proficiency I · CTVET formatTrainee Manual

Money Skills for Small Business

Every trade earns money. This book helps you keep it. Avoid scams, save in a group, keep simple records, price for profit, borrow wisely, register your business, and ask for grants with a clear plan.

A savings group meeting Members of a savings group sit in a circle around a metal cash box with three padlocks. One member writes in a record book, another holds a passbook. Beside the group, a simple chart shows money growing like a plant, and a shop with an OPEN sign stands in the background. OPEN ¢¢¢¢ SAVE TOGETHER · RECORD EVERYTHINGGROW YOUR BUSINESS
Trainee name
Training centre
Start date
Trade course
Prepared by De-Graft Afful · Version 1.0.0 · October 2026
01

About this module

You learned a trade. Now learn to keep the money it earns.

Who it is for. Every hub graduate, at National Proficiency I, a bridging level for people with minimal education. Take it alongside or after your trade course.

Why money skills

  • In a trial in the Dominican Republic, simple money "rules of thumb" improved small businesses' records and revenues, while standard accounting training made no difference; the biggest gains were for people with the least schooling.
  • Business training helped people starting a business raise sales by 40% and profits by 43% in the medium term.
  • Savings groups in Ghana, Malawi and Uganda raised members' savings by about a third and the number of businesses by 6%.
02

Unit 1 · Protect your money

If someone promises to double your money quickly, run. Ghana has lost billions to such promises.

Competency standard

Learning outcome Performance criteria — the trainee…
1.1 Spot Ponzi schemes names the warning signs of "double your money" schemes
1.2 Check susu and lenders checks licences before trusting a collector or lender
1.3 Avoid MoMo fraud never shares a PIN; knows to call 292

Range. Savings, susu, schemes, loans, mobile money. Evidence. Oral questions; case discussion.

Lessons from Ghana

  • Menzgold promised returns of about 7–10% a month and is accused of taking GH¢1.68 billion from over 16,000 people.
  • DKM Microfinance advertised 55% interest on deposits for two months; the Bank of Ghana shut it in 2015.
  • God is Love Fun Club, Jastar Motors and Loom also collapsed.
  • In one study, only 31% of susu collectors were licensed by the Bank of Ghana.
  • Too good to be true? Very high returns, fast, with "no risk".
  • Pay others to join? Rewards for bringing new members.
  • No licence? Check the Bank of Ghana or SEC lists.
  • Pressure to decide now.
  • Never share your MoMo PIN or code. Call 292 (Cyber Security Authority) before sending money to anyone suspicious.

Scheme or safe?

  1. A man promises to double your money in 30 days.
  2. A licensed bank offers a savings account.
  3. A susu collector keeps your money in his personal account and lends it out.
  4. A loan app you found online has no Bank of Ghana licence.

Ask at home

Ask family members if they ever lost money to a scheme. What were the warning signs?

03

Unit 2 · Save together in a savings group

A savings group is a safe box, a small bank and an insurance fund, run by people you trust.

Competency standard

Learning outcome Performance criteria — the trainee…
2.1 Explain a VSLA explains shares, loans, social fund and share-out
2.2 Run a meeting takes part in a practice meeting with the three-lock box
2.3 Keep group records records shares in passbooks

Range. Village Savings and Loan Associations (VSLAs). Evidence. Practice meeting; passbook.

How a VSLA works

  • 15–30 people who trust each other; most members are women.
  • They elect a chairperson, secretary, treasurer and two money-counters. The cash box has three locks, and three other members each keep one key. All money moves at the weekly meeting, in front of everyone.
  • Members buy 1–5 shares each meeting, recorded with stamps in a passbook, so people who cannot read can take part.
  • Members may borrow up to three times their savings, for up to three months, with a small monthly service charge the group sets.
  • A social fund, paid by everyone equally, helps members in emergencies.
  • After about a year, all loans are repaid and the whole fund, including the earnings, is shared out according to each person's savings.

VSLAs in Ghana

Ghana had about 34,000 savings groups with about 850,000 members in 2021, mostly women; a government programme links groups to banks so members can open accounts and build a credit history. In Uganda, savings groups for persons with disabilities raised income and well-being.

