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The Ghana Chamber of Young Entrepreneurs (GCYE) has announced the successful completion of their retreat for the restructuring of the chamber. This took place on the 18th to 21st September 2019 at Pasandy Hotel, Amansaman, Accra. The Ghana Chamber of Young Entrepreneurs (GCYE) is a network of young Ghanaian business owners with interest covering every sector of the private enterprise. As an advocacy group, GCYE was formed in 2016 with the primary objective to unite, engage, and promote initiatives and innovation of young entrepreneurs to facilitate support in their pursuit of economic prosperity. GCYE aims to drive trade, advocate for reforms, provide business support services with needed information on funding source to facilitate access to credit and improve the business eco-system for the enhancement of entrepreneurship culture among young people in Ghana. The CEO, Sherif Ghali, in his notice of appreciation, expressed his profound gratitude to the Chamber’s Restructuring team and all the young entrepreneurs for their inputs during the 4-day retreat geared toward the restructuring of the chamber. He indicated that the Chamber is now in a better position to represent the interest of young entrepreneurs in Ghana and said “The chamber shall ensure your voices are heard and that your inputs on policies are considered. It shall also provide the best quality of leadership to ensure all young entrepreneurs benefit from the chamber. In the near future, breath-taking initiatives shall be introduced to help mitigate the many challenges young businesses face”. This retreat was powered by Konrad Adenauer Stiftung (KAS ) under the leadership of Dr. Burkhardt Helleman, whose support to the chamber has been humbling and exemplary. As part of the Retreat, were experts who spoke on thematic and strategic areas to help achieve the agenda therein. The program director of NYA, Mr. SulemanaMumuni submitted a paper on Develop and Deliver a paper on Policy Advocacy actions and strategies for GCYE. He also made presentation on the National Youth Policy and indicated the willingness of NYA to collaborate with the chamber. Among the experts were, Mr. Venan Sondo (Sustainability development Expert), Mr. Ernest Agyenim-Boateng (Project Management Expert and Successful Young Entrepreneur), Kwadwo Frimpong Kyere (Senior Business Dev. Services Manager for Empretec Ghana). The retreat ended successfully with the following major highlights: A Charter for the Chamber, A Comprehensive Work Plan for the Chamber, The Ghana Startup Advocacy’s Action Docket and other breathtaking programs and initiatives to roll out soon. On this note, the chamber is calling on all young entrepreneurs to signup with the chamber by visiting www.gcyegh.org/signup.php.

The Ghana Chamber of young Entrepreneurs (GCYE) has said it is open to further discussions with the government over the imposition of taxes on consumers especially its members. This resolution was disclosed by Dr.Sherif Ghali, the CEO of GCYE, and his executives. This follows the increase in the communication service tax (CST) to 9% according to the Finance Minister at the 2019 Mid-year Budget review; the Government proposes to increase the communication service tax (CST) to nine percent to develop the foundation for the creation of a viable technology ecosystem in the country. The Communication Service Tax (CST) was introduced in 2008 at an ad valorem rate of six percent. The tax is levied on charges payable by consumers for the use of communication services. The communication service tax ACT 2008 (Act 754) stipulates that at least 20% of the revenue generated from the tax shall be used to finance the youth employment programme. Per our observation, this is the second time telcos tariff has been increased in just less than ten months as a result of government fiscal management. In November 2018, the then Mid-year budget review saw the separation of the 5 percent GETFund and NHIL levies from the VAT. This led to telcos increasing their tariffs effective November 1, 2018, transferring the cost to consumers. About more than 90% of young entrepreneurs in Ghana depend on the services of the telcos in running their businesses and with the already operational burden on these young entrepreneurs such as annual business operating permits charged by municipalities, high cost of office rent, high cost of fuel, high lending rate among many other related challenges confronting young entrepreneurs, the Ghana Chamber of Young Entrepreneurs (GCYE) is calling on the government and the ministry of communication to reconsider this increment. GCYE was established under the NYA with the primary aim of advocating and serving as the mouthpiece of young entrepreneurs, providing information on the funding source, facilitate access to credit and provide business support services to its members. It is an associate member of the Private Enterprise Federation and the Commonwealth Alliance of Young Entrepreneurs and African Young Entrepreneurs with over 1,000 registered young entrepreneurs across the regions of Ghana. GCYE believes that if nothing is done about this CST increment, many young entrepreneurs will face lots of challenges in their business since most will not able to bear its consequent burden

