Ghana wins 3 Gold medals at Sage World Cup

Ghana won three gold medals at the 2018 SAGE WORLD CUP competition held in South Africa this month, placing the West African country second to Israel which won four medals.

The competition saw teenagers from 32 countries across the globe compete with their entrepreneurial and innovative ideas to find out which idea is most viable and addresses the world’s most challenging needs with respect to the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (UN-SDGs).

Countries that participated include the USA, Ireland, South Africa, Ghana, Nigeria, Iran, Chile, Japan, Canada, Israel, China, Russia and others.

Countries that won gold medals for addressing the SDGs with their projects include Israel – 3, Ghana – 3, Ireland – 2, USA – 2, Canada – 2 with South Africa, Iran, Chile, China and Japan all going home with 1 each.

USA and Ireland were adjudged the best Socially Responsible Business (SRB) and Best Social Enterprising Business (SEB) respectively.

The country’s co-ordinator for SAGE Ghana, Jonathan Nsebo, expressed enormous gratitude to President Nana Akufo-Addo for the support he has given to the group both this year and last year and to the former president Jerry John Rawlings for the personal support he has given to the project.

Mr. Nsebo also expressed his gratitude to Benjamin Sedem Afetornu’s Techbooth, an IT firm and Nana Appiah Mensah’s Zylofon Cash for the financial support they gave to the teams to travel this year.

He expressed his gratitude to Zylofon Cash again for concluding a Title Sponsorship deal with SAGE Ghana for 2019 and beyond.

This sponsorship deal bridges the mission of both institutions of raising the next generation of entrepreneurial leaders who can monetize their creativities.

SAGE- Students for the Advancement of Global Entrepreneurship is a non-governmental organisation founded by Professor Curtis L. Deburg in Chico California USA.

The vision of this movement is to raise the next generation of teenagers whose innovative ideas address the world’s most challenging needs. Founded in 2002, SAGE currently operates in over forty-three (43) countries.

Every year, SAGE countries hold a National Competition to choose two (2) Teams with the most viable projects to represent the country in the SAGE-Global World Cup.

The National Competition dubbed “National High School Entrepreneurship Competition (NHSEC) was held on the 7th of July 2018 hosted at the University of Ghana Business School (R.S. Amegashie Auditorium and two lecture halls).

Thirty (30) High Schools made up of forty (40) Teams included Opoku Ware School, Presbyterian Boys’ Senior High School Legon, Aburi Girls’ SHS, Tema Secondary School, Ghana International School, St. Lwanga JHS, Tema Technical Institute, St. Augustine’s College, Mfantsipim School, Adisadel College, Aggrery Memorial SHS, Ghana National College, Methodist Girls’ SHS, West African Secondary School, Aduman SHS, Tema Presbyterian SHS and other High Schools participated while ten (10) other High Schools represented as Observers.

Teams Ecoplas GH of Aduman SHS and PAHA of Methodist Girls’ School won the Best Social Enterprise Business (SEB) and Best Socially Responsible Business (SRB) respectively to represent the country in Durban, South Africa.

Team Ecoplas GH with their Plastic Waste awareness, recycling and upcycling project won Ghana three (3) gold medals for efficiently addressing the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (UN-SDGs) goals 6 (Clean Water and Sanitation),13 (Climate Action) and 14 (Life Below Water).

National High School Entrepreneurship Competition (NHSEC) organised by SAGE – Ghana has been endorsed by the Ministry of Education, supported by Ministry of Trade and Industry, National Entrepreneurship and Innovation Plan (NEIP) received support from the office of the President which seeks to help build a new Ghana with the involvement of the ideas of our young ones for the next generation.

He appealed to other Ghanaian businesses to push in more resources to SAGE Ghana to help them efficiently mentor the Ghanaian students to stand shoulder to shoulder with developed countries in subsequent world cups.

He mentioned, that they are doing their best with the little available to them but the work becomes increasingly difficult having to compete with countries like USA, Canada, Russia, China and all the ‘first world’ countries with the resources available to them.