Koos Bekker was born in South Africa on 14 December 1952. Bekker got his early education from Hoër Volkskool Heidelberg and degrees from Stellenbosch University in Law and Literature and Wits University in Law. During his studies in Stellenbosch he stayed in Eendrag Manskoshuis. (more…)
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Ekow Mensah hosts the 1st Igniting Dreams Conference
On what would be a celebration of his 10 years of promoting entrepreneurship, impacting lives and igniting dreams of young people across Africa, Ekow Mensah, Chairman of Ekow Mensah Investments and Founder & CEO of The African Network of Entrepreneurs (TANOE) is set to host the first edition of his Igniting Dreams Conference which is expected to be hosted across Africa.
The conference which comes off on Saturday 15th April, 2017 also doubles as his 35th birthday celebration. It will come off at the British Council auditorium in Accra and is expected to host hundreds of young people who will be empowered and coached to relentlessly pursue their dreams through various activities scheduled for the conference.
In an interaction with Ekow Mensah, the host of the conference, he mentioned that the Igniting Dreams Conference has come to stay and it is a major part of his Igniting Dreams Project that aims at equipping and supporting over 1 million youth across Africa in their quest to pursue their big dreams and contribute to the development of the African continent into a global super power. He further stated that Africa’s greatest asset is its human capital and his Igniting Dreams Project will intentionally and consistently develop the youth to be Skillful, Entrepreneurial and Buoyant.
These Skillful, Entrepreneurial and Buoyant youth he refers to as #IDTorchBearers will each have a mandate to transfer their knowledge and provide support to at least 12 other individuals known as their #IDCircleof12. This is the Igniting Dreams Peer Mentorship Program which is part of the Igniting Dreams Conference Sustainability plan.
By all standards, the Igniting Dreams Conference is set to revolutionize the dreams of participants and energize them with essential resources to guarantee their success in life, business and relationship.
About Ekow Mensah
Named amongst the 50 Most Influential Young Ghanaians and 60 Young Leaders in Ghana by CocaCola, Ekow Mensah is a serial entrepreneur who has developed a wealth of knowledge and experience in the Startup & SME markets, both as a practitioner and a multiple business owner.
Ekow is the Chairman of the Ekow Mensah Investments (EMI), a private equity firm headquartered in Ghana with investments in Multimedia, Construction, Retail, Finance, Education and IT. Noteworthy amongst EMI’s investments are IConceptsPR, York Construction & Investments, Trade Hub Limited, Privateline Services, Ekow Mensah Consulting and Ekow Mensah Photography.
Ekow is also the Founder & currently the CEO of The African Network of Entrepreneurs (TANOE), an award winning entrepreneurship & business development support services social enterprise that seeks among other things to assist African entrepreneurs to build sustainable and globally competitive indigenous businesses. TANOE, being self-funded for the past 7 years, currently runs 9 flagship projects including GirlEmpowered, WomanRising, The Startup Network, The SME Network and Student & Youth Entrepreneurs’ Network (SYENet), TANOEmoney, TANOEmedia, TANOEhub and TANOEinstitute. TANOE in partnership with Premium Bank also manages the HelpStation Project.
Ekow is a British Council independent facilitator and an international Intercultural consultant for Dwellworks in USA.
Read more about Ekow on www.ekowmensah.com
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Checkout a Real African Shero, Feyisayo Treasure Adanlawo, Founder of Treasure House Foundation.
Feyisayo Treasure Adanlawo is a passionate young lady who is just passionate about anything that will benefit humanity. After spending 5 weeks with Feyisayo Treasure Adanlawo at the Administrative Staff College of Nigeria, (ASCON), I left for my home country, Ghana, knowing Nigeria has a bright future.
Now, who really is this young African shero, Feyisayo Treasure Adanlawo.
Feyisayo Treasure Adanlawo is a 27 year old Serial Entrepreneur, Teenage Life Coach and Writer.