The largest network on young entrepreneurs in Ghana has officially been espoused as members of the Private Enterprise Federation. The Private Enterprise Federation was established in 1994 as the apex institution to forge consensus and provide the leadership voice for advocacy, on the initiative of the Association of Ghana Industries, Ghana National Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Ghana Employers’ Association, and the Federation of Associations of Ghanaian Exporters; with the support of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID). The Ghana Association of Bankers (GAB) was later admitted as the fifth founding member and the Ghana Chamber of Mines (GCM) was also added as a member later on. Four (4) new members namely, Ghana Chamber of Telecommunications (GCT), the Ghana Insurers’ Association (GIA), the Association of Oil Marketing Companies (AOMC’s) and the Liquefied Petroleum Gas Operators Association (GLiPGOA) have joined the Federation as full-fledged members since October 2012. The latest members to join is the Association of Small Scale Industries (ASSI), the biggest informal association and the Chamber of Bulk Oil Distributors (CBOD), were also admitted as members by the Governing Council in 2015 and 2016 respectively. PEF as a non-profit, non-political, autonomous institution and a Company Limited by guarantees under the Ghana Companies Code, Act 179, has its membership open to all private businesses and trade associations from both the formal and informal sectors of the economy. Five new applications for membership including that of the biggest informal sector association are pending for consideration and approval by the Federation’s Governing Council. GCYE who shares in the vision and mission of PEF applied for a membership and was recently approved by the governing board of the Federation. According to the CEO of GCYE Mr. Sherif Ghali, “this is a great opportunity for us as budding young entrepreneurs to learn from captains of the industry and to tap into the rich advocacy level of the Federation to drum home our concerns and policy recommendations” He added that, young entrepreneurs should consider this as a milestone and join the Chamber to have their concerns reached decision making bodies and amplify their network to accelerate their business growth. The Ghana Chamber of Young Entrepreneurs (GCYE) is a network of young Ghanaian business owners with interest covering every sector of the private enterprise. As an advocacy group, GCYE was formed with the primary objective to unite, engage, and promote initiatives and innovation of young entrepreneurs to facilitate support in their pursuit of economic prosperity. GCYE aims to drive trade, advocate for reforms, provide business support services with needed information on funding source to facilitate access to credit and improve the business eco-system for the enhancement of entrepreneurship culture among young people in Ghana. The GCYE is duly registered with the Registrar Generals Department and the National Youth Authority (NYA) with a membership of 7500 across the nation. The GCYE is an associate member of Commonwealth Alliance of Young Entrepreneurs-West African (CAYE-WA). https://www.modernghana.com/news/933223/ghana-chamber-of-young-entrepreneurs-now-members-of-the-priv.html?fbclid=IwAR2OvPYdTIWzcWtH01zUn5eHBbbK7h2VkFt01dCQ0nuRersRGL4FqFLupCk

Young business leaders from 17 African countries have explored fresh solutions to overcome employment and entrepreneurship challenges at a workshop in Tanzania. Africa has a greater proportion of young people than any other continent – so youth livelihoods are an urgent priority. The workshop was hosted by the Commonwealth Alliance of Young Entrepreneurs-Africa (CAYE-Africa) and supported by the Commonwealth. It aimed at empowering young business leaders to forge a new direction for the alliance and agree on key issues affecting youth employability in the region. During the workshop, young entrepreneurs identified five key interventions to prioritize under the alliance which was established in 2016. These interventions are: Addressing knowledge gaps; Reforming the regulatory frameworks; Building digital capacities and capabilities; Advancing financial inclusion; and Integrating and strengthening youth entrepreneurship networks. Gerald Chirinda, the founder of Kenya’s Future Africa Forum, said that young people are rising Up and taking a lead in coming up with solutions to local challenges. “When I look at young Africans, I see a demographic