During a working visit to Ghana in July this past summer, founder Patrick Awuah visited the Ghanaian Ministry of Education. He met with Dr. Mohamed Ibn Chambas, Deputy Minister of Education in charge of tertiary education, to discuss the Ashesi University project and the process of accrediting the school. Dr. Chambas was very enthusiastic and optimistic about the project, as reflected in the strong letter of endorsement he then drafted on our behalf. [See Dr. Chamba’s letter] The Ministry of Education has asserted its desire to see private investment in tertiary education, placing its goals very much in alignment with our vision for Ashesi University.

During his working visit to Ghana over the summer, founder Patrick Awuah expanded our official and unofficial network of Ashesi supporters. He formalized relationships with three people, Nancy Keteku, Kofi Kwakwa and Ken Ofori-Atta, bringing them onto Ashesi’s Ghanaian Advisory Council. Together they bring great management experience and knowledge of both business and academia in Ghana today. Our Ghanaian advisors are already giving us input concerning what opportunities to pursue, what pitfalls to look out for, and how to proceed in building Ashesi. Their quick feedback and high level of interest in our project will no doubt be all the more valuable as we establish operations in Ghana. (For information on all of our advisors and trustees, see About Ashesi.)

The first of our three advisory councils for curriculum design was established at UC Berkeley’s Haas School of Business early this past summer. Twelve professors and administrators representing all of the major subjects of the Haas curriculum agreed to help shape Ashesi’s business administration curriculum. A number of these advisors had already played a part in Ashesi’s development, contributing advice or reviewing the team’s work. We are very excited to have such well-experienced, high-caliber advisors bringing their creative ideas and enthusiasm to the Ashesi curriculum. (For a full listing of the members of this council, see About Ashesi.)

Back in the spring of 1999, as Ashesi’s co-founders started the process of shifting the Ashesi project from a business plan to an actual functional entity, one of our first orders of business was to recruit a strong Board of Trustees. Mining the rich resources of UC Berkeley, we were able to bring in three Trustees, each able to contribute different assets and much enthusiasm to the Ashesi project. As Dean of International and Area Studies at UC Berkeley and an accomplished Political Science scholar specializing in African studies, Dr. David Leonard brings much experience and knowledge about academic institutions and Africa to the project. Dr. Leonard has lived and researched in various parts of Africa throughout his career. Having known founder Patrick Awuah for years, he has known about the idea of Ashesi practically as long as Awuah has – and he has followed its development and provided advice along the way.

 

Joining Dr. Leonard are Keval Desai and Annie Chan, both MBA graduates of UC Berkeley’s Haas School of Business and classmates of Ashesi’s founders. With graduate degrees in computer science and business, Desai brings solid managerial experience culled in Silicon Valley’s high technology field as well as an entrepreneurial flare to our nonprofit startup. Annie Chan has agreed to assist especially with Ashesi’s financial management by serving as the Treasurer of our board, making full use of her strong financial background.

 

Our well-qualified Trustees have committed themselves to meeting quarterly and making themselves available throughout the year to work closely with the Foundation’s management team to make strategic decisions, monitor our financial status and join in fundraising efforts. They have already been actively contributing their various skills, ideas and enthusiasm toward making Ashesi’s goals a reality. While nominations for a few more members are currently being considered, Ashesi plans to maintain a Board of no less than three and no more than 15 Trustees.

 

(For information on all of our advisors and trustees, see About Ashesi.)

In the spring of 1998, Joann Dunaway, then Director of the International Business program at UC Berkeley’s Haas School of Business, approved a proposal to send a team of MBA students to investigate the feasibility of establishing a private university in Ghana. The research team was charged with finding answers to the following questions:

• Is there demand for a new private university in Ghana and, if so, what should its attributes be? Is Ashesi’s vision appropriate for Ghana?
• How much can Ghanaians afford to pay?
• What will it cost to establish such a school?
• Does the macro-economic and political climate in Ghana allow for establishing a new private university?

