The Africa Health Collaborative at the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST), Kumasi in partnership with the Mastercard Foundation, has hosted a workshop to equip cohort II of the MSc. Health Entrepreneurship students with practical skills in conflict resolution and family business management.

The seminar, organized under the Health Ecosystem Pillar and led by Dr. Joseph Owusu, sought to address crucial topics that were not part of the program’s original curriculum.

“We decided to run these as seminar-based modules so that each semester, we bring in resource persons,” Dr. Owusu said. “Previously, we covered regulatory affairs for health businesses, and now, we have focused on conflict resolution and succession planning for family enterprises.”

Head of the Department of Marketing and Corporate Strategy, KNUST School of Business, Professor Bylon Abeeku Bamfo, admonished the participants to utilize the opportunity to justify their selection.

The workshop featured expert contributions from legal and business leaders, including Mr. Richard Obeng Mensah, a lecturer at KNUST’s Faculty of Law, who emphasized the importance of alternative dispute resolution in sustaining family-owned businesses.

“Over 80% of businesses in Ghana are family-related,” he noted. “Litigation should be a last resort. With proper management and conflict resolution mechanisms, we can build enterprises that transcend generations.”

Mrs. Mary Asante Asamoah, Executive Director of Barbex Africa Projects Ltd, urged participants to “change the narrative” that family businesses rarely outlive their founders.

She highlighted four pillars for sustainability: a shared vision and values, structured governance, clearly defined roles, and proactive conflict management.

She also stressed the importance of succession planning to ensure smooth generational transitions.

Interactive sessions allowed students to engage directly with the speakers, drawing connections between academic learning and real-world entrepreneurial challenges.