May 15, 2018. Accra – Some 50 women in Ghana have benefited from a two-day workshop for women entrepreneurs held at the CEIBS Accra campus. CEIBS partnered on the initiative with Stanbic Bank and Vodafone. The unique project was designed to strengthen the capacity of both companies’ female SME clients in Ghana in key areas that are necessary for business growth and sustainability.  

The programme, which focused on managing financial resources as well as branding and sales management, sought to empower the women to understand and develop strategies, skills and confidence in managing the financial aspect of their businesses. It also provided participants with knowledge on how to position and sell their products and services.

“We are particularly excited about this initiative for two key reasons,” said Ms. Angela Mensah-Poku, the Director of Vodafone Business Solution, during the workshop’s opening ceremony. “To begin with, female entrepreneurs make up 35% of the over 4,000 SMEs we engage through our various activities across the country. Secondly, Vodafone is very passionate about Diversity and Inclusion and continues to drive gender equality in every aspect of our operations. Our focus is to make women entrepreneurs ready for the future, to compete at the international level and to be excellent examples of how to use modern digital trends and platforms to thrive in their businesses. We will continue to find ways to provide opportunities for businesses to realise their ambitions for the future.”

Pearl Nkrumah, the Head of Enterprise Banking at Stanbic Bank, explained that their organisation decided to co-sponsor the programme as it realised that many Ghanaian women entrepreneurs had several challenges to overcome in the business environment. Being part of the entrepreneurship workshop, according to her, was Stanbic Bank’s way of empowering these women. “Stanbic Bank is committed to seeing women grow their businesses and this workshop is only the beginning of many plans we have for the future. We hope that participants will be able to make use of the knowledge and skills they have received and this workshop will bring tangible results to their businesses,” she said.

Mrs. Ama Tamakloe, CEO of Accra-based catering services provider Food 101, described the workshop as very insightful and timely. “I have received so much knowledge from this workshop. There were some things I thought I knew, but having gone through this workshop I realise that there is a lot I need to do to grow my business. I have gained a lot and I know this is going to impact my business in a positive way,” she said.

Mrs. Matilda A. Nantwi, Managing Director of detergent producer Jilcals Enterprise, is already looking forward to enrolling at CEIBS to get more practical knowledge that will help her successfully run her business. “This has been an eye-opener. I had taken certain things for granted but I now realise that there is the need to step up my game if my business is to do well. More specifically I have realised that I need to pay attention to digital marketing. I am already thinking of enrolling in one of CEIBS’ programmes. I see that CEIBS has a lot to offer me,” she said.