She graduated in 2011 with a Bachelor Degree in Philosophy and in 2017 with a Masters’ Degree in Gender Studies. She has attended conferences and done several training in Management, Effectiveness Coaching, Capacity Building, and Leadership. She was a participant at the Young African Leaders Initiative YALI (An Obama Initiative) Nigeria Cohort 2 in ASCON, Lagos, and she is currently also taking a training on Neuro-linguistics programming (NLP).
She has a passion to impact the lives of young adults and teenagers to desire greatness by maximizing all the opportunities available to better their lives as well as help them develop their minds to be able to innovate and contribute to life even as young people.
“Carve your name on hearts, not tombstones. A legacy is etched into the minds of others and the stories they share about you.”
― Shannon L. AlderShe is also very passionate about helping young people who are entangled with drugs, sexual addiction and emotional instability. She serves as an intermediary between them and the experts who can help them (psychologists; Brain Dynamics, Justice for Rape and Sexual Assault Victims, Sexual Therapists, Forensic Medical Services, And Counselling Services).
Feyisayo Treasure Adanlawo founded Treasure House Foundation in 2016, as a nonprofit organization poised at helping to groom young people to become all that they could ever be against all odds on their way.
Having discovered, through research in her community that idleness and lack of direction were root causes of several issues among young people, she started a skill training empowerment programme, which had the impact of helping people who had been through therapy to integrate back into the society. La Treasure Creations, a subsidiary of Treasure House Foundation is a creative fashion accessory line which focuses on making bags and fashion accessories from fabrics and also handmade jewelry. La Treasure Creations was founded to train young people from the foundation in various skills, art and craft.
Feyi, as I always call her, did an Academic research on Rape Relief which brought her close to several sexual assault victims and gave her an understanding of their plight and how to bring them closer to help. She has worked with over 100 young people in the areas of emotional instability, poor academic performance, sexually related addiction as well as rape relief through several related organizations that she volunteers for including Media Concern Initiative for women and children [MediaCon].
Feyisayo Treasure Adanlawo is also the co-Founder and Manager of Accentuate Cleaning Service Limited; a professional cleaning facility maintenance company aimed at raising the scale of cleanliness. They are committed to providing modern, professional, environmental – friendly and efficient services to commercial, industrial and domestic clients.
Their mission is to provide integrated world class cleaning and support services through the use of environmental friendly products in a sustainable manner.
Having lost her mother at the age of two and her father two decades after, one would think that she would sink into a quagmire of depression. But, that has not been the case! She has risen above all odds to become a quintessential example of greatness to many people around her, hence her desire to help young people be all that they could possibly be regardless of their background so that they could live a fulfilled life and in turn positively change their world.
Her road hasn’t been without challenges.She has encountered various challenges along the way especially within her for-profit business (Accentuate Cleaning Services Ltd.) one of which is lack of funding for expansion, mobility of heavy cleaning tools and machines to sites where they are needed.
Another challenge about her cleaning business is that it is a relatively new industry though many people are involved, a large percentage of potential end users do not see why they should pay good money for cleaning that their household staff could do as well, interpreting the components of professional cleaning to a layman who doesn’t understand green cleaning, eco system friendly cleaning as well as cleaning health and safety measures is extremely difficult.
Through Treasure House Foundation, she has been able to reach out to young people in secondary schools teaching them about the importance of making their lives count as well as exposing them to the dangers of several social vices they may be entangled with and how it will hinder them from having a great life. She intends to spread out across all secondary schools in Lagos state within the next 3 years, Nigeria within the next 7 years, organizing more skill training and empowerment seminars to young adults as both a tool of rehabilitation and empowerment.
By 2037, she hopes Treasure House Foundation would be affiliated to major charity organizations in the world thereby reaching out to more young people across Africa
Accentuate Cleaning Services Ltd. On the other hand was established in 2015 with only one client but within two years it has grown to seven (7); four monthly janitorial centers, two executive home keep and a Church Building.
