Why are entrepreneurs important for the economy?

Entrepreneurs create new businesses and they create new goods and services that result in employment which then results in more development. They also add to the national income. Existing businesses may be restricted to their markets and hit a glass ceiling when it comes to building an income, but new products of technology create new markets.

Furthermore, entrepreneurs create social change. They break traditions with unique inventions that break dependence on current systems. The globalization of technology means entrepreneurs in Ghana have access to the same tools as business owners in richer countries. They also have the advantage of a lower cost of living, so a young entrepreneur can compete with a multi-million-dollar existing product from a developed country.

However, regulation plays a crucial role in nurturing entrepreneurship. Unregulated entrepreneurship may lead to unwanted social outcomes including unfair market practices, corruption, financial crisis, and even criminal activity.

Ghana already knows a number of young and successful entrepreneurs.

Mabel Simpson - Fashion designer and CEO of mSimps

Mabel Simpson is one of the most celebrated entrepreneurs in Ghana. She started her creative enterprise in Accra with GHS200 and a sewing machine her grandmother gave her as a gift. Now, her products have become popular and have gained an international eye.

Simpson distinguishes herself by using African fabric and raw material she sees around her to make handbags, purses, slippers, etc. “It hasn’t been an easy journey, but with hard work and perseverance, we have been able to do this,'' she tells IPTV Africa.

What does she want to achieve? Putting Ghana on the global map.

Mabel Simpson (By Gkbediako) Pulse Ghana

Farida Bedwei - Co-founder CTO Logiciel and disability rights advocate

Today, as the co-founder and chief technical officer of software company Logiciel, she is considered one of the most powerful women in financial technology on the continent. In 2013, South Africa's CEO Magazine named Bedwei the most influential woman in business and government in Africa for the financial sector.

She lives with cerebral palsy, but that doesn’t stop her. In fact, she is also a disability rights advocate and launched the superhero comic Karmzah, based on her own character. Her ambition is to fight the limited representation in comics and cartoons.

The comic series Karmzah Pulse Ghana

Sandra Ozwald - CEO of Saint Ozwald Shoes

At 26, and already a successful businesswoman in the local shoemaking business. Sandra Ozwald’s products are in high demand across the country. This, however, was not without objection from her mother, who said that shoemaking was a strictly masculine job. But she stood firm in her conviction and she currently has eight men working for her.

“I discovered this whole idea [of shoemaking] at a friend’s wedding where the groom was wearing a shoe which was made with an African print. I was quite shocked because I never knew we could make shoes in Ghana,” Sandra said in an exclusive interview with Pulse Ghana.