Developing the Entrepreneurial Spirit in Ghana

By

William Yaw Adufutse, Ph.D.

Ghana is blessed with so many natural resources, along with human capital. Unfortunately, some of these are now beginning to find their way in the hands of foreign investors some who are legal, or illegal. From my readings, it appears some of these investors do not always pay taxes on some of the extracted minerals such as gold. It is time to think of Ghana, and what Ghanaians can do for themselves instead of allowing foreigners to drain the valuable resources.

To begin the universities, both public and private, have to focus on the needs of the country, and develop curricula that are practical and meet the entrepreneurial needs of the country. The practical nature of the courses can include field work such as touring some businesses. I had those opportunities when I was attending Central Michigan University. We toured companies such as Chrysler Corporation, which is an automobile manufacturing company. Such practical field trips teach students the importance of playing entrepreneurial roles in the development of the country.

Currently, it appears whenever students enter any of the universities in Ghana, their hopes are to be employed, either by the government, or by corporations. Unfortunately, that should not be the spirit of the acquisition of higher education. Many successful businesses such as Microsoft, Facebook, PayPal, UPS and a lot others in the US were started by students in their college dormitories. The students brainstormed ideas in the dormitories after classes with regard to certain businesses they might be interested in. In little groups some of them developed the ideas, and formed their companies which are now giant international companies. The university is a privileged venue to collaborate, and build the entrepreneurial spirit of a country.

I firmly believe that any idea our students come up with, and collaborate with one or more other students, can be developed into enterprises that propel Ghana to great heights. The government should not be the creator of jobs but rather the guarantor of the freedom to think and create for the benefit of the country. I am not in any way suggesting that one should not aspire to be employed by someone after completing the university. However, there are other avenues of opportunities that can be explored.

The desire to become an entrepreneur, does not depend on government, or bank financing. A prospective entrepreneur will not have financing from the bank. The bank will not lend without any track record of business success with solid balance sheet. Similarly, the government cannot fund start-up companies. It is the enterprising entrepreneur who finances a project one way, or the other until the business has a solid track record that financial institutions can examine and fund.

Dr. William Yaw Adufutse is from Anfoega in the Volta Region, and a Professor of Leadership and Organizational Change in the US. He can be reached at adufu1wy@yahoo.com