Meet John Armah; A 22 year-old Ghanaian who began a career in radio broadcasting at 18 with the aim of positively projecting Africa.
A member of the World Economic Forum Global Shapers Accra Hub, Africa 2.0, on the advisory board of Next Wave Africa Women Empowerment Program in Africa, member of the national committee for Foreign Affairs for African Union day in Ghana, John received an Ideas Award by Legacy and Legacy and was ranked as the 27th Most Influential Ghanaian by ETV Ghana, the Global Entrepreneurship Summer School ranking.
Quite notably, he is the youngest contributor to the budget of Ghana with the YES initiative from his organization; the Ghana Centre for Entrepreneurship, Employment and Innovation.
According to John, “Africa is being rebuilt, the story is being retold. Komla Dumor presented Africa’s story in Africa’s own way, young people in Africa like William Tetteh Senyo, Fred Deegbe, Esi Cleland, Gary Al-Smith, Regina Agyare, Debora Ahinkrah, BKC, Jeremiah Buabeng, Ekow Mensah, Wilson Senya and others are telling Africa’s Story. In Ghana and South Africa you have people like Diesel, in Zimbabwe; you have Krieg, an amazing young man. The level of activities of young people trying to start something is increasing. You have a young man starting a paper bag with just about $14 in Uganda.”
The young man who is inspired by Denzel Washington [strangely enough], Hon. FiifiKwetey, Mr. Kofi Kafui Tsikata of the World Bank, his parents, Mr. Nana Yaw Preku, Nana Boatemaa, and Mrs. Freda Adablah, credits his parents for his entrepreneurial mindset which was exhibited even as a student. He started the school’s Student Representative Council and soon after graduation, he co-founded a recruitment agency for his community.
On entrepreneurship, John is candid; “There’s never being a failure, we’ve never failed; we have challenges, sitting, thinking about how to get clients. Now we are thinking, how do we diversify our clients and how we create a bigger business out of what we are doing now? Sometimes you win, sometimes you lose. I share this, sometimes we win, sometimes we learn and but we never lose. Failure is not a bus stop for anyone. Failure helps you become bigger, it helps you win. The next time you want to do something, you have to win bigger, so for any of us out there; failure has never being a bus stop for us. We only keep winning and never give up.”
To read more about John Armah’s thoughts on Africa, Success, and Making a Difference, go here…
*Original story was submitted by Akpah Prince, a freelance Writer and Journalist from Ghana.
