Cape Coast Technical University, SMEGrowAfrica sign MOU to establish Entrepreneurship Business Hub

Cape Coast Technical University (CCTU) is working hard to reinforce a brand as a technical university that stimulates the entrepreneurial attitude and mindset of its students to foster economic growth and cut down on youth unemployment.

On Tuesday 14th March 2022, the leadership of the Cape Coast Technical University (CCTU) and representatives of SME GrowAfrica (SMEGA) signed an MOU to forge a partnership to promote entrepreneurial spirit among students and also used the occasion to launch the University's Entrepreneurship and Business Incubation Hub through SMEGA's Incubate2Enterprise project.

Rt. Rev. Ing. Prof. Joshua Danso Owusu-Sekyere the Vice-Chancellor of the University in his role as the chairman of the occasion said, one of his core visions and mandate of CCTU, is to champion entrepreneurial mindedness among the students of the technical university which will go a long way to empower them to become agents of business change.

The VC used the occasion to ask students and the business faculty to take advantage of the partnership and the incubation hub to turn the fortunes of the school around. He was full of appreciation to SME GrowAfrica for choosing CCTU as its first partner and venue among the many universities in Ghana on their project dubbed Incubate2Enterprise.

Mr. Kwasi Ofori Jnr, the CEO of SME GrowAfrica on his part expressed his profound gratitude to the VC and the entire university management and students, especially the School of Business and Management faculty for entering into this entrepreneurship incubation partnership with their organisation. He said SME GrowAfrica through the Incubate2Enterprise project will go all out to ensure CCTU becomes the hub for successful Start-ups and innovation. He further mentioned this partnership would make CCTU the reference point to duplicate similar hubs in some Universities across the continent.

The Chairman of the Board of Directors of SMEGA, Dr Joe Tackie a renowned SME and Entrepreneurship expert told the students to become agents of change through innovation and entrepreneurship. He said the future of entrepreneurship and intrapreneurship for Africa is rooted in the philosophy of SMEGA in enhancing the productivity of SMEs through creativity and innovation for national development.

The university leadership and students at the MOU signing and the incubation hub launch were taken through a short presentation by the Incubate2Enterprise project Director, Mr. Scofray Nana Yaw Yeboah.

He started his presentation with the introductory quote "Our most valuable resource to break the cycle of unemployment in Africa is the youth, and their most significant asset to anchor Ghana and Africa's development is their imagination. Incubate2Enterprise will serve as the stimulator of opportunities, training, and innovation environment for our youth through the collective entrepreneurship and intrapreneurship philosophy I call "Ubuntupreneurship."

He further explained that Incubate2Enterprise is one of the flagship projects of SME GrowAfrica dedicated to young people to evoke the drive for Entrepreneurship and Intrapreneurship through incubation, acceleration, partnership, and start-up to enterprise development.

He buttresses their resolve to empower entrepreneurship through business incubation from the problem statement that "According to the United Nations population, Africa is estimated to be 1.4 billion people with a 19.7years median age and 60% youthful. Mo Ibrahim Foundation stipulates that in 2020, 35 years and below forms close to a billion with the following breakdown, 0-14 years old is around 540.8 million, and 15-34 years old is about 454.5 million). This estimate is 22.7% of the world's total youth population and the second largest after Asia".

These are the facts underpinning and inspiring the Incubate2Enterprise project driven by Ubuntupreneurship spirit and concept.

In responding to a question from a student present at the ceremony, Mr. Scofray Nana Yaw Yeboah said that SMEGA has got partners across the globe such as Crescent Innovation & Incubation Council (CIIC) and AISECT all of India to make this entrepreneurship and intrapreneurship project a turn-key to unlock business potentials of the youth a reality. Ms. Saalai Manikem a board member of SMEGA, reiterated that these Institutions of her country of origin India are of higher track records in the area of incubation and Start-ups in India and other parts of the world in making them strategic partners for the Incubate2Enterprise project.

A lot of questions on funding was raised. A response from the Director of Incubate2Enterprise as well as CEO of SME GrowAfrica was that, with the track record of the organisation as well as the strategic partnership with CCTU, funding is not the challenge but ideation and the personal development of "incubatees" in the area of ethical leadership, teamwork, financial management, marketing, pitching, ubuntu mindset etc are the fundamental traits needed to start-up their businesses. It was said that these areas are the focus during the incubation period so that start-ups that will pass the procedural test can compete in the global market.

The Head of the Department of the Entrepreneurship and Agribusiness Mr Solomon T. Yeboah and Mr Eugene Owusu-Acheapong the Acting Dean of the School of Business and Management Studies who are the lead representatives on the side of CCTU were charged by the Pro Vice-Chancellor Prof S. K. Ansah to go all out to make this dream a reality to reinforce the university's brand out there as an entrepreneurship and business hub.

The rest of the team from SME GrowAfrica that graced the MOU signing and the business centre launch were Mr Stephen Opoku-Dankwa, the Deputy Director of Incubate2Enterprise and Ms Alice Darko the Director of Sustainability and Partnership for SMEGA.

SME GrowAfrica operates other five business focus projects aside from Incubate2Enterprise namely Business Clinic, Kwahu Dwaso Trade Fair, Women for Growth (W4G) and SME Awards Ghana.