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April 10, 2024

In what was a fruitful high-level meeting to promote bilateral trade and investment, Maltese High Commissioner to Ghana, Jean-Claude Galea Mallia, and Executive Chairman of McDan Group, Dr. Daniel McKorley, provided joint recommendations on how to strengthen the commercial relationship between Ghana and Malta.

The two parties, who took this significant collaborative step on April 4th, 2024, at the Maltese High Commission, explored ways to enhance cooperation on trade, education, and investment opportunities between the two countries.

The meeting, which marks a historic moment in using Ghana and Malta as the gateways to their respective continental blocks in areas of free trade, ICT, Aviation, and Marine Logistics, opened up tremendous untapped potential that both countries can explore and exploit in sectors such as trade, agriculture and fisheries, financial services, tourism and culture, climate change, environment, and pharmaceuticals sectors, among others.

Dr. McKorley, Executive Chairman of McDan Group, expressed gratitude for Malta’s contributions to Ghana’s economy, community development projects, and charitable causes, and emphasized Ghana’s importance as one of Malta’s key partner countries. He also expressed his belief that the cooperation would create opportunities for young people in Ghana in the areas of education, training, and upscaling.

As part of this partnership and collaboration, McDan Group is already doing business with three (3) Maltese companies, one of which is Hatua OnPoint, a provider of finance and business software management solutions to support young ambitious entrepreneurs and innovative start-ups in Ghana.

Speaking on what this means to Malta, High Commissioner Jean-Claude Galea Mallia, who conveyed warm greetings from the Maltese people and government, reiterated his commitment to promoting friendly exchanges and pragmatic cooperation between the two countries, especially in niche sectors such as healthcare, medicines, and aquaculture.

The deliberation also served as a befitting platform for the two parties to discuss the latest advancements, discoveries, and technologies in Salt and Marine chemicals, paving the way for future innovations and collaborations.

This meeting only adds to the opportunities that would foster political, economic, cultural, and trade exchanges in Malta-Ghana relations, which have always been warm and friendly, rooted in shared values and a solid foundation.

by Redeemer

March 28, 2024

The Founder and Chairman of the McDan Group, Daniel McKorley, has been adjudged Greatest Entrepreneur of All Time at the 14th edition of the Ghana Entrepreneur and Corporate Executive Awards.

The award was in recognition of his visionary and innovative leadership work in the establishment of McDan Group, a Ghanaian conglomerate that delivers a broad spectrum of services in shipping and logistics, oil and gas, aviation construction, salt mining, agribusiness, agro-processing and private security services in Ghana with global offices in Sierra Leone, Liberia, Equatorial Guinea, China,UK and the USA.

Event

The event which was held in Accra on the theme: “Promoting Digital Entrepreneurship as a tool for sustainable Digital Economic Development”.

It was organised by the Entrepreneurs Foundation of Ghana to celebrate and honour successful entrepreneurs, business executives and public service chief executives who have made significant and positive impact on the economy, sustained business performance and demonstrated outstanding leadership and significant business success in their respective fields over the past years.

About 36 individuals were honoured during the night.

Appreciation

Mr McKorley after receiving the award commended the organisers for recognising his effort and also expressed his appreciation for the recognition he received for his work.

He said the award might be in his name but the true winners were all the dedicated employees who worked day-in and day-out to make the company one of the most recognisable brands in Africa.

The business mogul said the McDan team always aimed to work as a family and had a united focus on business goals, which enabled them to work with higher expectations.

Source : Graphic Business

by Redeemer

March 28, 2024

By Ernest Bako WUBONTO

With women-led businesses standing tall in terms of loan payback and the ability to sustain growth steadily, experts posit that it is time to inspire more women into entrepreneurship.

Leading the initiative to inspire women is Dr. Daniel McKorley, Chairman of McDan Group. He explained that with women comprising over half – 50.7 percent – of the population, their proven excellence in sustainable business management and a remarkable 96 percent loan payback rate position them as the prime candidates to drive entrepreneurship.

Dr. McKorley, who spoke in Accra at the maiden Women in Business (WIB) dialogue series organised by the B&FT, demanded that more should be done to empower and inspire more women to engage in entrepreneurial endeavours.

“Let’s inspire more women into entrepreneurship because experience has shown over the years that women are more committed to business operations than men. Women businesses are the mainstay of the informal economy and this is because they have the right attitude and mindset toward business,” he said.

