Dorothy S. McAuliffe, Special Representative for Global Partnerships, US Department of State
Story written by: Bright Philip Donkor
The United States Department is starting ‘Partnership Opportunity Delegation’ (POD) to Ghana in a deal that is laden with prospects of rebound as Ghana continues to engage the International Monetary Fund for a bail-out programme.
The POD is an initiative of the U.S. Department of State’s Office of Global Partnerships designed to spur and facilitate partnership activities between public and private sectors of the U.S. and selected countries with unique opportunities for partnership, investments and ecosystem development.
The Ghana POD follows successful previous delegations to Armenia, Tanzania, Ireland, Colombia, Myanmar and Ethiopia, and “Virtual PODs” to St. Lucia, Paraguay and Eswatini.
The POD comes on the backdrop of announcement made by Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken during the Innovators Gathering pre-summit event for the U.S.-Africa Leaders’ Summit.
The announcement underscored the steps the United States and African nations are taking to strengthen partnerships that advance shared priorities.
The delegation arrived in Accra yesterday, and will stay till February 10, 2023, to cultivate and enable collaboration and partnership opportunities between the U.S private sector and West Africa’s burgeoning climate innovation and entrepreneurship ecosystem.
Partnership prospects
In a welcoming letter to POD Ghana Delegates yesterday, the Special Representative for Global Partnerships, US Department of State, Dorothy S. McAuliffe, said his outfit would explore potential partnership opportunities with the Ghanaian private sector.
She added that they would also share insights into creating an environment for innovation and entrepreneurship in Ghana’s emerging climate tech ecosystem.
McAuliffe believes the United States’ private sector has a crucial role to play in US diplomatic efforts to spur economic growth and combat climate change.
“With your expertise, experience and innovative mindset, we look forward to the ideas and potential partnerships that will emerge over the course of the trip. This is a unique opportunity to understand the dynamic potential of the country, the region and the continent as a whole,” she noted.
Why Ghana
On Ghana’s selection, she stressed that Ghana is considered a global trade hub due to its location and wealth of resources, despite Africa’s projected climate change challenges.
The Special Representative for Global Partnerships recounted that in 2021, Ghana with a population of 30.42 million, was one of Africa’s top three fastest growing economies, and ranks among the continent’s top countries for venture capital investment.
“As the recently appointed Champion of Climate Change of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), Ghanaian President Akufo-Addo envisions Ghana as the regional hub for climate innovation,” she added.
According to her, delegates will learn about the opportunities and challenges that exist from organisations and entrepreneurs directly involved in the Ghanaian climate and tech economies.
She also revealed that they will meet Ghanaian government officials to learn more about their goals, and share perspectives on promoting and developing a climate-friendly business environment.
“And, finally, you will participate in a series of roundtable and networking events to exchange insights with the local private sector and government officials to identify potential projects, partnerships and collaboration opportunities,” she indicated.
POD Ghana 2023
POD Ghana 2023 will be the first in-person POD since the beginning of the pandemic, and delegates will include representatives from ventures and startups, educational institutions, startup ecosystem developers, climate and sustainable technology investors, Ghanaian diaspora, NGOs, and international organisations.
Numerous organisations have already committed to joining the POD, including Climate Kic, New York City’s Impact Hub, Arm, LinkedIn, among others.
Delegates will take part in facilitated introductions to Ghana’s public and private sector leaders, engage directly with climate innovators, and witness firsthand the potential promise and challenges of collaboration with Ghana’s sustainable entrepreneurship ecosystem.
As part of the Connecting Climate Entrepreneurs (CCE) initiative, POD Ghana 2023 is aimed at cultivating new engagement between the vibrant technology and innovation corridors of the United States and Ghana through public-private partnerships and supports the U.S. – Africa Leaders Summit’s goals for fostering new economic development and responding to the climate crisis.
CCE is a public-private partnership between the Department of State’s Office of Global Partnerships and private sector entities to leverage the U.S. entrepreneurial ecosystem to advance climate entrepreneurship worldwide. It was launched in collaboration with LinkedIn, Salesforce, and General Electric in 2021 at the United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP26) in Glasgow, Scotland.
Delegates
Among the delegates are the Councilmember of Los Angelis City Council, Curren D. Price. Jr.; Manager of Social Ventures, Tides Foundation, Tanya Sattar; Enterprise Account Director, LinkedIn, Martijn; CEO and Co-Founder of Impact Hub Accra, Will Senyo; Special Representative for Global Partnerships, Dorothy McAuliffe; Managing Director for Global Partnerships, Thomas Debass; U.S. Ambassador to Ghana, Ambassador Virginia Palmer, among others.
Writer’s email: bpdonkor@gmail.com
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