Young entrepreneurs who took part in the Record Keeping and Data Management in Agribusiness Short Course under the Nutrition and Sustainable Agri-food Collaborative, in partnership with the Mastercard Foundation (Nkabom Collaborative), said the training has transformed their business ideas and ventures.
The five-day programme brought together 50 participants from across Ghana to build skills in record keeping, data analysis and evidence-based decision-making in the agribusiness sector.
Jackson Brefo, founder of the West Africa Livestock and Processing Centre, described the course as invaluable to his entrepreneurial journey.
“I have come to learn more beyond keeping financial records. I now know how to analyse investments in agribusiness, assess profit and loss, and mitigate risks. We even touched on compliance and security measures. This has been worthwhile,” he said.
He added that the training had sharpened his vision for tackling protein deficiency in West Africa.
“We have completed land acquisition around Kofiasse and plan to begin short-term crop farming as a base for our long-term livestock processing venture. I believe Nkabom will continue to follow up on our growth,” he said.
For Eugenia Oduma Amoh, who runs Bloom Life Cocoa Potash, the course marked a turning point in managing her operations.
“This one-week programme has enabled me to gain more insight into record keeping and data management. With this training, I can now put my data into an organised form from sourcing cocoa pods to processing them. It is going to help me expand my business and become more organised,” she said.
Participants also highlighted the networking opportunities, saying the course linked them with colleagues from government agencies, start-ups and established agribusinesses.
Professor William Otoo Ellis, Principal Investigator of the Nkabom Collaborative, urged the trainees to apply the lessons in their ventures.
“Do not let this be just another training you attended. Take what you have learnt and put it into practice. The opportunities in the agrifood sector are vast, and you have the potential to create solutions that matter,” he said.
