Leaving her job with a Canadian mining firm, she moved to Ghana 11 years ago to start her own company. Being intentional about African development, Tenemba Anna Samake, the Chief Executive Officer of Mobile Business Clinic (MBC) Africa of Malian nationality is transforming the agricultural landscape in Ghana.
MBC Africa since its establishment has been supporting startups in agribusiness with coaching, mentoring, financial support, and innovation to help change the narrative about the sector.
Speaking in an interview with The Ghanaian Farmer’s Enyonam Manye, Madam Samake reiterated her company’s commitment to supporting young people in agribusiness to create jobs, improve food systems to help reduce the high food import budget.
“We have to feed ourselves and by doing that, we have to heavily encourage the youth to venture into agriculture. Africa is spending over 40 billion dollars annually to import food into the continent. Imagine using this huge amount to invest in agribusiness and enhancing technology in the sector; we will be feeding ourselves, as well as the rest of the world,” she added.
Madam Samake further called on policymakers to institute agriculture-friendly policies and capacity building programs to resource the youth in agribusiness to innovate and develop sustainable solutions that address pressing global challenges, such as climate change and social inequality. She believes this would empower communities and drive technological advancements in the agricultural sector.
Sharing her inspiring story, Madam Samake also highlighted some challenges she faced in her early years, notably human resources. “It was really difficult to find people who were willing to work with a startup, and I inadvertently had to understand what similar startups were mostly facing.”
“Having the right people at the right time would determine your success and failures because if you don’t have the right human resources support when you grow, you will fail. Another challenge was also accessing financial resources since most lenders see investing in SMEs in agriculture as very risky,” Samake added.
Besides, Madam Samake says she is willing to help young people venture into modernised agriculture, which can improve food security and sustainability. Young people can help expand economic opportunities and create a more prosperous future when the right avenues are available, she added.
