The Lancaster University Ghana has launched the “Ready to Scale Business Innovation Hub Programme”, an initiative aimed at nurturing student entrepreneurs, transforming innovative ideas into sustainable businesses, and promoting job creation.
The programme, launched by Dr Gloria Sraha, Head of the Business Studies Department at Lancaster University Ghana, seeks to bridge the gap between innovation and commercial impact by equipping students with entrepreneurial skills, mentorship and industry support.
The programme was launched on the sideline of the University’s engagement event on: “Brunch with Corporates”, attended by representatives of leading corporate institutions, government agencies, faculty and students.
It was on the theme: “The Quadruple Helix in Practice: Strengthening Academia, Community, Business and Government Collaboration in Ghana.”
Dr Sraha described the initiative as a bold step towards developing the next generation of innovators capable of creating businesses that addressed real-world challenges and contributed to Ghana’s economic growth.
She said the programme celebrated more than entrepreneurship as it represented creativity, innovation and the limitless potential of young people to transform society through enterprise.
The “Ready to Scale Programme” provided a platform for innovative ideas to be nurtured, tested, refined, funded and developed into scalable businesses capable of creating jobs and attracting investment.
“We believe universities must do more than educate students. They must become catalysts for innovation and work closely with industry to solve society’s pressing challenges,” she said.
Dr Sraha noted that the rapidly changing world of work, driven by Artificial Intelligence, data analytics and other emerging technologies, required graduates to develop entrepreneurial mindsets alongside academic knowledge.
Entrepreneurial thinking, she said, had become an essential skill rather than an option, adding that universities had a responsibility to prepare graduates not only to seek employment but also to create employment opportunities for others.
Dr Sraha explained that through the Entrepreneurship and Innovation Hub, students would receive practical training, mentorship, networking opportunities and the confidence needed to transform innovative ideas into sustainable ventures.
She noted, however, that Universities could not achieve that objective alone and called for partnerships among academia, industry, government and communities.
Describing the collaboration as the “Quadruple Helix” approach to innovation, she said stronger partnerships would enable research and innovative ideas to move beyond the classroom into commercially viable enterprises.
She called on policymakers and development partners to continue creating an enabling environment that encouraged innovation, entrepreneurship and business development among young people.
She said the success of the programme would not be measured solely by the number of businesses established but by the number of jobs created, communities transformed and lives positively impacted.
She described the launch as an invitation to stakeholders to think bigger, collaborate more intentionally and invest in the entrepreneurial potential of Ghana’s youth.
GNA
