Participants at the two-day training programme held on the 13th and 14th of October for rural micro-entrepreneurs in agro-business and aquaculture in the Somanya community and surrounding areas have expressed gratitude to the organisers for the knowledge and skills they acquired throughout the session.
The programme, titled Rural Micro-Enterprises Starter (RUMES), is an initiative of the Nkabom Collaborative, a partnership comprising the Mastercard Foundation, McGill University, six public Universities in Ghana, the Association of Ghana Industries (AGI), and the McGuill University, Canada.
During an evaluation session, the participants—who are involved in diverse businesses such as bead making, detergent production, fashion design, backyard gardening, rabbit farming, and fingerling production—shared how the course had empowered them and how they have learned essential business practices, including how to maintain a cash book, set aside personal payments, and identify their fixed costs. They expressed confidence that the new skills would directly enhance their businesses and profitability.
On behalf of the participants, Olivia Offei-Koomson expressed appreciation to the Nkabom Initiative for organising the programme and called for more refresher courses of this kind in the future.
The facilitators for the training were Prof. Richard Amfo-Out, Project Lead for Agro-Waste, who guided participants through developing product/service Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) and quality checks: Dr. Kwaku Adu, Lecturer at the Department of Applied Economics, delivered a session on defining the customer, value proposition, and business offers: Mr. Ebenezer Ababio-Tetteh, a member of the project’s media team, led a session on setting up a WhatsApp business profile, catalog, and marketing messages: Mr. Patrice Dzontoh, Nkabom Administrator, covered the essentials of business registration, obtaining a tax ID, and understanding tax stamp basics.
At the closing ceremony, the Project Investigator for the UESD initiative and Vice-Chancellor of the University, Prof. Eric Nyarko-Sampson, commended the participants for their dedication and successful completion of the training. He emphasised that with the right knowledge, the future is within their grasp. He also announced plans to replicate the programme for more participants in the future, encouraging them to put their newly acquired skills into practice.
The Project Coordinator and Registrar of UESD, Mrs. Mary Abena Agyepong, also addressed the participants and affirmed that the initiative exists to serve them and that the future is theirs to conquer. “The least we can do is help you conquer it,” she remarked.
The participants received certificates of participation.at the end of the training session.