Five young Ghanaians tipped to take over their family businesses

A wise man once said that “the wealth we make are for our children far more than they are ours.” However accurate or not that is, it surely explains why many people strive so hard to create very comfortable lifestyles for their children and the generations after them.

Ordinarily, the children of Elon Musk or Bill Gates should not be as bothered about where to find food to eat on a daily, same as the least of their worries should be about where to lay their heads to rest at night.

And even though it might not be a fair comparison to make of some of Ghana’s wealthiest people and, or their families, let’s face the fact that these are people well deserving of the accolades they are given.

In this GhanaWeb feature, we redirect the focus slightly from the rich and powerful in Ghana, to their children, and more specifically, to the ones who have been publicly recognized to be likely heirs of their parents’ businesses.

Here are five of those personalities:

Kennedy Osei:

The name Kwame Despite is no ordinary name for a lot of Ghanaians because of the exploits and the popularity that has accompanied the many brands of the Ghanaian billionaire.

The eldest son of Despite, Kennedy Osei, who came to the spot more predominantly in 2020, after he got married in one of Ghana’s all-time most affluent marriage ceremonies, is one of the young people who surely have riches at their beck and call.

But Kennedy Osei has not only been in the background, benefitting from his father’s wealth. He is the Chief Executive Officer of the Despite Group of Companies.

Beyond this, Kennedy Osei has been into the real estate business for almost a decade, masterminding the building of lots of properties and renting some within the Greater Accra and Ashanti regions.

Kennedy Osei also controls the following in various capacities:

• Managing Director – Golden Crest Hotel and Golden Crystal Hotel • Director, Aerial Plus Service- A company that is into power line inspections, advertisement and other media content provision • Director, Nextbite Company Ltd – Importers of Food products and confectionaries • Founding Member, TRIBAL AFRICA – a movement of young Africans set up to promote African Culture and Heritage.

Dr. Kwabena Duffour Jnr:

The second-generation leader commanded uniBank assets worth over GHS1.3 billion.

He was the CEO of his father; Dr. Kwabena Duffour’s bank, which, until its collapse, was ranked as Ghana’s sixth largest bank by assets in 2015.

Dr. Kwabena Duffour Jnr holds a Ph.D. and M.Sc. in Banking and International Finance from Cass Business School, United Kingdom respectively.

He has also worked with the Ghana International Bank Plc London – Treasury Department and with Star Assurance Company Limited as an underwriter trainee.

Kojo Jones:

For many people who have also come to know the name Kojo Jones, they can identify with his philanthropic ways. And, after his widely publicized, exuberant marriage ceremony recently also being fresh on the minds of many, it begs the question on exactly who he is.

Emmanuel Kojo Jones-Mensah was born on July 3, 1989 to the late Justice (rtd) Emmanuel Kofi Jones-Mensah and Rev. Dr. Gifty Lamptey of the Sidalco Group of companies.

The entrepreneur and philanthropist has eight other siblings, including former beauty queen, Penelope M. Jones-Mensah, who is now a lawyer and a women’s and children’s rights activist.

Kojo Jones holds an MBA in Oil and Gas Management from Coventry University, an LLB Business Law and Diploma in Business both from London Metropolitan University, all in the United Kingdom.

He currently runs Empire Domus Ltd., an impressive real estate outfit operating out of Accra but focused on designing luxury properties for clients across the African continent, reports edwardasare.com.

His grandfather, Livingstone Emmanuel Akakpo Jones-Mensah, who worked as the chief financial controller of the Cameroonian Development Corporation (now Unilever), was also a resourceful and entrepreneurial businessman.

Kojo’s father, the late Justice (rtd) Emmanuel Kofi Jones-Mensah also left a significant legacy, becoming the Attorney-General of West Cameroon (pre amalgamation) at 28 years old.

He moved to Ghana to become a judge and at the time of his passing had retired and established a successful law practice.

He was a politician, an entrepreneur, and a hotelier, having once contested as a vice presidential candidate for the PNC.

Kojo Jones-Mensah also runs the KJM Foundation, an eponymously named non-governmental organisation that is working to give remote communities access to clean potable water and sufficient educational infrastructure.

Kwadwo Safo Jnr:

Son of the engineering legend, Apostle Dr. Kwadwo Safo, Kwadwo Safo Jnr was born on February 24, 1986, at Adenta in Accra.

Kwadwo Safo Jnr is a businessman, investor, and philanthropist and is currently the Chief Executive Officer of Kantanka Group of Companies, and the leader of Kristo Asafo Mission of Ghana.

He is also the CEO of Kantanka Automobile.

In terms of his wealth, Safo Jnr controls nine businesses, including a hospital, farms, a media firm, an automobile company, and others.

Ken Takyi Agyapong:

One of the sons of the politician and business mogul, Kennedy Osei Agyapong, is one of the young, rich men that make this list.

Born on June 22, Ken Takyi Agyapong is already a millionaire.

He works at his father’s Kencity Media Company but had most of his education outside Ghana.

On several occasions, Ken has been seen actively campaigning and projecting the policies of his father’s political party, the New Patriotic Party, on social media.