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Mr. Joe Mensah, Kosmos Energy’s Vice President and Country Manager in Ghana, has noted that the agriculture sector offers a lot of opportunities for young people in the country to explore.
According to him, the youth can apply their knowledge and skills in innovative ways that can make a difference in whatever they do to make it more valuable.
He explained that at the second round of business plan pitches which is the first in the series of three business plan pitches held at the Kosmos Innovation Center, 16 teams pitched their proposed business plans which aimed to address business challenges in a wide range of areas.
“These includes livestock, poultry, and fisheries management, on-farm production and post-harvest challenges, technical and market information for farmers and agricultural processes, finance and insurance and the ability to track food sources as well as authenticate agricultural inputs.
He said of the 16 teams that presented, 11 were selected by a panel of expert judges to advance to the next stage of the competition.
The panel of judges, he said comprised of representatives from financial institutions, agribusinesses, investment companies, and development agencies – evaluated the teams based on the strength of their business concepts, as well as their management skills, team dynamic, and entrepreneurial spirit.
Mr. Mensah, said the teams are improving daily- thanks to the intensive business support and training they are receiving from the Kosmos Innovation Center and its vast network of mentors.
The Kosmos Innovation Center (KIC) is Kosmos Energy’s flagship social investment program in Ghana. It uses innovation to create and apply commercial solutions to development challenges, starting with agriculture.