By Benjamin A. Commey
Accra, March 18, GNA – Dr John Ofori-Tenkorang, the Director-General of the Social Security and National Insurance Trust (SSNIT), has urged Ghanaian entrepreneurs and corporate executives to prioritise digital entrepreneurship to foster sustainable economic development.
He also charged them to pursue innovation to overcome the challenges that were associated with digital entrepreneurship to take advantage of the opportunities that came with the digital economy.
Speaking at the 14th Ghana Entrepreneurs and Corporate Executive Awards, in Accra, over the weekend, Dr Ofori-Tenkorang stressed the importance of the digital entrepreneurship for a sustainable economic development.
“If anyone ever doubted digital entrepreneurship as a tool for economic development, the answer will be to look at the COVID era and how it would have been nearly impossible to live our lives without digital entrepreneurs and digitised products and services.
“Almost all businesses were forced to migrate to digital platforms or strengthen already existing ones,” he said.
The Awards was to recognise, celebrate and reward entrepreneurs and corporate executives who had contributed significantly to the socio-economic development of the country.
This year’s event was on the theme: “Promoting Digital Entrepreneurship as a Tool for Sustainable Digital Economic Development”.
In all, 36 entrepreneurs and corporate executives including some diplomats, were awarded.
Dr Ofori-Tenkorang noted that the impact of digital technologies on businesses had been profound, stressing that it had enabled them (businesses) to reach broader markets, positively impacted efficiency, driven innovation and brought significant transformation across various sectors.
However, he explained that it had also come with it fierce competition in the marketplace due to entry barriers.
“Now, you can start a business from your bedroom. And because entry barriers have been lowered, you have got to be on top of your game. So, this makes it challenging for entrepreneurs to differentiate themselves and gain recognition.
“It also brings cybersecurity threats such as data breaches, hacking, malware, ransomware. Protecting sensitive information and ensuring security protection of digital assets is a big challenge,” he added.
Entrepreneurs, Dr Ofori-Tenkorang said, must therefore, find ways to navigate those challenges, adding that they must learn to adapt, innovate and effectively manage all those associated risks.
For the digital ecosystem to thrive, Dr Ofori-Tenkorang urged collaboration between the private sector, government, and also called for various inter-institutional collaborations.
“We need to collaborate with government, agencies, industries, stakeholders, academia and civil society organisations, to foster support for digital entrepreneurship and sustainable economic development,” he said.
“We need to advocate for policies and regulations that support digital entrepreneurship and sustainability,” he added.
He urged them to promote initiatives within their organisations by providing access to digital tools and platforms such as payment platforms and user-friendly mobile apps for underserved communities to bridge the digital divide.
Some of the awarded categories were Ghana’s Greatest Entrepreneur of All Time Award 2023, which went to six entrepreneurs – Mr. Alex Apau Dadey, Executive Chairman, KGL Group; Dr. Osei Kwame, Executive Chairman Despite Group of Companies; Dr. Ernest Ofori Sarpong, Executive Chairman, Special Group of Companies; Dr. Daniel McKorley Founder and Chairman, McDan Group; Mr. Moses Baiden Jnr., Founder and Chairman, Margins ID Group and Mr. Mukesh V. Thakwani, Founder & Chairman, B5 PLUS Group.
Others were: Outstanding Pharmaceutical Entrepreneur of the Year Award 2023, which went to Dr. Kofi Addo-Agyekum, Founder/Chief Executive Officer, Kofikrom Pharmacy Limited; Nana Akomea, Managing Director, Intercity STC Coaches Limited, Outstanding Chief Executive Officer of the Year Award 2023 (Transport Sector); Dr. Anthony Kwesi Aubynn, Board Chairman, ARB Apex Bank PLC & Amenfiman Rural Bank PLC picked up the Outstanding Board Chair of the Year Award 2023 (Private Sector).
Also, Mr. Bice Osei-Kuffour, Managing Director, Ghana Post Company Limited, adjudged the Most Innovative Chief Executive Officer of the Year Award 2023, while the Lifetime Achievement Award 2023 (Public Sector) went to Ms. Elizabeth Akua Ohene, Board Chair of SSNIT.
Mr Jean Claude Galea Mallia, Maltese High Commissioner to Ghana, was also awarded with the Outstanding Ambassador of the Year Award 2023.
GNA