Group picture of Young Green Entrepreneurs, donors’ representatives & Staff of SYND
Story by: Ishmael Barfi
To build the capacities of young green business entrepreneurs in Ghana, an inception meeting has been held on Friday, 24th February, 2023 in Accra.
The Inception Meeting organised by Strategic Youth Network for Development (SYND) for twenty five (25) young green business entrepreneurs is to equip them with the requisite skills and knowledge that would aid them to meet the required International Standards..
The one-year Young Green Entrepreneurship program established in 2021 aims to position the Young Green Entrepreneurship as a catalyst for promoting and developing the country’s rich renewable energy resources for economic growth as well as contribute to improved social life and reduce adverse climate change effects.
Interacting with the media, Priscilla Adogo Ahiada, Project lead for the Young Green Entrepreneurs(YGE) explained that, the inception meeting is to usher them into a one- year program aimed at promoting the interventions of young entrepreneurs by enhancing their skills in Ghana’s climate and environmental sustainability as well as building their capacities to meet the required standards to attract funds from donors.
Priscilla Adogo Ahiada, Project lead for the Young Green Entrepreneurs(YGE)
Indicating that, “By providing orientation, support, and community building opportunities, the meeting will help the YGE entrepreneurs to thrive and make a positive impact on the environment and society”.
This she explained has become necessary after a survey was carried out to find out some of the challenges faced by these entrepreneurs.
And some of these challenges she noted was less or no access to funds, low marketing and sale skills, unawareness of tax incentives and above all, poor development of business concepts.
According to Ms. Adogo Ahiada, the engagement of these young green entrepreneurs is of importance, hence setting the stage for the success of the green entrepreneurs.
The current increment of the global emissions of carbon dioxide (CO2) by almost 50 per cent since 1990, with the past 7 years being the hottest on record is worrying and disturbing.
She further pointed out that, this climate change do affect both developing and developed countries such as Ghana.
Therefore, the need for urgent action, such as adequately equipping entrepreneurs especially the youth who have taken it upon themselves to produce products targeted at reducing the menace aimed at addressing the climate change issue.
Madam Agbenyaga promised to continue to create and provide space for continuous knowledge learning and sharing among young green entrepreneurs.
Mr. Chibeze Ezekiel, Executive Coordinator-SYND
On his part, Mr. Deladem Kojo Xonu, founder of Ebapreneur Solutions indicated that, there is need to utilize the youthful population of Ghana in terms of ideas, innovations to come up with solutions that can reduce the impact of climate change.
And to achieve this, the Green Entrepreneurship program he said will be of great benefits as they add value to their respective green businesses.
“So, I mean, we need to learn some things. We need technical guidance, we need technical expertise on how to approach some of these things so that the innovations that we are doing, some of them need funding”, he noted.
Adding, “so we need to position ourselves in places where we are doing the right things to be able to access funding to be able to scale up”.
Noting, the Young Green Entrepreneurship program will help them to enhance and improve in their respective fields as young people”.
Mr. Deladem Kojo Xonu, founder of Ebapreneur Solutions in Red T-shirt with his team
Entrepreneur Solution is a climate startup focused on solar dryer fabrication and brackets making from cassava peels and wood solders.
Whilst SYND -Ghana is a non governmental organization focused on conducting research on various climate and environmental policies from the youth perspective and provide advocacy support on climate change in Ghana on key international and national issues such as UNFCCC processes including negotiations.
Present was representatives from banks, donors and media.
Source: www.thenewindependentonline.com
