McDan to provide funding to young entrepreneurs

Freight forwarding, cargo handling and total logistics solution leader, the McDan Group has started a process aimed at establishing an Equity Fund to provide funding for young entrepreneurs.

Last Friday, the Executive Chairman of the McDan Group, Dr Daniel McKorley announced the new project to unveil the ten finalists for the McDan Entrepreneurship Challenge at its East Legon plush office.

Applicants would be required to present their business models to a panel of judges, which would in turn vet the proposals and recommend funding when the proposal meet the requirements.

The McDan boss said “We want to change the narrative. It is my dream to support as many young entrepreneurs as possible to propel them to create more jobs to boost the economy.

“The project would be announced for the youth to apply when the modalities are finalised. It’s not about the McDan Group but it is about the opportunity we are creating for young entrepreneurs.

“We want to see the businesses of the young entrepreneurs grow into multi-million-dollar businesses in future.”

The McDan Entrepreneurship Challenge is a 13-week reality TV show, an initiative of Today’s Entrepreneurs Network Ghana (TEN Ghana) and sponsored by the McDan Group of Companies.

It identifies and nurtures entrepreneurs with viable businesses to start and scale up their own ventures.

The show offers participants the opportunity to pit their business ideas to a four-member jury in a period of 13 weeks.

At stake for the winner at the end of the competition scheduled for September is a $100,000 seed funding for his/her business.

Later, entries would be opened for Season Two, according to the organizers.

Agrizone, Agrifund, Alkoshear, Kente Master, Seepig Farms, Better Services, Mydafoods, Tiger House, Coliba and Premor Tea are the ten finalists battling for the mouthwatering cash.

They were shortlisted from 20 businesses.

He said the project was geared towards propelling them to be change agents and employers for large numbers of job seekers in the near future.

The Executive Director of the Chartered Institute of Marketing (CIMG), Mr Kwabena Agyekum, and the reigning Marketing Woman of the Year, Mrs Yvette Tekpe Dr McKorley for living up to his position as the reigning Marketing Man of the Year.

One of the ten finalists, Prince Agbata, on behalf of his colleagues, expressed gratitude to the McDan Group and all the stakeholders in the entrepreneurship challenge for their support.

The maiden edition of the McDan Entrepreneurship Challenge was launched on March 12, 2018, and it attracted more than 7,000 entries from young people across the country.

After a rigorous screening process by a team of consultants, some 600 applicants were shortlisted for the semi-finals.

The semi-finalists were taken through several entrepreneurial tests and activities after which they were screened and reduced to 20 businesses out of which the top 10 businesses for the final pitch were chosen.