By Iddi Yire, GNA
Accra, Oct 29, GNA - Professor Charles Barnor, Pro-Vice Chancellor, University of Professional Studies, Accra (UPSA), has launched the University's Student Entrepreneurship Initiative (SEI) Club.
The SEI is a government policy under the National Entrepreneurship and Innovation Plan (NEIP) entrepreneurship programme that aims at exposing students to business concepts and plans at an early age to enable them to develop products and services while in school.
The key objective of the Club is therefore, to create more opportunities for students and teaching faculty in the area of training, networking, and start-up funding for the entrepreneurial venture for UPSA students.
The Interim Executives of the Club are Mr James Ayim, President; Mr Edward Esirifi, Vice President; Madam Esther Mensah, Secretary; Mr Joseph Kwame Nkrumah, Business Coordinator; Mr Francis Tutu, Deputy Coordinator, and Mr Reginald Boateng Acheisu as the Organiser.
The rest are Madam Eunice Kaanye, Vice Organiser; Mr Emmanuel Nyarko, Finance Officer and Madam Ewuradjoa Badji, Public Relation Officer.
The Club also has Mr Andrew Ayiku and Mr Obed Kofi Twum, as its Patron and Deputy Patron, respectively.
Speaking at the launch, Prof Barnor said the contribution of job creation and reduction of unemployment and poverty, globally and nationally, could not be overemphasized.
He said UPSA had reviewed its entrepreneurship course and other activities to make them more practical and hands-on such that it could help shape-up the entrepreneurial skills of their students in order to enable them match-up with the emerging national and global entrepreneurial opportunities and challenges.
Prof Barnor emphasized that the University had taken several steps to strengthen its entrepreneurial initiatives through; setting up a business incubator to train students on how to generate business ideas and pitch the ideas for investor support.
He said it also includes; constant review of the entrepreneurship development course content to make it more skill development based; and rolling out an MBA Impact Entrepreneurship and Innovation programme in collaboration with Universitá Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, Millan, Italy.
Prof Barnor appealed to the Government to continue to strengthen institutions that support entrepreneurship of young people and create an entrepreneurship mindset and climate for the country.
Madam Abigail Swad Laryea, Deputy Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of NEIP, under the Ministry of Business Development, in an interview with the Ghana News Agency (GNA), hailed President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo Addo on his commitment towards entrepreneurship in the country.
She said SEI, which was being implemented by NEIP through the Ministry of Business Development, was the President’s vision of building a nation of job creators and not just seekers, as this would change the narrative of searching for jobs after school.
Madam Laryea told GNA that in that regard it was a good course to have entrepreneurship clubs in tertiary institutions to drive this agenda, saying, creating an entrepreneurial ecosystem where young people know there was an avenue for them to strive.
She said most of the concerns they received had to do with support, adding that “now we are saying that the support is available, what you need to do as a young person is to bring us your business ideas, we will help fund you and also incubate you with every training that you need”.
Mrs Fidelis Quansah, Dean of the Faculty of Management Studies, UPSA, also told GNA that aside the issues of unemployment another problem they identified what the fact that some students had ideas but did not know how to develop them and how to start their business.
She said the Club would not only help nurture these business ideas but as well inform students to have that mindset of creating jobs.
Mrs Quansah, who encouraged all students to join the club, added that “the initiative will also inspire students to submit their business ideas, be confident that there is help, and to know where to channel their issues so they can get the support to build their business”.
GNA
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