Dr. McKorley reiterated that the economy cannot achieve meaningful growth without the rightful contributions of women, who constitute the majority and consistently bring dynamic solutions to the table.

Supporting the growth of women, he added, is synonymous with investing in society for sustainability as women’s business profits are often reinvested to expand their ventures, support household needs and invest in their families.

How to inspire women?

To appropriately inspire women into entrepreneurship and ensure they attain success, Dr. McKorley outlined the following: improvement in financial literacy knowledge among women for them to make informed decisions.

Another approach is to motivate women to make bold decisions and take calculated risks; thus, moving out of their comfort zone to take up roles in fields dominated by men.

Furthermore, he called for mentorship programmes – both formal and informal – to support women. Lastly, he stressed the importance of helping women build confidence and belief in themselves.

Role of GEA in encouraging entrepreneurship among women

Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Ghana Enterprise Agency (GEA), Kosi Yankey-Ayeh, on her part, reiterated the need to empower more women into entrepreneurship and financial independence.

She concurred that for any meaningful economic transformation to occur at a national level, it is imperative to empower women to own and lead business endeavours, particularly ventures that extend beyond traditionally reserved gender roles.

The CEO, however, highlighted several challenges that hinder women entrepreneurs, including limited access to finance, insufficient regulatory support services, difficulty in keeping pace with technological advancements and accessing e-commerce platforms.

“Over the past seven years, we have developed various programmes that ink female entrepreneurs to various financial opportunities through targeted loans programmes such as the CAP Business Support Scheme (CAPBusSS), which provided financial support in the form of loans and grants to over 300,000 businesses,” she said.

Despite these efforts, she noted that market access remains a major stumbling block for most women-owned businesses.

Explaining further, she said: “We must provide women entrepreneurs with training to access financial support and break into markets – both domestically and abroad”.

Held under the theme ‘investing in women-owned businesses for Ghana’s transformation agenda: a call for action’, the WIB was led by notable female executives from various sectors, alongside accomplished corporate and business leaders.

The inaugural WIB served as a platform to offer insights into harnessing the potential of women-led businesses.

Source : THEBFTONLINE.COM

by Redeemer

March 27, 2024

By Opesika Tetteh Puplampu

Accra, March 27 GNA – Dr Daniel McKorley, the Founder and Chairman of the McDan Group of Companies, Wednesday said putting women at the top management of his companies is not just for equity purposes.

Dr McKorley said he cherished women and put them in managerial positions because they had more potential for business development.

“Empowering women to lead in business isn’t just about equality, it’s about unlocking the full potential for the growth of our economy and society,” he said.

Speaking at the Women Business Dialogue, he said, he had been strong and hardly bowed to failure because of the training and the courage planted in him by his late mother and that courage had lived in him till today.

The economy could not achieve any meaningful growth when women, who constituted over 50.7 per cent of the country’s population, were not empowered in the business world, indicating that no country globally could make it when half of its population was left on the sidelines.

“Our economy cannot thrive when women are not given a seat at the table. I’m sure that in looking at how to promote entrepreneurship and drive exclusive economic growth and jobs, there is no better place to start than with women,” he added.

He acknowledged females as the next global key drivers of entrepreneurship, adding that there were more women entrepreneurs in Ghana than men.

Dr McKorley explained that “the woman selling ‘Kaklo’ on the street, who has 10 or five children, feeding them together with her husband, is more of an entrepreneur than a banker sitting at a desk.”

He said about 90 per cent of the 1,200 women in Ada paid back an interest-free loan of GHs3 million he gave out, a gesture, which showed how honest they were at their businesses.

In a Harvard Business Review article, it was revealed that women-owned firms in the private sector represented approximately 37 per cent of global enterprises.

He said the percentage was rising, and those firms spanned new fashion houses to visionary high-tech businesses.

To encourage more women to embark on the entrepreneurial journey, Ghana must focus on improving their financial literacy skills by empowering them with the knowledge and understanding of financial management, accessing start-up funding, and making informed financial decisions, he said.

Dr McKorley encouraged women not to shy away from taking on risks in business, such as accessing funding opportunities, as start-up funds played a vital role in fueling work growth, so women should step out of their comfort zones and seize opportunities that may require taking calculated risks.

