{"id":69366,"date":"2026-02-07T13:57:27","date_gmt":"2026-02-07T13:57:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/africa\/69366\/"},"modified":"2026-02-07T13:57:27","modified_gmt":"2026-02-07T13:57:27","slug":"empowering-smes-women-and-youth-is-key-to-africas-economic-growth-telecel-group-ceo","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/africa\/69366\/","title":{"rendered":"Empowering SMEs, women and youth is key to Africa\u2019s economic growth \u2013 Telecel Group CEO"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Moh <\/a>Moh Damush, speaks at the Presidential and Business Leaders\u2019 Dialogue<\/p>\n

The Chief Executive Officer of Telecel Group, a leading African telecommunications operator, Moh Damush, has called for deliberate investment in digital connectivity and skills development across Africa, stressing that empowering SMEs, women, and young people is essential for sustainable economic growth on the continent.<\/p>\n

Speaking at the Presidential and Business Leaders\u2019 Dialogue during the Africa Prosperity Dialogues (APD) 2026 in Accra, Damush said Africa\u2019s vast natural and human resources would remain underutilised without the digital infrastructure and skills needed to convert them into scalable economic solutions.<\/p>\n

\u201cResources alone are like seeds kept in a jar\u2014full of potential, but dormant,\u201d he said. \u201cIt is knowledge, connectivity, and digital trade that turn them into solutions that transform lives.\u201d<\/p>\n

Damush emphasised the importance of building a digital single market to unlock the full benefits of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), noting its potential to serve a unified market of over 1.4 billion people through seamless cross-border payments, e-commerce, and data-driven trade.<\/p>\n

According to him, Africa\u2019s single market can only succeed if it is shaped from the grassroots by traders, creators, and innovators, particularly SMEs, women, and youth, who form the backbone of the continent\u2019s economy.<\/p>\n

\u201cSMEs account for over 90 per cent of African businesses, while young people make up more than 60 per cent of our population. Yet too often, they are treated as beneficiaries rather than builders. Empowering SMEs, women, and youth is not charity; it is an economic necessity,\u201d Damush stated.<\/p>\n

He noted that women-led businesses are 17 per cent more likely to adopt digital tools when cross-border trade barriers are reduced, highlighting connectivity as a critical enabler for women\u2019s economic participation and youth innovation.<\/p>\n

Telecel Group, which operates across several African countries with its largest presence in Ghana, is investing heavily in initiatives that promote digital inclusion, entrepreneurship, and skills development.<\/p>\n

These include the Africa Start-Up Initiative Programme, DigiTech Academy, and Startocode, which aims to train 100,000 Ghanaian youth under the Government\u2019s One Million Coders Programme. The company\u2019s Women in Business initiative also supports women-led SMEs with access to digital tools, financing, and training.<\/p>\n

The Africa Prosperity Dialogues 2026, held from 4th to 6th February at the Accra International Conference Centre, brought together heads of state, policymakers, business leaders, investors, entrepreneurs, and youth advocates under the theme: \u201cEmpowering SMEs, Women & Youth in Africa\u2019s Single Market: Innovate. Collaborate. Trade.\u201d<\/p>\n

As Africa continues to grapple with high unemployment and uneven access to digital technologies, Damush said closing the digital divide must be seen as both an economic and social imperative.<\/p>\n

\u201cConnectivity isn\u2019t just an economic tool; it\u2019s an equaliser. If we get this right, Africa will not simply prosper\u2014it will redefine prosperity,\u201d he concluded.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Moh Damush, speaks at the Presidential and Business Leaders\u2019 Dialogue The Chief Executive Officer of Telecel Group, a…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":69367,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[63],"class_list":{"0":"post-69366","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-africa","8":"tag-africa"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@africa\/116029701705205846","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/africa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/69366","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/africa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/africa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/africa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/africa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=69366"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/africa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/69366\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/africa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/69367"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/africa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=69366"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/africa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=69366"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/africa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=69366"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}