Cassette stalls. Book tables. Carpentry workshops. A technical certificate. These are the starting points of Ghana's most successful self-made entrepreneurs. What they built from those foundations is worth knowing.
Osei Kwame Despite
Born in Kumasi, Despite started selling music cassettes and built UTV, Peace FM and Okay FM without formal business training, relying entirely on instinct and relentless reinvestment. The Despite Group is now the most powerful privately-owned media company in Ghana. Read full profile →
Kwaku Oteng
From carpentry in the Ashanti Region to founder of the Angel Group, the Adonko Bitters story is defined by a willingness to start small and scale without looking for shortcuts. He built a broadcasting empire of Angel TV and multiple Angel FM stations from almost nothing. Read full profile →
Ernest Ofori Sarpong
Starting from a family trading business after PRESEC, Sarpong built the Special Group from imports into mineral water, real estate, finance and television. His co-founding of UTV and Best Point Savings alongside Despite shows a pattern of spotting strategic partnerships before anyone else does. Read full profile →
Joseph Siaw Agyepong
The son of a man who could not fund his education beyond a technical certificate, Siaw Agyepong turned a book stall in Jamestown into the Jospong Group, sixty-plus companies, 250,000 jobs and operations across the continent. The greatest entrepreneurial story Ghana has produced in the modern era. Read full profile →
Nana Kwame Bediako
Known as Cheddar, he built Wonda World Estates into a luxury real estate company that has made him one of the most visible developers in Africa. His unapologetic ambition has defined a new image of Ghanaian business success. Read full profile →
Ernest Bediako Sampong
Founder of Ernest Chemist, one of Ghana's most trusted pharmacy chains. He built a healthcare retail business that became part of daily life for millions of Ghanaians, and was recognised with the EMY Africa Man of the Year award in 2020. Read full profile →
Patrick Awuah Jr.
After a successful career at Microsoft, Awuah walked away from Silicon Valley to build Ashesi University in Ghana, a liberal arts institution designed to produce ethical leaders. It was entrepreneurship of a different kind, and it has had an outsized effect on the country's intellectual life. Read full profile →
Fred Swaniker
The Stanford graduate who founded the African Leadership University, ALX and African Leadership Academy to develop the next generation of African leaders. Time named him one of the 100 Most Influential People in the World in 2019. Read full profile →
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