Businesses told to see economic crisis as opportunity to grow
Speakers at the 2022 edition of the Stanford Seed Transformation Network Ghana Chapter’s Business and Leadership conference have called on businesses to be resilient in the face of economic crisis and see it as an opportunity to grow.
Mr. David Ofosu-Dorte, Executive Chairman at AB & David Law, urged businesses to stay true to their vision and mandate during times of crisis, saying “It is easy for business leaders and entrepreneurs to abandon the core vision and mandate of their business in their bid to survive crisis situations.
“The courage to stay true to your vision during a crisis defines your business,” he said.
The multi-stakeholder conference, the fifth in a series, was on the theme: “Growth opportunities within the crisis.”
It brought together high-level executives and thought leaders across industries to discuss building resilient businesses by identifying opportunities during periods of economic crisis.
The conference is part of the Network’s strategy to connect members with industry experts and their peers to help them gain knowledge that will help them stay ahead in today’s business environment.
Globally, economies are slowing down this year and are expected to slow further in the years ahead.
This is due to several factors, including high inflation, Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, and the COVID-19 pandemic.
Dr Alhasan Andani, former CEO of Stanbic Bank, said, “businesses and entrepreneurs should use the crisis as an opportunity to grow and learn from their mistakes.”
He encouraged participants to pay attention to crisis situations, be receptive and adaptive, and work to evolve their business taking into account the legal and regulatory framework. Businesses need to refine their strategies in light of changes in their markets, he said.
Mrs Linda Yaa Ampah (President of the Stanford Seed Transformation Network, Ghana, commended members of the Network for their resilience and ability to create and innovate to keep their businesses afloat during this time of economic uncertainty.
She bemoaned the current economic crisis and how it was affecting businesses in Ghana, adding that the Ghanaian business environment had become very challenging.
She said businesses and entrepreneurs were struggling to stay afloat in this crisis, which was causing some to fold up because they cannot meet their operating costs.
The President said since the COVID-19 pandemic, the Network had used the conference to share knowledge and expertise on how members and the general business community could leverage on the challenges presented by the crises to identify opportunities to grow their business.
She said there was the generally high cost of doing business due to the continuous depreciation of the cedi, the rising cost of food and imports, a high debt burden, high inflation, high-interest rates and the rising cost of energy.
These factors are expected to reduce growth in the short term due to the current global recession.
“The private sector can help Ghana’s economy grow if the government offers it the right conditions and the regulators and managers of the business environment need to follow the discussions at the conference and provide the conditions that will enable businesses to thrive and contribute even better to Ghana’s GDP by creating dignifying and fulfilling jobs for the youth,” she said.
Source: GNA