He called for mentorship and networking programmes for women, both formal and informal, to connect experienced businesswomen with aspiring entrepreneurs, to create a strong support system as guidance and solidarity for navigating the challenges they may face in their businesses.

Dr McKorley urged banks and financial institutions to create dedicated funds or grant programmes to support women entrepreneurs, as the provision of access to capital could be a game-changer to ensure that women had the needed financial resources to start and grow their businesses.

He called on the Government to formulate policies that promoted gender equality in business to benefit society and challenged women to break free from self-limiting beliefs and be confident for success.

Empowering women to be at the forefront of the business world was not only essential for their personal and professional growth but also for the country’s economic development.

Source : GNA

by Redeemer

March 22, 2024

The Founder and Chairman of the McDan Group, Dr. Daniel McKorley, has been adjudged the Greatest Entrepreneur of All Time Award at the 14th edition of the Ghana Entrepreneur and Corporate Executive Awards.

The award was in recognition of his visionary and innovative leadership work in the establishment of McDan Group, a Ghanaian conglomerate that delivers a broad spectrum of services in shipping and logistics, oil and gas, aviation construction, salt mining, agribusiness, agro-processing and private security services on Ghana with global offices in Sierra Leone, Liberia, Equatorial Guinea, China, UK, and the USA.

Event

The event which was held in Accra on Saturday, March 16 was on the theme:

“Promoting Digital Entrepreneurship as a Tool for Sustainable Digital Economic Development”.

It was organized by the Entrepreneurs Foundation of Ghana to celebrate and honor successful entrepreneurs, business executives, and public service chief executives who have had a significant and positive impact on the economy, sustained business performance and demonstrated outstanding leadership and significant business success in their respective fields over the past years. About 36 individuals were honored during the night.

Appreciation

Dr McKorley after receiving the award commended the organisers for recognising his effort and also expressed his appreciation for the recognition he received for his work.

He said the award might be in his name but the true winners were all the dedicated employees who worked day in and day out to make the company one of the most recognisable brands in Africa.

He said the McDan team always aimed to work as a family and had a united focus on business goals, which enabled them to work with higher expectations.

“Our collective team efforts have resulted in this incredible result, and it is a great achievement for each team member,” Dr McKorley said.

by Redeemer

February 23, 2024

Dr. Daniel McKorley, Executive Chairman of McDan Group Ghana and Electrochem Ghana Limited has been invited as the special guest of honor at the world’s biggest salt conference currently taking place in India.

The conference, titled the International Conference on Advances in Salt and Marine Chemicals, aims to address the opportunities and challenges facing the salt and marine chemicals industry.

During the conference, Dr. McKorley will deliver a keynote address highlighting the critical role of salt in various industries. He will also discuss the need for innovative ideas and bold recommendations to tackle the challenges faced by the sector.

In addition to his address, Dr. McKorley will be meeting with India’s Prime Minister, Narendra Modi, to discuss the potential for collaboration and growth in the salt industry. This meeting represents an exciting opportunity for Dr. McKorley to showcase the expertise and capabilities of Ghana on a global stage.

Dr. McKorley’s remarks at the conference will emphasize the importance of collaboration, technological advancements, sustainable transport solutions, market diversification, and the harnessing of solar salt and marine chemicals.

The presence of Dr. Daniel McKorley at the International Conference on Advances in Salt and Marine Chemicals highlights the growing recognition of Ghana’s contribution to the salt industry and positions McDan Group as a key player in this global sector.

The conference is the biggest salt and marine chemical conference in the world and serves as a platform for knowledge-sharing, networking, and collaborative efforts to ensure a sustainable future for the salt industry worldwide.

source:GhanaWeb

by Redeemer

February 18, 2024

The Chairman of the McDan Group, Dr. Daniel McKorley, may be a successful man but that is not to mean that he has no worries in his life.

According to him, while there are such things in his life, failure is not the one thing that scares him the most.

Instead, as he wrote in his book, “The Path of An Eagle, Despair, Hope & Glory,” the future and all the uncertainties it comes with is the thing that scares him the most.

Explaining further, he said he does not fear failing but he is rather inspired to work harder because of the unknown; the future.

He also added that for him, failure is rather a fuel to work better and harder.

