Owing to numerous reasons, it appears entrepreneurship has become the best available alternative in dealing with Ghana’s growing unemployment as well as graduate unemployment situations.
Private businesses continue to contribute significantly to economic growth and currently hold about 70% of Ghana’s GDP.
It is against this background that the WEIJA-GBAWE Member of Parliament, Hon. Tina Gifty Naa Ayele Mensah, in collaboration with the National Entrepreneurship & Innovation Programme (NEIP), a flagship policy initiative of the Government of Ghana, successfully organized the first-ever WEIJA-GBAWE Entrepreneurial Summit designed for WEIJA-GBAWE Constituency NPP members on Monday 24th April 2023.
It was held at the WEIJA-GBAWE Municipal Assembly Hall.
The Entrepreneurial Summit offered a platform to equip individuals with the ability to recognize commercial opportunities, build self‐esteem, knowledge and acquire basic skills.
The purpose of the Entrepreneurial Summit was also meant to empower the NPP Members through entrepreneurship training and offer basic guidelines on how to professionally lay down business registrations among other documentation as a basic requirement in order to access funding opportunities from Government and other stakeholders concerned.
According to the organizers, these guidelines would go a long way to pave the way to help the participants to start their own businesses.
The one-day training summit with certificates drew participants, made up of mostly, NPP WEIJA-GBAWE Constituency Executives, Polling Station Executives, Ward Coordinators, and Branch Executives among many others.
The NPP Members were taken through the possible benefits of being an entrepreneur speaker after speaker.
The participants also learned about why salary and office jobs cannot make people rich, and how to embrace opportunities by starting your own business as a big leap to becoming a successful entrepreneur.
They were also equipped with Identifying Opportunities, Proposal Writing to access Funding Sources, the Importance of Networking, Basic Financial Literacy, and how to go about getting Financial Support for businesses and Startups.
The Speakers included Hon. Patrick Kumor, Weija Gbawe MCE, Pharmacist and CEO of PharmaTrust, Mr. Anthony Kwame Adjepong, NEIP CEO Mr. Kofi Nkansah, Mr. Patrick Otieku-Boadu, CEO SpearHead Consult, who doubles as a Business Trainer and Coach and Michael Danquah, NPP Weija-Gbawe Constituency Chairman.
Addressing the summit, Hon. Patrick Kumor urged his party people not to depend too much on salary and office jobs.
He observed that the richest people in the world are successful people doing their own businesses hence entrepreneurship is the way to go.
“Our MP and Mother Hon. Tina Naa Ayele Mensah is the brain behind this Entrepreneurial Training Summit with the intention and vision to continue helping businesses and NPP WEIJA-GBAWE party folks. We are all witnesses to the good works of Hon. Tina Mensah so far. So, it is important to continue to support her and remain loyal to the party.
He said since the NPP believes in the private sector as the engine of growth, the beneficiary attendees should take full advantage of the funding opportunities that the summit will offer businesses so that they would be financially empowered from the year 2024 to 2025 and beyond.
“No rich person in this world is an office or salary worker. We also know that starting a business is not an easy task which is why we are here together with a major stakeholder NEIP that supports businesses financially so that we guide you through the process so that you can also empower yourselves at the end of the day to support other party people.
Let’s all encourage ourselves that Breaking the 8 is very possible. Continue to rally behind the Akufo-Addo NPP government so that we can break the 8 and stay longer in power to help our party people.
The longer the party remains in power, the better it gets for NPP party people to benefit.”
He further announced that the WEIJA-GBAWE Municipality has been selected by GNPC to benefit from GNPC Training and Funding programmes.
As a result of this, he assured that there are enormous opportunities that await businesses to be harnessed.
Michael Danquah, NPP Weija-Gbawe Constituency Chairman, addressing his party people, rallied full support for Hon. Tina Mensah and acknowledged the massive support the MP has offered NPP footsoldiers, not only WEIJA-GBAWE but others.
“Let’s do our best to support our MP so that we can all help the NPP to break the 8 to continue with our good policies and projects”
He called on his government and all successive governments to prioritise Technical education saying that China has become an economic giant due to technical education.
“It is only in Ghana that we don’t respect carpenters, masons, plumbers, metal fabricators, steel benders, electricians, etc but when Ghanaians travel abroad, they find that the same jobs pay more overseas,” he lamented.
He was confident that Ghana can become more than China if governments should focus on Technical education and training.
Taking his turn to speak, the CEO of NEIP, Mr. Kofi Nkansah indicated that he is no stranger to WEIJA-GBAWE NPP since he has supported and campaigned for Hon. Tina Mensah through his political group Professionals for Change way back from 2016 through 2020.
He acknowledged the immense support NPP Party footsoldiers have received so far from Hon. Tina Naa Ayele Mensah as Deputy Minister of Health.
He called on NPP members in WEIJA-GBAWE to continue to keep the faith and support their MP.
Mr. Nkansah, touching on the business of the day, expressed government’s readiness to support businesses with funding opportunities.
He, however, made it clear that businesses should first be registered at the Registrar General with proper documentation in order to make funding easier and accessible during application processes.
Mr. Nkansah mentioned that President Akufo-Addo has laid down initiatives under the NEIP to support businesses and all startups, new innovations, and ideas that are workable.
“WEIJA-GBAWE Constituency continues to improve and advance the electoral fortunes of the NPP. It is for this reason that the government has brought this opportunity through your MP Hon. Tina so that we can support your businesses to grow.
The NPP acknowledges Entrepreneurship is critical to Ghana’s economic empowerment and development and would continue to do more to support businesses as part of measures to contain growing graduate unemployment,” he said.
On his part, the CEO of PharmaTrust, Mr. Anthony Kwame Adjepong shared some insights into building a successful business by using himself as a case study.
Having worked with Ernest Chemist and Kinapharma, he said building strong networks, loyal partnerships, efficient customer service, integrity, and honesty boosted his integrity and trust.
He said all these contributed to bringing his business to the big success and limelight being witnessed in the 14-year journey of PharmaTrust.
Mr. Adjepong also entreated the participants to always start with the little they get or have in their own small way.
“There is a business saying that ‘your network determines your net worth’ which emphasizes the importance of networking in the sense that, when you build the right networks and links your business stands a great chance of succeeding. Also, check honesty and be truthful to your clients,” he cautioned.
Mr. Patrick Otieku-Boadu, CEO SpearHead Consult also added his voice that there is the need to always explore business opportunities no matter the circumstances.
He mentioned 6 top keys to building a successful business no matter the turbulent situation.
“I have written 17 Books so far and I’m still counting to write more and that should be the never give up spirit.
These six keys I would like to share include: you should have a VISION or a GOAL; carve a special IDENTITY and mindset by believing in yourself that your business will succeed and that there is nothing impossible; Also, try as much as possible to add VALUE because businesses without any value cannot succeed.
The next key is SKILLS & CAPABILITY; BEHAVIOUR towards how you do your business is also another thing because every good result in business depends largely on behaviour.
If you are not ready to sacrifice your time and be committed to your business don’t enter into any business at all. Lastly, look at your ENVIRONMENT and check which business will be viable at that particular moment,” he said.
