In fulfilment of a burning desire to create and grow transformational leaders to help change the fortunes of the African continent, the first cohort of Prince Kofi (PK) Amoabeng Scholars Program comprising 20 selected young men and women has been inaugurated in Accra.

The PK Amoabeng Scholars Program which is a flagship programme of the PK Amoabeng Leadership Foundation will provide beneficiaries with various forms of mentorship training, coaching, courses, seminars, and military training exercises over a one-year period.

Delivering the keynote address at the inaugural event, former Chief Justice, Her Ladyship Justice Sophia Akuffo challenged the young Scholars to always aspire to greater heights with excellence based on a vision that is shared by all in order to make a greater impact in society.

According to her, the bane of the African continent has been the failure of its leaders to share their vision with their followers to ensure inclusiveness and collective ownership to engender development that is all-embracing.

The former Chief Justice explained that whenever a vision is shared, it provides an opportunity for the leader to tap into the wisdom of others in order to enrich the vision for the benefit of all.

She cautioned the youth to guard against working in silos as individualism does not encourage productivity and progress but teamwork where ideas are shared always for the benefit of the larger group.

Describing the 20 beneficiaries as "special future leaders", Her Ladyship Akuffo said Ghana and Africa are in dire need of leaders who will lead them to the dreamland and told the young people to stand up and be counted.

She has therefore encouraged the young scholars to be exceptional in all their endeavours while urging them to nurture the desire to become bigger, better and exceptional even more than P. K Amoabeng himself in order to make positive impacts in the lives of all those they may come in contact with in their leadership journey.

Her Lady Sophia Akuffo also challenged the young scholars to make integrity their watchword always in everything they do as a crucial virtue in their life journey.

She envisaged that 30 years into the future young scholars will grow to become mature adults making indelible impacts on society through clear goals they had set for themselves. 

The former Chief Justice also used the opportunity to emphasise the importance of good governance and transparency which thrives in an atmosphere where processes and procedures are adhered to for the conduct of affairs in an orderly manner.

The architect of the PK Amoabeng Scholars Program, Mr. Prince Kofi Amoabeng said with his life experiences, especially with the UT Bank adventure, he has what takes to grow the much-awaited thought leaders Africa needs for her transformational agenda.

"I believe that with my experiences through UT and my life, I have solutions that would create leaders with a different mindset. And that is why we formed this PK Amoabeng scholars group'' he stated.

He indicated that the objective is to grow leaders who think differently, know and understand the African continent and are ready to serve people in whatever field they find themselves as a God-sent duty.

The beneficiaries of the one-year transformative Scholars Program expressed gratitude to Mr. Kofi Amoabeng for the opportunity. 

They assured of their resolve to take advantage of the opportunity to learn, develop their leadership skills, and lead by example as they prepare themselves for greater roles in the future. 

The 20 scholars were selected out of 40 by a face-to-face selection panel out of a total of 1,500 applications received.

As part of the leadership capacity-building efforts of the 20 finalists to enable them to become impactful change-makers, they will undergo a one-week military training, and several mentorship sessions, as well as undertake a series of local and international courses and seminars over a one-year period.

The organisers said the PK Amoabeng Scholars Program will be held annually in cohorts to create a pool of interconnected and well-baked servant leaders who will make meaningful impacts in society.