“What scares me most in life is not failure at any given project, but rather the uncertainties of the future. I am never afraid to fail, rather, I fear the unknown and that pushes me to work harder and harder. Failure rather gives me encouragement. It teaches me life lessons. Sometime ago, someone asked me what the greatest failure in my life was. I told him, ‘Honestly, I have never seen any failure in my life.’ I gave that reply because I see those things people call failure as opportunities to learn new lessons in life. It is these lessons that make me strong.

“Sometimes, an unforeseen incident could get hold of you and throw you off balance. We usually put in measures to provide security, both physical and financial, for our businesses, but the unexpected can always happen, sometimes defying every security arrangement we might have put in place. This is my greatest fear,” he explained.

McDan also expressed worries over the attitudes of Ghanaians that have robbed the country of enough billionaires, or successful business people.

He also urged people to set very high targets for themselves in life.

“I will tell you what fear of failure does to people: it makes them set low standards for themselves. In some cases, it makes them even refuse to venture into anything new at all. Our society unfortunately is among those in which people entertain fears so much. Some fear to take the risk of starting new things while others fear to set high standards. Many a business owner even fears to raise the bar. They think of the stress they would have to go through in order to reach higher targets. This is why we do not have billionaires in this country. People set mediocre targets and are happy when they meet them. When the bar is low, it does not challenge you much. When we set low standards, we drag our feet on our way to achieving them.

“I am definitely not afraid to set high standards for myself so I set the bar so high that I get bruises when I jump them. The higher your goals, the harder you strive to achieve them,” he added.

by Redeemer

January 15, 2024

The Group Chairman of McDan Group of Companies, Dr. Daniel Mckorley, has received the Chartered Institute of Supply Chain Management (CISCM) Man of the Year 2023 Award.

The award was conferred on him for winning two prestigious awards at the CISCM Recognition and Dinner Night held on January 13, 2024.

CISCM has recognized the McDan Group as the Best Organization for Projects and the Best Organization for International Trade.

The McDan Group was acknowledged as an organization that has in place an effective Project Management system that applies standard PM principles and practices in executing projects (programs) addressing implementation challenges.

Evidence shows the project’s functional activities and the project outcomes positively impact the strategic objectives of the organization, positively impact the society in which the organization operates, engage in sound and ethical processes, use improved or innovative practices in the process, and employ a sound sustainable relationship approach as a tool in the process. The project employs a sound sustainable relationship approach as a tool in the process.

Also, the Group was awarded as an organization that has effectively developed goods and services locally and operated in Ghana fully and exported globally.

Given these feats, the Chairman of the McDan Group, Dr. Daniel Mckorley, was crowned as the Best Integrated Supply Chain Management Personality of the Year 2023.

A citation in his honour reads: “After intrinsic research and analytical evaluation of your immense contribution to the growth and development of the McDan Group of Companies and Ghana at large, through the application of all CISCM’S Value Streams in your Operations, the Council of the Chartered Institute of Supply Chain Management, (CISCM) in recognition of same has the pleasure to confer on you CISCM Man of The Year, 2023. We trust that you will accept this recognition and commit to collaborate with CISCM to propagate and mainstream the adoption and use of integrated Supply Chain Management principles and practices; to support the agenda of promoting effective, inclusive and sustainable socio-economic growth and development in Ghana.”

In his acceptance speech, Dr. Daniel Mckorley said, right from step one of his journey in Supply Chain operations, he knew he was going to become an “icon of excellence.”

He said the CISCM has indeed added additional value to McDan Group’s strides with the awards and recognition.

Dr. Daniel Mckorley noted that the maiden edition of the CISCM Awards means a lot to the Group and averred that integrated supply chain management is the key to its development.

“We shall continue to partner with CISCM to grow. As a CISCM Man of the Year, I will continue to push for the adoption of the integrated supply chain agenda.”

by admin

November 17, 2022

Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of McDan Group of Companies, Daniel McKorley, has advised businesses in the country to be strategic in taking advantage of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) agreement.

By being strategic, he said businesses must first study the business terrain of their selected African markets before entering or doing business in the said African market.

He said this at the 6th Edition of the Africa Trade Roundtable meeting organised by the University of Professional Studies Accra (UPSA) in partnership with the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA).

Mr McKorley noted that, with the offtake of the AfCFTA pact, businesses must not rush to enter other African markets.

