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Ghanaian Innovator Joseph Owiredu Wins Best Young Innovator Award at 7th Africa Tourism Leadership Forum

Joseph Owiredu, a young Ghanaian entrepreneur, took home the Best Young Innovator Award at the 7th Africa Tourism Leadership Forum (ATLF) and Awards, held last Friday at the Gaborone International Convention Centre. 

The forum, which ran from September 3rd to 6th, 2024, marks the third consecutive year that Botswana has hosted this prestigious event.

Owiredu, the CEO of Fihankra ComTech Limited—a start-up that specializes in developing personal safety and security innovations for Africa’s tourism industry—was selected from a pool of over 154 entries submitted to the Africa Youth in Tourism Innovation Challenge. 

His project, which focuses on enhancing safety in tourism through innovative tech solutions, earned him the top spot after presenting his demo to the adjudication committee.

Rosalia Haufiku Laudika, a student from Namibia University of Science and Technology (NUST), claimed second place, while Ajena Jafar, Founder & CEO of Tour Plug from Uganda, finished third.

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The challenge provides young African innovators and entrepreneurs in the travel and tourism sectors a platform to showcase their ideas to global investors, partners, and mentors, offering invaluable opportunities for funding and collaboration.

Joseph Owiredu had been shortlisted as one of the three runners up, along with Laudika and Jafar, following the 6th Africa Youth in Tourism Innovation Summit, held in May 2024 in Windhoek, Namibia. Unfortunately, due to last-minute obstacles, he was unable to attend the awards ceremony in Botswana.

 His award was received on his behalf by Francis Doku, Media Executive and COO of Digital Plugin Limited, a Ghana-based media and digital company.

Owiredu, has expressed his gratitude, saying, “This recognition highlights the immense potential for technology to redefine safety standards in African tourism. I am grateful for the opportunity to showcase Fihankra ComTech’s work.”

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The 2024 edition of the Africa Youth in Tourism Innovation Challenge, began with the call for entries in November 2023 and closed in March 2024.

 It received entries from various African countries, including Angola, Ghana, Kenya, South Africa, Uganda, and Zimbabwe.

Previous winners of the Africa Youth in Tourism Innovation Challenge, such as Rwanda’s Aline Murekatete (2020), Ghana’s Eugene Allotey (2021), South Africa’s Scott Blount (2022), and Kenya’s Gloria Kisilu have gone on to receive international attention following their wins.

The 7th ATLF and Awards, organized in collaboration with the Botswana Tourism Organisation, Africa Tourism Partners, and the United Nations World Tourism Organisation, was a platform for industry leaders to chart a path forward for tourism in Africa. 

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Themed “Charting a New Path Forward for Intra-Africa Travel, Tourism, and Investments,” the forum gathered key players from Africa’s travel, tourism, hospitality, and aviation sectors.

Botswana’s Vice President and Acting President, Slumber Tsogwane, officially opened the forum, emphasizing the critical role of tourism in driving economic diversification and growth across the continent.

The awards ceremony, which served as the climax of the forum, honored individuals and organizations excelling in categories such as innovation, sustainability, and leadership. 

The event has become a beacon for showcasing African talent and driving tourism forward through collaboration, innovation, and private-sector-led growth.

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38-year-old man gets life imprisonment for killing Assemblies of God pastor in 2018

After close to seven years of trial, a seven-member jury on Wednesday, May 14, returned a guilty verdict in the murder case involving the killing of the Senior Pastor of the Central Assemblies of God church at Tema in 2018.

The convict, Francis Nabegmado, a relative of the deceased, inflicted a fatal knife wound on Rev. Dr. David Nabegmado on December 30, 2018, after alleging that the senior pastor was a false preacher who engaged in idol worship and human sacrifices.

After an hour of summing up by the judge, Mary Maame Ekue Yanzuh, the jury retired briefly and returned with a unanimous guilty verdict.

Based on the unanimous verdict of the jurors who had previously studied the statements of the five witnesses called by the prosecution, and listened to the summing up process, the judge sentenced the 38-year-old to life imprisonment.