Practice meeting

  1. Form a practice group; elect officers.
  2. Hold a meeting: open the three locks, buy shares, stamp passbooks.
  3. Give a practice loan and record it.
  4. Close and lock the box.

Find a group

Find a savings group near your home. Ask how it works and whether you can join.

04

Unit 3 · Keep simple records

If you don't write it down, you don't know if you are making money.

Competency standard

Learning outcome Performance criteria — the trainee…
3.1 Separate money keeps business and personal money apart
3.2 Keep a cash book records daily money in and out
3.3 Pay yourself pays a fixed wage instead of taking money at random
3.4 Work out profit calculates profit for a week

Range. The trainee's own trade. Evidence. A month of records.

The rules of thumb

  1. Keep business money and home money apart: two purses, two MoMo wallets, or two tins.
  2. Pay yourself a fixed wage from the business each week.
  3. Write every sale and every cost in a cash book the same day.
  4. Count the business cash at the end of each week. If it grew, you made a profit.
Date What Money in Money out Balance
Mon Start 200
Mon Sold 10 items 150 350
Tue Bought stock 80 270
Fri My wage 100 170

One month of records

  1. Set up a cash book (or picture book) for your trade.
  2. Record every sale and cost for four weeks.
  3. Count your business cash every Friday; write it down.
  4. Pay yourself the same wage every week.

Two purses

Set up two purses or tins at home: business and personal.

05

Unit 4 · Price for profit and test a location

Price too low and you work for free. Count every cost, then add profit.

Competency standard

Learning outcome Performance criteria — the trainee…
4.1 Count all costs lists materials, time, transport, rent, power and permits
4.2 Set a price adds a profit margin
4.3 Find break-even calculates how many sales cover fixed costs
4.4 Test a site uses break-even to judge a location

Range. The trainee's products or services. Evidence. Price list; break-even calculation.

Break-even

Break-even sales = fixed costs ÷ (price − cost of each item). Fixed costs are costs you pay even if you sell nothing: rent, permits, phone. If a site needs more sales than you can make, it is the wrong site, or the price is too low.

Can this site work?

A kiosk costs GH¢300 a month rent, GH¢50 power and GH¢30 permits (per month). You sell sobolo at GH¢12; each bottle costs GH¢7. (1) Fixed costs per month? (2) Profit per bottle? (3) Break-even bottles per month? (4) Per day (26 days)? (5) You counted 200 passers-by an hour at this site. Is it realistic?

My price list

  1. List every cost for your main product or service.
  2. Set a price with a margin.
  3. Work out break-even for your planned site.
  4. Set aside a small monthly budget for marketing (sign, data for WhatsApp, printing).

Compare prices

Check what three competitors charge for the same thing.

06

Unit 5 · Borrow wisely

A loan should help you earn more than it costs. Many loans cost far more than people think.

Competency standard

Learning outcome Performance criteria — the trainee…
5.1 Know the cost works out the yearly cost of a monthly interest rate
5.2 Check licences borrows only from licensed lenders
5.3 Plan repayment plans repayment from business income

Range. Savings groups, banks, microfinance, digital loans. Evidence. Loan calculation; oral questions.

Digital loans

From 2025 the Bank of Ghana requires digital lenders to be licensed, and in September 2026 it named 20 unlicensed loan apps and advised people to check a lender's licence before borrowing. Some mobile loans charge 6.9–15% a month, which can be over 80% a year.

What does it really cost?

You borrow GH¢1,000 at 10% a month. (1) Interest after one month? (2) After three months (simple interest)? (3) A savings group loan at 5% a month for three months?

Ask a lender

Ask a bank or microfinance office about a small business loan: interest rate, fees and what they need.

07

Unit 6 · Register and pay the right tax

Registration makes you visible to customers, banks and grant schemes.

Competency standard

Learning outcome Performance criteria — the trainee…
6.1 Register a business name lists steps and costs
6.2 Know the small-trader tax explains the Modified Taxation Scheme
6.3 Get the Assembly permit finds the fee for the trade

Range. Sole proprietors in Sekondi-Takoradi. Evidence. Registration checklist.