He said studying the business terrain of an African market before entering it was necessary, given the fact that, business techniques that work in one African country would not necessarily work or be effective in another.

“I would advise businesses to be strategic in trading on the Continent, especially in view of the AfCFTA.

“Because you see, the techniques that work in Ghana, will not work in Nigeria or Kenya. You can’t use the same techniques because if you do, you will fail,” he stated.

“Before you go into a country to trade, it is extremely important to know the culture of the country, the business environment of the country, the policies that affect business operations in the country, mergers and acquisitions in the country, among other things,” he added.

Speaking further at the event, Mr McKorley noted the timing for the creation and commencement of the AfCFTA is perfect, given rising commodity and food prices – partly due to supply chain difficulties – which is driving upwards inflation and adversely impacting livelihoods of Africans.

With AfCFTA, Mr McKorley says the African Continent can insulate itself from such incidents in the near future.

The AfCFTA pact which kickstarted January 2021, is the largest single trade bloc in the world with an estimated $3 trillion GDP value and 1.3 billion market (population of Africans).

The UPSA Africa Trade Roundtable brings together intra-African trade experts, government officials, international trade and commercial law experts, policy makers and scholars from across the world to discuss the pertinent issues arising out of the implementation of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA).

Source: https://www.graphic.com.gh/

by admin

October 26, 2022

Chief Executive Officer of McDan Group of Companies, Daniel Mckorley, has urged entrepreneurs in the country to be resilient and take advantage of the current macro-economic conditions to build a solid foundation that can propel their businesses to transcend the country’s borders, by leveraging on the Africa Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA).

According to him, just as businesses were able to innovate and adopt technology to survive the shocks of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, similar tenacity is required from entrepreneurs in these trying times to survive but, this time around, the ability to look beyond the borders of this country should be their target.

He added that the hardship being experienced now does not spell all doom or gloom, but rather key attention must be paid to the significant level of ease of mobility that has been restored through technology.

“As I always say, in adversities like these real leaders emerge; stronger and more resilient countries are seen; and able countries take advantage to become the new economic force. And similarly, it is in times of adversities like this that innovative entrepreneurs emerge and become the world’s new game-changers.

It is not all doom and gloom; this is the time when Ghanaian entrepreneurs must take advantage of what is happening and launch products that will penetrate the AfCFTA. This is because it is in times like these that we see stronger businesses, and I believe this is the opportunity for vibrant, strong, young entrepreneurs to get ready and lead the fourth industrial revolution,” he said.

Dr. Mckorley further mentioned that his organisation is committed to promoting trade in the sub-region and has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the AfCFTA secretariat to provide logistics support for easy mobility of goods and services.

“My company’s partnership with AfCFTA will be a critical contributor to the transformation we want to see on the African continent. The agreement will spearhead industrial transformation and economic development, boost intra-Africa trade, and create employment.

“All businesses looking at exporting cargo should note the McDan Group of companies is here to facilitate that trade and bring growth to the economies of Africa,” he said.

He mentioned that unless the goods are able to move from one country to another, all the boardroom discussions and MoUs signed will be meaningless; hence, entrepreneurs must take advantage of the transportation logistics that his outfit is providing to ensure their goods reach all countries on the continent.

He made these remarks at the Ghana Economic Forum (GEF) 2022 – an annual event organised by the B&FT – on the theme ‘Building a robust and resilient economy through technology, finance, investment, trade and entrepreneurship’.

The AfCFTA secretariat has adopted a special instrument described as the Guided Trade Initiative (GTI), which has set the ball rolling for commercial trading to commence for the first seven countries to have met all requirements and expressed strong readiness.

Ghana is one of the first seven countries to start trading under this arrangement, and the McDan CEO believes that if entrepreneurs are able to think beyond the borders and take advantage of available logistical support they could be lead beneficiaries of the continental trade area.

Source: https://www.ghanaweb.com/

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Be strategic in taking advantage of AfCFTA -– McDan CEO urges businesses

Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of McDan Group of Companies, Daniel McKorley, has advised businesses in the country to be strategic in taking advantage of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) agreement.

Overcome current challenges by penetrating external market – McDan tells entrepreneurs

McDan Group and High Commission of Malta enhance Ghana and Malta relations

McDan honoured by Ghana Entrepreneurs Awards

Women are more than capable, let’s inspire them – McDan Chairman

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