dividend that just requires the tools and environment to enable them to tackle the challenges of our time which include youth unemployment.” Young leaders proposed new ideas which will be part of the alliance’s mandate. These ideas included engaging with governments to support new businesses and hosting a youth-led summit on entrepreneurship to share the best practices from the region. Sushil Ram, a programme manager in the Commonwealth’s social policy section, spoke at the workshop. “The Commonwealth is excited to support the formation of the alliance, especially within a region which has so many passionate and talented young entrepreneurs, all ambitious to grow their businesses and contribute to their countries’ prosperity,” he said. “As well as driving trade within and across borders, the alliance will give young entrepreneurs a voice with policymakers to enhance the entrepreneurship ecosystem and the sharing of good practice.” Young leaders recognized that the alliance’s current “network of networks” model requires a more targeted and engaged approach. They said the existing model did not effectively support the urgent need of young entrepreneurs’ to address the challenges they face. The new approach will provide them with a strong platform to showcase new businesses, build networks and promote trade. The Commonwealth Youth Programme supports the Alliance in its work to encourage young people to go into business. The CAYE’s regional networks, including CAYE-Asia and CAYE-Caribbean and Canada, seek to nurture young entrepreneurs and unify their voices at national and international forums to influence policy and practice. Speaking at a young entrepreneurs hangout held at the Office premises of the Ghana Chamber of Young Entrepreneurs, the Country Coordinator for CAYE Ghana Mr. Sherif Ghali called on young entrepreneurs groups to join and support CAYE’s dream. He said, “it is only when we are united in pursuit of one common goal that we achieve unprecedented results.” https://www.modernghana.com/news/935552/young-african-entrepreneurs-pledge-to-turn-youth-unemploymen.html?fbclid=IwAR2eH7qly-oN8ShHLIo2lSmXD27s6LGW4LFIzzI-bOgVWSRC4pQ733TbolQ

Chief Executive Officer of the Ghana Chamber of Young Entrepreneurs Sherif Ghali Abdulai is calling on entrepreneurs in the country to emulate the Chairman of the McDan Group of companies Dr. Daniel McCauley in running their businesses. Speaking to Radio Waa on the sidelines of a multi-stakeholder business integrity forum in Accra on Wednesday, Mr. Ghali said though Dr. McCauley is open to every business idea from any quarter, his firmness in his dealings makes him an exceptional person to deal with. “For McDan, he will accept any opinion from people from all walks of life but when it comes to taking decisions, he is always firm and will not budge even when pushed”, he stated. “This attitude is what we as entrepreneurs need to ensure that our businesses strive”, Mr. Ghali stressed. The CEO of GCYE also called on entrepreneurs to have time in terms of following processes at any office they go to. This he believes will go a long way to weed out the canker of paying unapproved money to individuals in order to facilitate services rendered to them. He said, “the reason we have issues with offices such as the Regista General’s Department is that, most businessmen will claim they have no time to wait for a service so they end up paying cash to middlemen to have it rendered for them at a faster rate. If we continue this way, we will always have problems such as the payment of facilitation fees to middlemen”, he added. The Multi-Stakeholder Business Integrity Forum was organized by the Ghana Integrity Initiative to seek the views of the business community on how to curb corruption at public places. Participants at the forum called for systems to be allowed to work in order to ensure corruption is cleared. https://www.ghanaweb.com/GhanaHomePage/NewsArchive/Emulate-the-examples-of-McDan-GCYE-CEO-to-entrepreneurs-735691?fbclid=IwAR0LlgKwLediujqHovw25A4LcaFa-me6fNr18JjJkMPb9xCSImKar3FxGPI

Despite the relative stability in power supply, cost of electricity was still a major challenge to young businesses in Ghana. According to CEO of Ghana Chamber of Young Entrepreneurs, Mr. Sherif Ghali, the current average bill of GH¢562 a month was a major challenge to members of the chamber. “I remember last year if not for our intervention, three of our members would have closed down their printing shops in New Town because of cost of power,” he lamented. He however asserted that, “I hope this will not be the usual talk show but a reality. Anyways this government has proven their commitment to supporting the growth of the private sector and we believe if unremitting will have a grander impact in job and wealth creation. Once again we congratulate the government for this timely intervention. We hope to see more of this and we would so much want