The Ghana Climate Innovation Centre (GCIC) has admitted its first group of 11 entrepreneurs into its business incubator at the Ashesi University College.
The 11 entrepreneurs were selected from a total of 72 entrepreneurs from across Ghana who applied to the GCIC’s call for Expression of Interest last year.
Some of the business advisory and support facilities that the successful businesses will receive from the Centre include provision of office space and facilities, business skills training & mentoring by a select group of established business leaders and social entrepreneurs, and proof of concept grants.
They will also benefit from funding facilitation, market growth and market access support service, technical assistance with technology and product development, as well as policy advocacy & regulatory support services.
The induction of the first cohort of entrepreneurs marks a milestone in the life of the Centre, which aims at supporting over 100 climate innovation businesses by the year 2020.
Speaking at the event, Ms. Ruka Sanusi, Executive Director of GCIC stressed on the Centre’s mission to constantly create & support an exceptional set of transformational innovative ventures who are pioneering adaptive and mitigating solutions for climate change issues in Ghana.
“We incubate businesses and business leaders to operate their enterprises at the place of joint value – that point where the needs of society, the CEO/business, client and stakeholder values and needs can be maximised” she said
Entrepreneurs involved in clean ventures can apply for support from the Centre by responding to a call for expression of interest that is available at www.ghanacic.org.
GCIC is a pioneering business incubator whose objective is to support Ghanaian entrepreneurs and ventures involved in developing profitable and locally-appropriate solutions to climate change mitigation and adaptation. The Centre’s key focus is on businesses operating within the areas of energy efficiency, domestic waste management, solar energy, water supply management and purification, and climate smart agriculture.
The GCIC is part of the World Bank’s Climate Technology Program and its global network of Climate Innovation Centres which include centres in Caribbean, Ethiopia, Kenya, Morocco, South Africa, and Vietnam.
Supported by the governments of Denmark and the Netherlands, the centre is managed by a consortium led by the Ashesi University College and includes Ernst & Young, SNV Netherlands Development Organization, and the United Nations University Institute for Natural Resources in Africa.