With passion and drive, she believes Accentuate Cleaning Services Ltd. will be a household name within the next 2 years, providing top class Janitorial services to all the top organizations in Africa and they would have delved into a number of ventures like creating their own cleaning consumable plant and producing environmental friendly cleaning solution as well as sales of cleaning equipment and training. All these, as she made me to understand, have been outlined into long and short term goals to be followed strictly putting flexibility to potential new models to bear.
“I want to motivate the young people in Africa to dream BIG, Anyone who aspires to be great would be great but it is dependent on their imaginative capacity, if you cannot see what you desire, you cannot achieve it” – Feyisayo Treasure Adanlawo
Feyisayo can be reached on:
accentuatecleaningservices@gmail.com
treasurehousefoundation@gmail.com
www.facebook.com/feyitresure
www.facebook.com/accentuatecleaningservices
www.facebook.com/treasurehousefoundation
www.instagram.com/feyiadanlawo
www.instagram.com/accentuatecleaning
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What you need to know about Bayala Pindairious Foundation.
BAYALA PINDAIRUOS FOUNDATION (BPF) is a prestigious Christian non-denominational organization that creates educative conferences, summits, and seminars for the growth and betterment of humanity with a division known as TRUE WORSHIPPER’S.
It’s founded to create an atmosphere that is conducive for spirit- filled worship unto the Lord, and to have an opportunity of leading people to Jesus Christ and equipping the body of Christ. Its foundation is based on John 4:23-24 But the hour cometh, and now is, when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth: for the Father seeketh such to worship him. God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth.
BPF aspires to create a universal atmosphere for humanity to grow from below to the top in every area of life into driven global centre of excellence in Africa that will serve as hub for research into new leadership thinking, providing solution to the leadership crisis in Africa and the rest of the world.
BPF is nonprofit Christian organization in areas of preaching, teaching, self development, training, self motivation, coaching and individual achievement.
Vision
BPF is to carry the great commission mandate to the ends of the world through raising young godly Leaders, preaching, teaching of God’s word, and evangelism to win souls for our Lord Jesus Christ.
Mission Statement
The mission of BPF is to discover, develop and mould an elite group of godly young leaders into global leaders, educated to global standards, which will lead change, drive, and innovation and solve complex problems. In the process, we redefine leadership to mean service, stewardship…. a new definition that moves leadership from the top pyramid to its base. The foundation of this commission stands on the scripture; Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have
commanded you: and, lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world. Amen.
Mathew 28:19-20
PURPOSE
To raise young godly leaders who fear God in every area of life and to provide proven teaching material to its members and environs for the growth and betterment of humanity. To help humanity discover their true identity, abilities and unleash their God given potentials, gifts and talents to solve complex problems in communities, villages, towns and cities for the betterment of humanity.
STRATEGY
Our strategy’s to change the world and make impact in the lives of humanity is to target the youth in our environs and provide them with proven development materials on leadership, empowerment, success, entrepreneurship, and integrity by ensuring that they are well capable, trained, confident, competent and skilled leaders to delegate or elect to hold any position that requires leadership in our rural, urban areas and in the world at large through our seminars and conferences.
COMPASION FOR HUMANITY (CFH)
Deuteronomy 15:11 For the poor shall never cease out of the land: therefore I command thee, saying, Thou shalt open thine hand wide unto thy brother, to thy poor, and to thy needy, in thy land.
Our compassion for humanity seeks to demonstrate the Love of God to the poor, Children’s home, the needy, disables, widows, widowers and it members,. These include counseling team, building projects, nutritional service, medical team, and food and cloth distribution. Our compassion for humanity provides practical assistance in form of goods, medical aid and reconstruction, as well as the love of Jesus Christ, in area where both physical and spiritual needs are great.
AIMS AND OBJECTIVES
a) To serve God well and make it to heaven.
b) To Win souls through Christian activities (e.g. Outreaches, Gospel rock shows ,summits , seminars and conferences, etc)
c) To promote and maintain loyalty, faithfulness, respect, stewardship, leadership, self discipline and confidence towards God’s Kingdom.
d) To be an example to others in words (Bible), in conversation, in charity, in spirit, in faith and in purity.
