Afenyo-Markin lauds country’s resilience despite challenges
The Majority Leader in Parliament, Alexander Afenyo-Markin, has lauded the country’s steady rebound from the COVID-19 pandemic and other global crisis.
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Mr Afenyo-Markin said the country was not out of the economic woes, yet it was refreshing that resilience continued to be built in the aftermath of the global pandemic. He made these remarks during the International Knowledge Transfer Networking (IKTN) conference hosted by the University of Bradford (UK), in partnership with the British Council Ghana in Accra last week.
The event was on the theme “Responsible Leadership for Sustainable and Inclusive Growth”. Mr Afenyo-Markin, who is also the New Patriotic Party Member of Parliament for Effutu, observed that although the challenges faced by many countries such as political instability, insecurity, protests and economic hardships had been exacerbated by unemployment, Ghana had remained relatively unscathed.
He said the country’s relative stability was largely attributable to the “visionary leadership of President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo and the support of its resilient citizens.” “It is a narrative not just about recovery but significant advancement.
These businesses have not only endured but also emerged stronger, experiencing a boost in cash flow and an impressive 4.2 per cent increase in nominal sales from 2021 to 2022,” he said.
The Majority Leader also said the engagement with European firms had led to a notable 11 per cent rise in sales, illustrating the power of international cooperation. Mr Afenyo-Markin underscored the crucial role that UK higher education institutions had played in nurturing leaders capable of addressing the challenges confronting many countries.
“As Ghana strives to deepen the quality of its higher education, partnerships with UK institutions offer invaluable opportunities for knowledge exchange, capacity building,” he said.
The Pro-Vice-Chancellor for Global Engagement and Partnerships at the University of Bradford, Prof. Vishanth Weerakkody said there were numerous scholarship opportunities that highlighted the university’s leading position in applied arts and artificial intelligence (AI) in the UK.
“AI plays a pivotal role in international development, particularly in driving digitisation and economic growth. At our university, we are at the forefront of AI research and education,” he indicated.
Inclusivity
For his part, Assistant Professor of Human Capital Development, Innovation and Entrepreneurship at Bradford University, Dr Joseph Kwadwo Danquah, stressed the importance of inclusivity in national development.
He said leaving anyone behind would be detrimental to progress, saying “inclusivity is very critical; we cannot as a country leave anybody behind.” Prof. Danquah stressed that it was important to include all demographics - including men, women and children, in the country’s development efforts.
