The Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST) has been shortlisted among six universities in Ghana for the E4Impact Green Entrepreneurship Acceleration and Incubation Program.
This initiative, under the EU-Ghana Pact for Skills Project: Support Tertiary Education for Sustainable Employability, is funded by the European Union.
The project aims to enhance tertiary education for sustainable employability by improving the transition of tertiary students into the job market, with a particular focus on green and digital sectors.
The 3½-year project will strengthen coordination mechanisms, increase digital skills training, and provide acceleration and incubation services in Ghana.
“As part of the application process, a team from the E4Impact Foundation is visiting shortlisted universities to assess their facilities and capacity to host the project,” Dr. Samuel Yaw Akomea, Head of the Centre for Business Development (CBD), stated.
He added that the visit to KNUST included an evaluation of the university’s physical and digital infrastructure, faculty expertise, and ongoing entrepreneurship initiatives.
Professor (Mrs.) Rita Akosua Dickson, Vice-Chancellor of KNUST, expressed concern over the alarming rate of youth unemployment and emphasized entrepreneurship training as one of the university’s tenets.
“Unemployment is a global menace, and this project aligns with our mission and vision as a university to provide solutions to SDG 1. We are keen on spearheading and expanding initiatives at the Centre for Business Development to enhance entrepreneurship training, which is a key remedy to unemployment. If we get it right with the youth, it will enable them to maximize their potential and talents,” she stated.
She added: “As a university with over 80,000 students and six vibrant colleges, we have launched an initiative dubbed 1Department, 1Startup (1D1S) to promote entrepreneurship across the university community. I look forward to establishing an Entrepreneurship Centre on campus where various business experts can engage with students to help them develop their own businesses.”
Fabio Petroni, Director of Programs at the E4Impact Foundation, explained that E4Impact is a social change organization that supports the start-up and growth of new businesses in Africa through MBAs, entrepreneurship programs, business accelerators, and economic development projects. He noted that their programs have created approximately 20,000 new jobs.
The Director expressed optimism about future collaboration “Once we decide to work with a university, we go beyond the project’s timeline,” he stated.
Saviour Agortimevor, Country Director and Global MBA Manager at the E4Impact Foundation, was impressed with some of the ongoing initiatives at the CBD.
