Ghanaians Lack Creativity � Kofi Amoabeng

Prince Kofi Amoabeng, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the UT Holdings, has called on Ghanaians to break out of their �programmed� lifestyles, cut through their antiquated cultures and learn to create solutions to the myriad of problems that currently confront Ghanaians.

According to him, Ghanaians have allowed authority, both at the domestic and national levels, to pummel them into an effortless people whereas they are supposed to be opportunity discerners and solution creators.

He said such a non-exciting attitude has only succeeded in taking Ghanaians back on the economic ladder while the rest of the world progresses with overwhelming results. Describing this as an underlying factor in the collapse of the country�s development, he said politicians have sought to paint a positive development in the macro-economic indices of Ghana.

He made these remarks at the close of a two-day Annual Strategic Marketing Conference of the Chartered Institute of Marketing Ghana (CIMG). The conference, which was to enlighten entrepreneurs on global and modern trends in industry, was themed �entrepreneurial marketing, a tool for repositioning.�

Speaking to the topic: �The UT�s of the world-lessons from the world�s great entrepreneurs, Mr. Amoabeng noted that Ghana�s economic performance made references to a number of indicators that suggested that Ghana was �going backwards� but not progressing as it has been touted by politicians.

In the first Republic, he said, Ghana had a GDP per capita of $400. Currently, it has a little over $600.00. Also in 1983, the cedi to a dollar was �10.75 cedi, but currently, it is �16,000 to a dollar.

Additionally, he said Ghana�s population at independence stood at 7 million, the same as Switzerland. However, just a little over five decades, Ghana has a population of over 24 million while Switzerland has 8 million.

Mr Amoabeng revealed that prominent national assets such as the Black Star line, Ghana Airways, Job 600, among others, have sunk into oblivion. He opined that the Ghanaian society has been programmed to think along an unsophisticated model after Dr Nkrumah to an extent that Ghanaians are not able to think themselves out of problems confronting them anymore.

He therefore asked Ghanaian to respect time, be realistic and shun politics, promiscuity, chieftaincy, religiousness and family pressures in order to make headway in their national life. �Anything that saves time for people makes money.� He further called Ghanaians to be disciplined and not to be fanatic about issues and treat everyone equally.

�Don�t sit in your small corner somewhere and waste your time with your meager achievements, people somewhere need you.�

Pikay Richardson, a visiting professor at the Manchester Business School, speaking on the topic: �Doing things right all the time,� said entrepreneurs must be customer-focused. Dr Richardson advised entrepreneurs to do things right, be flexible and fast to meet the changing needs of the customer, stressing that entrepreneurs must develop a winning strategy.