Anthony Adu-Nketiah
ANTHONY ADU-Nketiah, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Thonket Group of Companies, has said entrepreneurs work as wheels of a country’s economic growth.
He said by creating new products and services, entrepreneurs stimulate employments, which ultimately result in the acceleration of economic development.
Adu-Nketiah was giving a public lecture at the Great Baptist University College (GBUC) as part of its 2022 week celebration in Kumasi recently.
Speaking on the topic, “Developing Systems That Promote Entrepreneurial Development,” Adu-Nketiah outlined the roles of entrepreneurs in a country’s economic development such as establishing the business entity, investing their own resources and attracting capital from investors, lenders, and the public.
This action of entrepreneurs, he added, mobilises public wealth and allows people to benefit from entrepreneurs and growing businesses.
In his view, entrepreneurs are by nature and definition job creators as opposed to job seekers, stressing that “when one person becomes an entrepreneur, he or she reduces job seekers by one person and ultimately employs multiple other job seekers. This is one of the basic goals of economic development.”
Discussing current systems entrepreneurs operate, Adu-Nketiah disclosed that banks execute loan facility letters or agreements that are skewed to only their business interests, while most customers would also sign under false notion that the bank is helping them to grow their businesses.
“Most businesses may not need a loan but bank officials in their quest to achieve their assigned targets will lure them to take loan facilities and when they default then they turn back to say Ghanaian entrepreneurs do not like to repay their loans,” he stated.
He also bemoaned situations which force entrepreneurs or businessmen to resort to loans to keep their businesses afloat, but with high interest at the bank, which eventually worsens their financial conditions and finally collapse.
“Sometimes also, the account officers of some of our suppliers or creditors can deliberately make fictitious entries in their clients’ accounts and those businesses that are not able to reconcile their accounts on regular basis get hit by such acts and lose their businesses as a result,” he continued.
FROM David Afum, Kumasi