Green business offers pathway to jobs, sustainability – Prof. Kwakye

An Associate Professor of Accounting at the University of Ghana Business School, Prof. Teddy Ossei Kwakye, has urged young people to embrace green entrepreneurship as a viable pathway to job creation and environmental sustainability.

He observed that although opportunities within the green business space were expanding, limited knowledge and access to finance remain the major challenges confronting many young entrepreneurs.

Prof. Kwakye made the call during a Green Business Training for Youth and Waste Workers organised by the Green Africa Youth Organisation (GAYO) in Accra last Thursday.

The training equipped participants with skills in sustainable business practices and waste management.

He advised young graduates to shift their mindset from reliance on formal employment to creating solutions to societal problems.

He explained that they should not always focus on office jobs but rather identify challenges around them, such as waste management, and develop innovative solutions.

Prof. Kwakye further encouraged the youth to seek mentorship, participate in training programmes and build networks to strengthen their entrepreneurial journey.

He also called on government and financial institutions to create an enabling environment through targeted policies, tax incentives and flexible funding support to help youth-led green businesses thrive.

The President of the African Chamber for Youth Development (ACYD), Mr John AffaidziAppiah, on his part stressed the need to actively involve young people in tackling environmental challenges, including water pollution and climate change.

He noted that although stakeholders were making efforts towards sustainability but inadequate grassroots engagement could undermine progress.

MrAppiah pointed to financing constraints in the green sector, explaining that these challenges stem partly from a lack of business formalisation and limited understanding of the industry by financial institutions.

He, therefore, called for innovative measures such as decentralising business registration processes to make them more accessible to young entrepreneurs.

For his part, the Regional Coordinator of GAYO under the Zero Waste Cities Portfolio, Mr Antonio Korkuvi, said the training programme, being implemented in phases, was expected to benefit about 400 young people and waste workers.

He elaborated that about 100 participants were recruited per cohort, with plans to run two additional cohorts to widen the programme’s impact.

MrKorkuvi added that beyond raising environmental awareness, the initiative also focused on improving participants’ financial literacy to ensure the sustainability of their businesses.

BY PRINCE ADDO FRIMPONG

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