‘Young Entrepreneurs Need Enabling Environment To Succeed’

Chairman of CAGL Group of Companies, Isaac Amoako-Mensah, has appealed to government to create an enabling environment for young entrepreneurs to excel.

According to him, there are many promising young entrepreneurs in Ghana, who have addressed the numerous challenges and been honoured by international organizations.

He added that young entrepreneurs need government's support to become successful.

He said like Mo Ibrahim, Dangote, Paa Kwasi Ndoum, Kofi Amoabeng and Kwame Despite who have made great strides, Ghana needs to create its own Steve Jobs and Bill Gates by supporting its young entrepreneurs.

African governments, he said, must focus on entrepreneurship in order to transform their economies from raw material based to industrial and service-based economies to create opportunities and prosperity for all.

“If we are serious about solving the unemployment challenges we face in Africa, then we must fully address the issues restraining entrepreneurs from reaching their full potentials.”

Speaking at this year’s GRASAG-KNUST Entrepreneurship Programme on the theme: 'Transforming our continent through Entrepreneurship,' he indicated that Africa cannot achieve its full potential unless it taps from its own people.

He revealed that as future entrepreneurs, business leaders and policy-makers, their perspective on development should influence policies and investments to change lives, communities and the continent as a whole.

He said, “Entrepreneurship means ownership and self-determination, as opposed to simply being dependent on somebody else for your livelihood and future. Entrepreneurs are people who see challenges as opportunities and take practical steps to turn these challenges into solutions and get profit or social recognition as their reward. They are the world’s pacesetters who transform society.”

Young entrepreneurs need to realize that to dream is one thing but bringing that dream to reality is a different ball game, while translating the dream or purpose into action is what brings success, he added.

According to Mr Amoako-Mensah, there are obstacles to the growth of young entrepreneurs since Africa does not have a developed venture capital market and also banks charge killer interest rates.

Entrepreneurs are the key to Africa's transformation agenda since they create new businesses, jobs and wealth, he stressed.