the government to revise its policies on youth entrepreneurship. There are certain basic things if touched on, many young people can do business and the government at least will be somewhat be free of unemployment issues. We as a chamber is available with alternatives should the government call on us.” On Monday, 15th January, 2017, at the opening of the 8th Salon Academy of the National Association of Beauticians and Hairdressers, held at the Mensah Sarbah Hall, University of Ghana, Legon the President announced that, as from January this year, non-residential users of electricity in the country would enjoy an average of 14% reduction in electricity tariffs. According to President Akufo-Addo, not only has Government succeeded in normalizing the power situation in the country, “we now want to boost private business in our country.” Thus, the President indicated that “from January this year, the non-residential tariff rate, which is the rate which includes all of you here, is being reduced by an average of 14%. For barbers, it is being reduced by 18%; for hairdressers and beauticians, 15.7%, and for tailors, 9.8%.” https://www.ghanaweb.com/GhanaHomePage/NewsArchive/GCYE-applauds-government-for-tariff-reduction-618384?fbclid=IwAR3oZulz3kTCsh6XAqPfZ8bJlXZqDesJNDJzl75qogxLUAr9tkk-TjO4Ehs

The Ghana Chamber of Young Entrepreneurs (GCYE) has called on government to make operational, a proposed legislation that is expected to bring relief to the youth and the vulnerable in the Ghanaian society. The said legislation if enforced, would see the allocation of some thirty percent (30%) of all government funded procurement to the youth, women and people with disabilities. CEO of the Ghana Chamber of Young Entrepreneurs, Sherif Ghali believes “such legislation when enforced would offer a window of opportunity to the targeted beneficiaries especially young entrepreneurs to fair and greater chance of winning procurement bids and executing the accompanying projects.” According to Mr. Ghali, the young entrepreneurs would be able to accumulate enough capital to expand their businesses and invest in other areas offering job opportunities to their peers, thereby arresting the ever swelling unemployment situation. Read below the full statement by the GCYE GCYE calls on government to expedite action on the proposed legislation to allocate thirty percent of all public procurement to youth, women and PWDS Sherif Ghali- CEO, Ghana Chamber of Young Entrepreneurs In the wake of the ramifications of the escalating levels of unemployment and joblessness especially among the teeming youth of our dear nation Ghana, it is imperative for drastic and far reaching steps to be taken to arrest the situation before it gets out of hand. It is often said that the youth are the backbone of any nation desirous of development and progress. Indeed the youth are the future and not just the future leaders. As such, youth employment and empowerment must be given priority by all concerned stakeholders. It is, therefore, appropriate and compelling for such stakeholders especially the state to create the requisite enabling environment for the youth to start up small to medium scale businesses with ease in order to support their own livelihood and eventually contribute to national development. There is no denying the fact that such support would drastically cut down on the levels of unemployment and the attendant consequences of crime and youth political vigilantism. In the light of this, the Ghana Chamber of Young Entrepreneurs (GCYE) thinks it imperative to implore the government as well as all associated stakeholders to expedite action on the proposed legislation to allocate some thirty percent (30%) of all government funded procurement to the youth, women and people with disabilities. It is our considered opinion that such legislation when enforced would offer a window of opportunity to the targeted beneficiaries especially young entrepreneurs to fair and greater chance of winning procurement bids and executing the accompanying projects. In the process, such young entrepreneurs would be able to accumulate enough capital to expand their businesses and invest in other areas offering job opportunities to their peers thereby arresting the ever swelling unemployment situation. It’s important to state that the legislation would equally save the vulnerable young entrepreneurs the bureaucratic, cumbersome and rigid procurement process that doesn’t favour starters. In order to give the young entrepreneurs the needed boost and confidence to chase their dream businesses, this proposed legislation would be a panacea in our view. The Government, Parliament and the Public Procurement Authority must put their shoulders to the wheel and do the needful as far as this proposed legislation is concerned to save the millions of Ghanaian youth who are faced with exclusion as far as the existing procurement process is concerned.