Marked annually on March 8, the world celebrates International Women’s Day (IWD), “a global day celebrating the social, economic, cultural and political achievements of women” and a day marking “a call to action for accelerating gender parity.”
This year is heralded with the theme: “Gender equality today for a sustainable tomorrow.” In this article, we recognise 5 outstanding women entrepreneurs in Ghana. As such we are shining the light on five (5) Ghanaian women entrepreneurs who took on the risks of starting their own businesses and challenging the male dominance narrative.
“A challenged world is an alert world. Individually, we’re all responsible for our own thoughts and actions – all day, every day. We can all choose to challenge and call out gender bias and inequality. We can all choose to seek out and celebrate women’s achievements. Collectively, we can all help create an inclusive world. From challenge comes change, so let’s all choose to challenge,” a statement on the IWD website read.
5 Outstanding women entrepreneurs in Ghana
#1 Grace Amey-Obeng
Grace Amey-Obeng is the CEO of Forever Clair Group. The Business produces a wide range of skincare products, trains individuals in beauty therapy, and supplies beauty equipment. The company has 6 subsidiaries namely FC Cosmetic Industry, FC skin and Beauty Klinik, FC Perfumery and Cosmetics, FC Beauty College, Beauty Scope Magazine, Salon Equipment, and Beauty Supplies.
The company has operated for over 25 years. Its vision is “to be recognized, accepted and respected globally as the premier provider of quality beauty therapy services, products, equipment and education in Ghana and Africa.”
In May 2017, she was honoured at the second event of the Ghana Women of the Year Honours in the category of “Excellence in Business”.
Women entrepreneurs in Ghana: #2 Kate Quartey-Papafio
Kate Quartey-Papafio is the founder of Reroy Group. The company was founded in 1992 to distribute high-quality electrical cables in the country. Today, the company does not only distribute but produces power cables, conductors, and electrical power distribution systems. The company also provides strategic contract services to the electricity sector. Operation of the Reroy Group is in four specialist engineering entities, which are:
* Reroy Cables Ltd (Manufacture of Power Cables and Conductors)
* Reroy Power Ltd (Manufacture, Supply, and Installation of Power
Distribution Equipment; Transformers and Substations …)
* Reroy Metals Ltd (Manufacturer of Aluminium Wire Rod)
* Reroy Energy Ltd
Women entrepreneurs in Ghana: #3 Winnifred Selby and Bernice Dapaah
Winnifred Selby and Bernice Dapaah are social entrepreneurs. They are contributing to finding sustainable solutions to Ghana’s socio-economic problems in the area of creating jobs and providing an affordable transport system.
Winnifred Selby was only 15 when she co-founded Afrocentric Bamboo with Bernice Dapaah, a company that manufactures and markets bicycles made from bamboo.
The bicycles are built to withstand the high terrain and rough roads of rural communities in the country.
Women Entrepreneurs in Ghana: #4 Akosua Annobil
Akosua Annobil is the founder of AfricaBiz2020 & Tech in Ghana. Tech in Ghana, launched in 2017, is a “leading UK-Ghana platform that brings together Ghana’s tech ecosystem for global knowledge sharing, valuable networking, and to showcase innovation.”
That is, it is a platform where individuals can connect and engage “with founders, government agencies, corporate tech companies, and investors and influencers both locally and globally.”
In 2018, Akosua Annobil was mentioned in the Financial Times as one of the Top 100 Most Influential Black, Asian, Minority Ethnic Leaders in the UK Tech Sector.
#5 Ethel Cofie
Ethel Cofie is the founder of Edel technology & WomenTechAfrica. Her company has over 12 years of experience working in the UK, Ghana, Nigeria, and Sierra Leone on projects for organizations like Bill and Melinda Gates Mobile Technology for Health project, and Ford Foundation’s Election Monitoring project for Nigeria. She was the Head of Commercial Solutions for Vodafone and is imbued with knowledge, technical skills, and operational excellence.
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