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MARSHALLS GROUP PRESIDENT SPEAKS AT COLOMBIAN AMBASSADORS’ BREAKFAST MEETING

Date: 05/03/2017

Marshalls was the only Academic institution invited to attend a Business Breakfast Meeting organized by the Head of the Colombian Consulate to Ghana, Her Excellency Claudia Turbay at her official residence in Accra. The event was put together with the support of the Association of Ghanaian Industries [AGI], the Ghanaian Investment Promotion Centre [GIPC] and its Colombian equivalent, PROCOLOMBIA.

Amongst those gathered were Her Excellency the distinguished host, Mr. Yoofi Grant, the GNPC Boss, Seth Akwaboah, CEO of the Association of Ghanaian Industries [AGI], as well as representatives of notable businesses in Accra, Kumasi and across the country. Also in attendance were other dignitaries and high ranking business representatives from Colombia.

Dr Tetteh Nettey, Group President of the Meridian-Marshalls Holdings [MMH], addressed the business meeting. The Meridian-Marshalls Holdings is the parent company of Meridian Pre-University- the Nation’s premier pre-university and Marshalls College. The MMH is listed on the Alternative Market of the Ghana Stock Exchange. It is the first Ghanaian academic institution to be listed on the Exchange, and only the second in all of sub-Saharan Africa.

Speaking at the event, Dr. Nettey praised the vision of the Colombian consulate and their Ghanaian partners- the Ghana Investment Promotion Centre [GIPC] and the Association of Ghanaian Industries [AGI]. He lamented the failings of promising businesses in the past as a result of a lack of investment opportunities and partnerships but expressed a strong conviction that visionary initiatives, like the Ghana-Colombia trade partnerships, was a step in the right direction to breathe new life into businesses.

Dr. Nettey in his address publicly revealed the extent of profiting the Meridian-Marshalls Holdings had made from the trip. He noted that in addition to three huge business privileges that had been opened for Marshalls, several other investment proposals were still being studied.

He expressed admiration for the excellence of the EXPOCAMACOL Fair, citing the competencies of resource persons, and the quality of travel, interactions, and technologies. “Your Excellency, the EXPOCAMACOL Fair was absolutely awesome and rewarding, and for Meridian-Marshalls Holdings very successful. We had about 16 quality meetings in two days with no less than three key business opportunities opened to us... The event itself was splendid and I was especially intrigued by the quality of services, technology and opportunities in Colombia.” Dr. Nettey remarked. He, however, recommended the need for the organizers to involve financial intermediaries to optimize the closure of deals.

The host of the event, Her Excellency Claudia Turbay, also addressed the Breakfast gathering. She praised Ghanaian businesses for their dedication and efforts to strengthen industrial relationships between the two countries. She also urged Ghanaian businesses to open up to investments and partnership opportunities from Colombia, revealing her home nation’s desire to assist in all ways possible to satisfy the needs and demands of Ghanaian businesses. H.E. Turbay also revealed that the business breakfast meeting had been planned to be held at her residence at least once every six months.

Citing Colombia’s credentials as credible trade partners, H.E. Claudia Turbay revealed the appreciation of the Colombian economy over the past decade as well as its rank as the 5th highest economy for Foreign Direct Investment [FDI] since 2013. “I want to assure you that our business strategies have been altered in order to ease trade partnership between Colombia and Ghana. Let us all take advantage of these opportunities in order to strengthen trade relationships between the two countries”, she stated.

Marshalls recently reaped the fruits of the Ghana-Colombia Trade Partnerships, which is an initiative of the GNPC and the Colombian Consulate in Ghana as key to building solid business relationships in Ghana and Colombia. Under the auspices of PROCOLOMBIA and the Colombian Consulate, Marshalls was privileged to participate for the first time at the famed EXPOCAMACOL Fair in faraway Medellin, Colombia.

For Marshalls, the trip was instrumental in securing investment opportunities as well as business partnerships for the construction of a world-class learning centre on Marshalls’ 110-acre lakefront property in Akosombo.