Business
3 young African entrepreneurs to watch
3). Yaw Duffour-Awuah, Ghana. Founder, Student Aid Plus
Age: 19
Yaw Duffour-Awuah – 2nd Runner Up of the 2012 Anzisha prize
As a high school student, Duffour-Awuah demonstrated a knack for understanding risk and the fortitude to take on risky ventures.
After noticing that several high school classmates were regularly unable to travel home for holidays, Duffour-Awuah saw an opportunity to create a more sustainable system that would benefit more of his peers.
His model was simple: He gathered a small group of friends who became his business partners and pooled capital from all of them. His company would then provide small loans to student borrowers who were in dire financial need, with interest. It was a service that most students inevitably needed at some point or the other, and before long, business blossomed.
Duffour-Awuah renamed Apex Loans to Student Aid Plus, and the company has evolved from a small micro-lending organization to a financial services company which among other things offers financial literacy education to Ghanaian high school students.
The company also has a savings and loan program that helps students pay school fees and provides for upkeep during school sessions.
The company’s financial literacy sessions are led by invited adult professionals and about a hundred student volunteers. Student Aid Plus has 55 shareholders who receive dividends based on their shareholding in the company.
Duffour-Awuah’s short term plans are to grow by launching the business into other high schools and to offer more financial services aimed at youngsters like himself.
Source: Forbes