CORE VALUE OR RESPONSIBILITY:
^ STEWARDSHIP ^ SERVICE ^ HUMILITY ^ LEADERSHIP ^ EXCELLENCE
EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE
1. President
2. Vice President
3. General Secretary
4. Financial Manager
5. Head of programs / Organizing Director
6. Prayer Director
7. Welfare officer
ANNUAL PROGRAMME’S
• Worship With The Angels
WWTA is a gospel musical experience to create an atmosphere that is conducive for spirit- filled worship unto the Lord, and to have an opportunity of leading people to Jesus Christ and equipping the body of Christ.
• Youth Empowerment Conference
Youth Empowerment is an initiative by BPF with the intention to empower, inspire the youth of Obuasi to take responsibilities of their lives, especially those who have no hope for the future the poor and the needy that they can make it in life regardless of their current circumstances.
• Young Leadership Seminar
Young Leadership Seminar is a program organize for organizational leaders, elite, aspiring leaders in ministry and in any endeavor to mentor and train them whereby we bring seasoned Pastors and leaders to ignite them to lead.
• Young Entrepreneurship Summits (Obuasi Think Tanks)
Youth Entrepreneurship Summits is an avenue to inspire young entrepreneurs to carry out their long awaiting ideas into reality.
• What Every Student must Know
Many students fail in their academics because they don’t know why they are schooling and most of them also don’t know how education matters in their lives in this 21st century. So they come out from School without any compelling vision in life. BPF uses this platform to inspire students on how academic excellence is vital in their lives.
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Meet Mirabelle Ogochukwu Morah, The Game Changer from Nigeria.
I caught up with an intelligent young lady from the most populous country in Africa, Nigeria, and by the time our first conversation came to an end, I came to appreciate more the significance of what the Apostle Paul told Timothy in the Bible “Don’t let anyone look down on you because you are young, but set an example for the believers in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith and in purity, 1 Timothy 4:12 (New International Version).
A beautiful and religious lady, her love for God was evident at our first meeting. I decided to meet her again and know more of the wonderful things she was doing to lift high the flag of her nation and the African continent as a whole. Relax and enjoy the wonderful conversation we had.
Wundef: Tell me about yourself
Morah: My name is Mirabelle Ogochukwu Morah. I’m eighteen and I’m from the little beautiful city of Calabar in the South-South region of Nigeria. Actually I’m from Anambra, but I like to think I’m from Calabar because I was born there. I’m a writer and a guitarist.
https://www.instagram.com/p/BYOaK3Onhb7/?taken-by=mirabellemorah
Wundef: What is your heartbeart?
Morah: My heart beat is in arts and literature. Encouraging young, talented African writers to keep writing and to lend their voices to their communities is what I do. That’s why I created blankpaperz.com, a literary platform for writers to publish their amazing pieces and inspire people through them. I love teenagers, I feel they’re special and vulnerable so I always volunteer at youth events. I often enjoy the bliss that comes with solitude, especially when I’m in the midst of nature.
Wundef: How did you start Blankpaperz.com?I used to steal books from my dad’s room to read when I was about 6-7 years old. But I always returned them anyway (laughs). My dad cultivated my reading habits from a really tender age and I guess that’s what built my love for literature. In secondary school, I never wrote essays in my English exams. I always wrote short-story compositions. Getting older, the love for literature grew. I used to look for essays or short story competitions online but I couldn’t find much in Nigeria. I decided to start Blankpaperz in April 2016 to publish my works online and those of my friends’, but the vision grew bigger. Then I also started a Monthly Book Giveaway Contest and a Writer of the Month section to celebrate and encourage young writers in my city, Calabar.
Wundef: Do you face any challenges?
