The Director of the Centre for Entrepreneurship and Small Enterprise Development (CESED) at the University of Cape Coast (UCC), Prof. (Mrs.) Mavis Serwah Benneh Mensah, has received a three-member delegation from the Blekinge Institute of Technology (BTH), Sweden, at the School of Business conference room.
The visit was aimed at developing a roadmap for collaboration between the two institutions in areas such as staff and student exchange programmes, joint academic programme design and delivery, and collaborative research activities.
The delegation comprised Prof. Niklas Lavesson, Professor of Software Engineering and Country Director for Ghana–Tanzania; Mr. Gurudutt Velpula, Director of Internationalisation; and Prof. Martin Andersson, Professor of Industrial Economics and Dean of the Faculty of Engineering at BTH.
During the meeting, Prof. Mensah highlighted CESED’s commitment to entrepreneurship education, research, and practice within the University. She explained that the establishment of CESED consolidated several long-standing initiatives undertaken by the UCC School of Business in promoting entrepreneurship development.
According to her, CESED operates with three core mandates: entrepreneurship education and training, business incubation, and entrepreneurship research and publication. She further noted that the Centre collaborates with key stakeholders to promote the creation of growth-oriented enterprises, particularly among students, while also supporting the growth and sustainability of existing micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs).
Prof. Mensah added that CESED remains committed to contributing to national and international research and discussions on entrepreneurship and small enterprise development, as well as supporting the formulation of entrepreneurship policies.
In response, Prof. Niklas Lavesson expressed appreciation to the leadership of CESED and the School of Business for the warm reception. He described the meeting as a strong indication of CESED’s readiness to establish a meaningful partnership with BTH.
Prof. Lavesson also recalled the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed between UCC and BTH in 2025, describing it as a major step toward strengthening the academic and societal roles of both institutions for their mutual benefit.
Present at the meeting were a former Pro Vice-Chancellor of UCC, Prof. Rosemond Boohene; the Vice- Dean of School of Business, Prof. Innocent Senyo Kwasi Acquah; the Director of the Design Thinking and Innovative Hub, Dr Edward Nii Amar Amarteifio; Dr. CHarles Hackman Essel, Dr. Enoch Mensah William and Dr. Richmond Asumadu, all faculty members of School of Business.