Steps

  • Business name at the Office of the Registrar of Companies: about GH¢130 for a sole proprietorship; bring your Ghana Card and tax number and three possible names.
  • Tax: GRA's Modified Taxation Scheme is for small Ghanaian traders. Turnover up to GH¢20,000 pays fixed instalments; GH¢20,001–750,000 pays 3% of turnover. Register by app, at a GRA office or through your trade association, and pay by *880# or mobile money.
  • Assembly permit: every business in Sekondi-Takoradi must register with the Assembly; unregistered businesses pay a 30% penalty; fees are due by 31 March.
STMA 2025 annual fee (examples) GH¢
Small tailor or dressmaker 120
Small salon 100
Masons, plumbers, electricians, painters, tilers 100
Small mobile money vendor 270

Your checklist

Write the registration steps and costs for your own trade.

08

Unit 7 · Grants, support and your business plan

Support exists. A clear one-page plan is what gets it.

Competency standard

Learning outcome Performance criteria — the trainee…
7.1 Know the support names three sources of support
7.2 Write a plan writes a one-page business plan
7.3 Write a request writes a clear request letter

Range. Assembly disability fund, GEA, apprenticeship programmes. Evidence. Business plan; request letter.

The disability fund

From 2026, the share of the District Assemblies Common Fund for persons with disabilities rose from 3% to 5%, and each Assembly prepares the budget with the local Ghana Federation of Disability Organisations. In one Assembly, people apply by writing to the Chief Executive, and a Fund Management Committee reviews and interviews applicants. Sekondi-Takoradi's committee reviewed applications and did needs assessments before giving freezers, an oven and other items to 31 persons with disabilities.

But a study found many payouts were only GH¢200–500, too small to build a business. A clear plan that asks for the right tools, with training already done, makes the support count.

Other support

  • GEA's PWD Enterprise Support Programme offered grants and help with business plans to businesses owned by persons with disabilities.
  • National Apprenticeship Programme: free training, a monthly stipend and start-up kits.

The one-page plan

  1. What I sell and to whom.
  2. Where (and why that site; Unit 4).
  3. What I need (tools, stock) and what it costs.
  4. My prices and break-even.
  5. How I will find customers.
  6. My records: how I will track money (Unit 3).
  7. What I am asking for.

Plan and letter

  1. Write your one-page plan.
  2. Write a short request letter to the Assembly or another funder.
  3. Present to the class; get feedback.

Visit the desk

Visit the Assembly's social welfare office or disability desk. Ask how to apply for support.

09

Glossary

Term Meaning
Break-even The number of sales that covers your fixed costs
Cash book A daily record of money in and out
Competent / Not Yet Competent The two possible results of a CBT assessment
Fixed costs Costs you pay even if you sell nothing
Ponzi scheme A scam that pays early members with new members' money
Share-out Sharing a savings group's fund at the end of the cycle
Social fund A savings group's emergency fund
VSLA Village Savings and Loan Association
10

Logbook

Copy these pages into an exercise book. Your logbook is part of your assessment evidence.

  • Unit 1: scheme warning signs
  • Unit 2: passbook from practice meeting
  • Unit 3: four weeks of cash book records
  • Unit 4: price list; break-even calculation
  • Unit 5: loan cost calculation
  • Unit 6: registration checklist
  • Unit 7: one-page plan; request letter
  • Every homework, dated
11

Self-check quiz

  1. Name three warning signs of a Ponzi scheme.
  2. What number do you call before sending money to a suspected fraudster?
  3. How many locks does a VSLA box have, and who holds the keys?
  4. How much can a VSLA member usually borrow?
  5. Why keep business and personal money apart?
  6. What is the break-even formula?
  7. What does 10% a month cost over a year (simple)?
  8. What tax scheme is for small traders?
  9. What happened to the disability fund share in 2026?
  10. Name four parts of a one-page plan.
12

Further reading and sources

Best next reads: the VSLA methodology guide; GRA's Modified Taxation page; your Assembly's disability fund guidelines.

What this module does not cover: full accounting, VAT, company registration, and current Takoradi microfinance rates (check licensed lenders).

Every source used in this manual is listed, with links, in the Teacher Copy.

One application of the Cold-Start Learning Kit, which stays general-purpose and can build a guide on any topic in any field. Written in CTVET format; not a CTVET curriculum.