Morah: A challenge is that I usually have to use my pocket money to fund the giveaway contests , buy data and maintain the site. If the books encourage people to read more, I don’t mind. Though I’m currently working on a few means to cut my cost as well as gift more books. You really should see the smiles on people’s faces and in their hearts when they’re encouraged to keep writing, and when you tell them they’re doing such a fine job.
https://www.instagram.com/p/BXf9WcbFAL5/?taken-by=mirabellemorah
Wundef: What is the current state of Blankpaperz.com?Morah: Currently and by God’s grace, over 70 young persons from over 6 West African countries including Cote D’Ivoire and The Gambia have been featured on Blankpaperz. I’ve also successfully held two book giveaway contests and given gifts to those who got nominated for the Writer of the Month section. And because I can’t do it alone, I write for other magazines and blogs.
Wundef: What state do you hope to see Blankpaperz.com in the next 20 years?Morah: Interesting. In 2037 Blankpaperz should have partnered with many other foundations, organizations, governments and individuals to:
Organize continual and regular book giveaway contests and competitions in all the West African Countries.
Give out scholarships to over 2,000 young people (especially underprivileged school children).
Start a creative and innovative literary magazine for African youths and by African youths; showcasing the beauty of Africa through arts.
Basically, in twenty years time I want to have helped many young people to increase their literary skills (reading habits) and inspire them on a journey to see that so much can be achieved through writing because words are powerful and thus, should lend their voices to their societies whether in form of writing poems or short stories or articles.
You know, 2037 is such a long time. I’m sure by then I should be part of other initiatives too. By 2037 my guitar and singing skills should be above par and beyond excellent and I hope to have a nice chat with Chimamanda Adichie too.
https://www.instagram.com/p/BWfifxilp5r/?taken-by=mirabellemorah
Wundef: What are you currently doing to achieve that?I’m currently studying English and Literary Studies at the University of Calabar and also studying Journalism at The YaLa Academy’s Aileen Getty School of Citizen Journalism. I write for other blogs such as Calabar Blog and for other magazines so as to learn more from others.
Wundef: Any message for other young people in Africa?Morah: Remember that every expert was once an amateur so throw away your self doubts. Be confident about your skills and gifts no matter how little. Develop them, persevere, be humble to take corrections and learn from others. You’re not too small and always put God first.
Wundef: Thank you for your time, Morah, keep on making Africa proud.
Morah: Thank you for the opportunity to tell others my story.
https://www.instagram.com/p/BaoRlbglqzT/?taken-by=mirabellemorah
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The Gift and the Curse of Entrepreneurship
Entrepreneurs are a different breed of human beings. While most people would be comfortable living a normal and secure life, an entrepreneur feels more alive when they are taking risks in life. Entrepreneur is defined as a person who is willing to take higher risks than others. Because entrepreneurs have a higher tolerance for risk than most people, they also handle stress differently.
I’ve seen an increase in a specific pattern among today’s entrepreneurs. Unfortunately, that pattern causes them to sabotage their lives and their success in business.
The gift.
Most entrepreneurs grow up with a sense of knowing they are different from other people. I knew at an early age that I viewed the world different from other kids. In first grade, I tried selling my lunch to my classmates and teachers so I could buy stickers and toys.
I also enjoyed the attention and the sense of mission it gave me. That attention and purpose gave me a feeling of self-worth that made me want to continue improving. As a result, I became an overachiever. Even though school wasn’t my thing, I excelled at making deals and thrived on the negotiation process. Later on, as I sharpened that skill, it gave me an edge in all my businesses.
An entrepreneur’s gift is being an innovator. We love to innovate, compete and achieve, and we have the desire to make things better, faster and more profitable.
The curse.
The same drive that gives entrepreneurs that edge to win wants to take over everything we do. We have a hard time letting go of our need to win at everything. To those who are not entrepreneurs, we may seem egotistical or self-centered at times, and it becomes difficult to maintain relationships with other people who aren’t visionaries — or those who don’t share the same passion and drive.