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When he was offered an opportunity to comment on the verdict, the convict told the judge that he wanted to go home to meet his family.

“My Lady, I want to see my family, and I want to be taken to Yendi”.

When the judge told him she couldn’t make such an order for him to go and see his family in Yendi, the convict forcefully said, “I insist”.

Francis, who will now spend the rest of his life at the Nsawam medium security prison, had told the court throughout the trial that the decision to attack his uncle, Rev. Nebegmado, was driven by insanity, but that did not save him from receiving a life sentence.

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Speaking briefly after the sentencing, Senior Pastor of the Assemblies of God church at Tema Community 4, Rev. Emmanuel Kwesi Ofori, said the church has been waiting for this closure for the past seven years and will soon issue an official statement.

Source: Myjoyonline.com

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KAB-FAM CEO wins Retail & Commerce Innovation Award at 2025 Millennium Excellence Awards

The Founder and Chief Executive Officer of KAB-FAM Ghana Ltd, Mr. Antwi-Boahen, was honoured at the 25th Anniversary Edition of the Millennium Excellence Awards, held on Friday, May 9, 2025, at the Manhyia Palace in Kumasi.

The event was hosted under the auspices of Otumfuo Osei Tutu II, Asantehene and Life Patron of the awards scheme, which is widely regarded as one of Africa’s most prestigious honours.

The Millennium Excellence Awards celebrate personalities who have demonstrated outstanding achievement in their respective fields. Past laureates include global figures such as Archbishop Desmond Tutu, Kofi Annan, Mo Ibrahim, and Professor Wole Soyinka.

Mr. Antwi-Boahen received the award for Retail and Commerce Innovation, in recognition of his role in transforming KAB-FAM Ghana Ltd into a leading player in the electronics and home appliances retail sector.

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Founded in May 2013 and operational by October 2014, the company has expanded rapidly over the last decade, now operating 16 branches and providing direct and indirect employment to over 1,300 people.

Under Mr. Antwi-Boahen’s leadership, KAB-FAM has grown to hold a 12% share of the market as of 2022, positioning itself as a major wholly Ghanaian-owned brand in the sector.

The company’s growth has been driven by a combination of technology-driven innovation, strategic pricing, a focus on customer service, and a commitment to making quality electronics more accessible to the general public.

Today, KAB-FAM is noted not only for its expansive retail presence but also for its strong online visibility, with a combined social media following of nearly one million across platforms.

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The recognition affirms the company’s growing influence and Mr. Antwi-Boahen’s contribution to Ghana’s retail landscape.

Earlier this year, KAB-FAM acquired Hilbery, World’s First Design-Centric Appliance Brand with customers in several African countries, the UK, Europe and America, and are the Country Agent of Haier, Global No.1 Appliance Brand By Market Share for 16 Consecutive Years, cementing KAB-FAM’s position as a Market Leader.

Mr. Antwi-Boahen is a marketing and advertising luminary, one of the core reasons for the success of KAB-FAM and a strong champion of data research and analytics.

He has over fourteen (14) years’ experience in sales, marketing, and business operations in the FMCG sector with an aggressive appetite for business development and expansion.

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He also consults for a number of businesses and organisations in Ghana, Africa, and Asia on branding, brand visibility, and advertising.

Mr. Antwi-Boahen has been featured in several local and international journals including Forbes Africa, with spotlights on how he was able to impressively build an electronics and appliance retail giant in less than ten (10) years from the scratch, in a market hitherto dominated only by expatriate firms.

He is a philanthropist, and through KAB-FAM, has extended a helping hand to a number of people and public institutions in need.

Worthy of mention is the donation of cash and home appliances to Madam Ama Forson, a wrongfully convicted 69 year-old woman who was later acquitted and discharged under the Justice for All Programme spearheaded by POS Foundation, for her reintegration into society, in a special ceremony held at the Law Court Complex on June 24, 2021.

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KAB-FAM also refurbished and adopted the Department of Chest Diseases at the Korle Bu Teaching Hospital in August 2019.

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