University of Education, Winneba COLTEK GRASAG Entrepreneurship Seminar 2019
The College of Technology Education, Kumasi (COLTEK) of the University of Education, Winneba (UEW) played host to two Members of Parliament (MPs) and the Chief Executive Officer of the National Entrepreneurship and Innovation Plan (NEIP). They were at the College at the invitation of the COLTEK branch of the Graduate Students’ Association of Ghana (GRASAG) as the principal speakers for the Association’s two-day Entrepreneurship Seminar.
Students at the Seminar
The MPs were Honourable Dr. Samuel K. Nuamah, Kwadaso Constituency and Honourable Mr. Daniel Okyem Aboagye, Bantama Constituency. They together with the CEO of NEIP, Lawyer John Kuma took turns to drum home the need for students to take entrepreneurship very seriously for their individual and national development.
Dr. Samuel Nuamah, MP for Kwadaso Constituency addressing the students
Mr. Kuma indicated that out of about 90,000 students that graduate from the various universities in Ghana every year, only five per cent were lucky to be absorbed into the public sector.
He said, the situation presented a very serious challenge to the country but added that there was hope because a good number of graduates and other Ghanaian youth were adopting and adapting to the need to go into entrepreneurship for growth.
He pointed to the willingness and readiness of government to support entrepreneurs and small and medium scale business operators and therefore urged the students to take advantage of the enabling environment to create new jobs.
MP for Bantama making a point at the seminar
Mr. Aboagye conceded that there were various challenges in the Ghanaian system and asked the students to see same as opportunities for them to find solutions. In his view, entrepreneurship should be seen as a preparation of a solution to a problem at a cost with margin.
“Therefore, the abounding challenges of the country must spur the youth on to be innovative and create new things for our common good as a country,” he said. He narrated his humble beginnings when starting life and how the key principles of entrepreneurship (competence, commitment, time and cash) caused him to break grounds and become successful.
Dr. Nuamah also emphasised the need for the students to maintain positive thoughts. That in his view would lead them to create new things or improve upon what we already have as a country.
Some Dignatories at the Seminar
Chairing the seminar, the Vice Dean of Student Affairs at COLTEK, Dr. Philip Oti-Agyen emphasised the need for Ghanaian youth to look at entrepreneurship as a major way out of the doldrums of unemployment. He asked the students to see the seminar as an opportunity to stir up a desire to venture into businesses to improve the employment situation in the country.
Other speakers at the seminar were the Dean of the Faculty of Vocational Education (FVE), Prof. Martin Amoah and an International Speaker on Entrepreneurship, Mr. Patrick Ayittah as well as the Lecturer and Coordinator of Entrepreneurship at COLTEK, Mrs. Richmell Baaba Amanama who made a presentation on Entrepreneurship on the first day of the seminar.
Mrs. Richmell Baaba Amanama making a presentation
GRASAG organised the seminar with various objectives, including a desire to know how to manage and sustain a business in Ghana; understand the Ghanaian business environment and the opportunities and threats it presents; how students would discover and utilise their life potentials and cope with life after school.
In attendance were some COLTEK staff, including the College Registrar, Mr. Michael K. Adu and the Deputy Registrar and Head, Department of University Relations, Mr. Michael K. Twum-Ampomah, some Senior Members (teaching and non-teaching), Senior and Junior staff as well as students.