So, we end up on an island with a small circle of people, if any people at all, who understand what we experience running our business every single day. It’s true what they say — it is lonely at the top. Over the years, I’ve worked with several CEOs and high-level entrepreneurs who say the same thing. They feel isolated from everyone else, including their closest family members.
When this happens to an entrepreneur, they begin doubting their life’s mission and feel inadequate to continue. This is the perfect storm. Despite all their successes, inadequacy, coupled with isolation, is the formula for depression and sabotage.
If they are experiencing the curse, it may cause them to operate more from a place of fear rather than a place of certainty. They fear they may make the wrong decisions or not know what to do next. Meanwhile, people look to them for guidance and leadership. They feel they can’t show any sign of weakness or uncertainty because that would mean they are not good enough to lead.
They pretend everything is fine, when the reality is that they are scared. They don’t have anyone to talk to about their problems without seeming weak or feeling judged. When entrepreneurs don’t know how to handle the curse, they sabotage their businesses and their relationships.
Here are a few insights I’ve learned from entrepreneurs who have overcome the curse.
1. Know you are not normal.
Entrepreneurs are cut from a different cloth. Stop trying to fit in and own the fact that you are not normal. Most people are not going to see things as you see them.
2. Embrace the gift.
Entrepreneurs have a deep desire to overachieve. Don’t let others tell you how to play the game. Use innovation and growth to make your own rules. Don’t focus on the score. Be grateful you are still in the game.
3. Build relationships with other entrepreneurs.
Don’t build a relationship focused solely on business — build one where it’s OK to have real conversations. Find another entrepreneur in the game who can call you out and hold you accountable. Do the same for them, and set up weekly check-ins to keep each other on track.
4. Join a high-level mastermind for entrepreneurs.
This should be a top priority. Doing this has been one of the main catalysts to my success. I invest a substantial amount of money every year traveling to mastermind with other successful and growing entrepreneurs. I believe that proximity is power. Engaging with other entrepreneurs who are playing the game at your level or above will change your game.
Entrepreneurship is one of the hardest things you will do in your life, but it is also one of the most fulfilling. A mentor once told me that nothing worthwhile is easy, so don’t ask for things to get easier — ask to get stronger.
This is the gift and the curse.
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President of Ghana’s Speech on 60th Anniversary.
SPEECH DELIVERED BY THE PRESIDENT OF THE REPUBLIC, NANA ADDO DANKWA AKUFO-ADDO, ON THE OCCASION OF THE 60TH INDEPENDENCE ANNIVERSARY CELEBRATION, AT THE INDEPENDENCE SQUARE, ON MONDAY, MARCH 6, 2017 (more…)
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I Believe in Africa (YALI Theme Song) by LAMBOGINNY
‘I Believe in Africa’ is a master piece written, composed and sang by the Nigerian Dance-hall/Afro-beat singer Lamboginny, in way of supporting the Young African Leaders Initiative of empowering young leaders. (more…)
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How to Move from a “Knowledge Bank” to an Investor
“Knowledge is power”…I used to believe the interface of this quote as one of the most compelling sayings to thread by if one desires power. After several years of growth revolution I discovered that this statement is so wrong and deceitful as a big lie. (more…)
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4 Things I Learnt From My High School Mentor About Leadership
How does it sound when you are to word out the values you gained from the relationship you had with a Person from the Past who seemed to have gifted you Time to share his insights everyday? (more…)
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Why graduates and job seekers must use LinkedIn Effectively.
LinkedIn is a very useful tool for every working person, new graduates and students. It has become a powerful job search tool over the years.
If you have signed up and the only thing you’re doing on LinkedIn is updating your profile every now and then and waiting for the headhunters and recruiting managers to reach out, you’re missing the craft.
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The dark side of transparency
Executives need to get smarter about when to open up and when to withhold information so they can enjoy the benefits of organizational transparency while mitigating its unintended consequences.
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Essence of Leadership? Seeing Triumph in Tragedy.
Here is a story that poignantly illustrates the essence of leadership.
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