The Research Team
The research team assigned to the Ashesi University project consisted of people with a wide variety of skills and cultural backgrounds. The cultural and intellectual diversity of the team was very beneficial for a couple of reasons. First, the team was able to view the task at hand from many different perspectives; challenging each others’ assumptions and avoiding “group think”. Second, members of the team complimented each other with skills including finance, public relations, management consulting, engineering, and project management.

• Patrick Awuah was born and raised in Ghana. Previously, he worked as a Program Manager for Microsoft Corporation. Awuah obtained undergraduate degrees in engineering and economics at Swarthmore College in Pennsylvania, and is a member of the Tau Beta Pi honor society for excellence in engineering.
• Nina Marini was born and raised in Tokyo, Japan. After completing undergraduate studies in history at Haverford College, Marini worked in public relations at Bridgestone Corporation’s global headquarters in Tokyo. She also worked as a financial analyst with Horst, Frisch, Clowery & Finan, Inc. in Washington, D.C.
• Maria Jaramillo was born and raised in Colombia, South America. Before entering Haas, she worked for five years as an industrial engineer in the Operations Department of Carvajal S.A., one of the largest printing and publishing companies in the world.
• Felipe Sommer worked for four and a half years at Andersen Consulting in Strategic Services for the Financial Services Industry before coming to Haas. Sommer has an undergraduate degree in Economics from the University of Buenos Aires, Argentina. He is from Buenos Aires, Argentina and has also lived in the Netherlands.

Preparations in the United States
Before leaving for Ghana, the team made various preparations in the United States. First, in order to ensure a thorough and critical review, the team posed the hypothesis that establishing a private university would not be feasible in Ghana. By repeatedly asking why a private university might fail, the team came up with a comprehensive list of questions that needed to be answered.

Second, the team drafted questionnaires for parents and prospective students, and developed plans for focus groups to be conducted in Ghana. The team also consulted with Haas Business School faculty and gathered information from secondary sources such as the Economist Intelligence Unit and the World Bank.

Third, the team took care of travel logistics such as acquiring visas and vaccinations, and preparing equipment such as laptops, a portable printer and office supplies. The team also arranged accommodation and transportation in Ghana.

Working in Ghana
Working in Ghana was intense and fun. The team often had to work with power from a diesel generator because of an energy crisis in Ghana that year (1998). The need for more capacity in Ghana’s tertiary education system was considered to be so great that everywhere the group went, head teachers literally stopped what they were doing to help the team administer surveys. Parents, business people and government workers were equally receptive and helpful. The team’s efforts to make logistical arrangements in advance of arriving in Ghana truly paid off. Having their own computer equipment and means of transport, for example, enabled them to work more efficiently and flexibly than would otherwise have been possible.

In addition to conducting thousands of surveys and running focus groups, the team made it a point to experience Accra’s lively nightclub scene, its vibrant marketplaces, and some of its beautiful beaches.

Primary & Secondary Research in Ghana
The team administered over 3,300 surveys, held two focus groups with business leaders and parents, and conducted many informal interviews. The team also analyzed secondary data from Ghana’s Ministry of Education and the Ghana Statistical service.

Their data ultimately indicated that:

• there is significant demand for a new private university in Ghana;
• Ghanaian parents are willing to pay for high-quality local university education; and
• the Ghanaian government fully supports private involvement in tertiary education.

Conclusions
The main factors of success for this research project included great team dynamics, good preparation prior to traveling to Ghana, the team’s resourcefulness while in-country and the credibility of the UC Berkeley name. The very nature of the project – which attempted to address a critical issue in Ghana today – and the friendliness of Ghanaian people also contributed greatly to the team’s effectiveness.

The feasibility study in Ghana was very inspiring for the team. Nina Marini was so touched by what she saw in Ghana that she ultimately revised her career goals to join Patrick Awuah in founding Ashesi University.