The critical need for a Youth led approach towards entrepreneurship and job creation in local communities of Ghana has been given a major push by the MasterCard Foundation and the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) through its impact driven Youth Innovation Circles (YIC) outreaches.
The initiative which is an essential wing of the Young Africa Innovates program aims at creating at least 2500 direct jobs by reaching out to community based local entrepreneurs and bringing them into an enabling entrepreneurial ecosystem that supports growth, development and scalability of viable ideas.
The inclusive project targeting youth aged 18 to 35 is designed to admit at least 70% female entrepreneurs; youth with disabilities; persons living in rural and hard to reach communities as well as other marginalized groups including those with minimal education and literacy.
The innovators are scouted and screened through a competitive process; taken through various idea generation and testing sessions; progressed into boot camps, placed into peer learning circles.
On a successful appraisal, qualified innovators are admitted to advanced levels of the program where a more expansive and dedicated mentoring, technical and financial support is invested to develop and scale the businesses.
A YIC Demo Day and Pitching Session held in the Ashanti Regional capital Kumasi, witnessed a breathtaking contest of sterling innovative ideas as young innovators wowed a bench of judges with compelling arguments about their business ideas, the commercial viability of their product and service offerings; the financial prospects of their businesses and why they deserved funding to scale and create sustainable jobs.
UNDP YAI Technical Adviser Dr. Allen Anie explained that the platform presented a myriad of enablers for businesses that have not benefitted from traditional entrepreneurship incubation and funding programs.
He emphasized that targeting the uniquely atypical group fosters a more inclusive approach that unlocks the potential in young innovators whose businesses would have direct impact on their local communities.
“Bringing these young and marginalized innovators into a structured entrepreneurship ecosystem to help them develop, test and scale their innovations will create dignified and fulfilling work opportunities for them and their communities,” Allen told Ultimate News.
Commending the innovators for their creativity and industriousness, Dr. Allen Anie said he was impressed with the innovations that cut across all sectors including agro processing; clean energy generation, fashion, cosmetics and digital solutions.
He observed, “We have seen amazing innovations of participants converting products into powders and other forms to cut down on post-harvest losses. We have also seen a wide array of grassroots products like organic weedicides and fertilizers made with the residue of farming processes.”
“It is often said that those closest to the problem, often have an idea of the solution. They just need a bit of help to bring their ideas to life and that has been most amazing,”
“I’ve also been impressed by the extent to which people who are not typically part of these entrepreneurship competitions have come into this fully. PARTICULARLY persons with disability creating e-commerce platforms and all kinds of digital solutions,” he commended.
YIC Partner Implementers
Chief Executive Officer of Hapa Space Innovations Hub Gideon Brefo was particularly excited about the direct mentorship and business to business synergies that participating innovators could leverage to create a chain of job opportunities to solve Ghana’s ballooning youth unemployment challenge.
“In the circle we encourage peer learning. We are all in the same value chain so how can we collaborate and where do we build synergies?” he explained.
He noted that instead of just holding workshops the YIC has built capacity and tooled its partner institutions to mentor and guide each of the businesses with a clear mandate to translate the theoretical concepts of business management into tangible results.
“We are building a network of mentors and coaches that will continue to engage and support the innovators. Some innovation hubs and Community Based Organizations have also been equipped with tools and they will remain and become the back bone for these innovators,” he assured.
Pitch Winners
After a grilling session of pitching, three startups L&L organics Palace; Deyoke Foods and Aboboya Electric Tricycle picked the top spots to secure funding for their businesses.
Twins and Co-founders for L and L Organic Palace Lois and Louisa Atta Yeboah Kyeretwie were grateful the cash injection would support their business of harvesting organic materials from nature to produce organic hair products, body washes and other skin and hair care products.
“There are a lot of harmful chemicals on the market but we are here to let people know organic products are safe and affordable. This money will help us expand our capacity in production, sales and marketing,” Louisa told reporter Ivan Heathcote – Fumador.
Young Joshua Yeboah from the Kumasi Technical Institute thrilled judges with his invention of an environmentally friendly tricycle designed to run on an electric motor, powered by rechargeable batteries and solar energy.
“I want to produce these tricycles to help farmers in rural areas cart their produce to the markets. This will solve the problem of struggling to find a means of transportation while their harvests go rotten on the farms,” he shared.
Adjei Emmanuel’s Deyoke Foods tackles a health concern of anemia by crushing ion rich wild turkey berries into powders and fortifying them through a natural process that prolongs its shelf life.
“We process and fortify these turkey berries enough to ensure its high ion potency to help especially pregnant women and sickle cell patients who suffer anemia,” Emmanuel noted.
The YIC pitching and demo days which also allowed innovators to exhibit their products at the Golden Bean Hotel is expected to be replicated in several other regions across the country.
