Prof. (Mrs.) Mavis Serwah Benneh Mensah is a Professor of Entrepreneurship with 22 years of experience in academia. She is the founding Director (August 2016 – July 2020) of the Centre for Entrepreneurship and Small Enterprise Development (CESED) at the School of Business, University of Cape Coast (UCC), Cape Coast, Ghana. Prof. Mensah holds a PhD in Development Studies from UCC, Ghana; an MBA in Small and Medium-sized Enterprise Development from the University of Leipzig, Germany; a Diploma in SMEs Management and Development from the Galillee College, Israel; and a Bachelor of Management Studies degree from UCC, Ghana. She is a Certified CEFE entrepreneurship trainer and a KAAD Scholar. She had her secondary education at Holy Child School, in Cape Coast, Ghana.
Entrepreneurship in the knowledge-based economy, enterprise sustainability, female entrepreneurship and entrepreneurship education constitute Prof. Mensah’s current research interests. Some of her research activities have been supported by the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Technische Zusammenarbeit (GTZ) GmbH, now the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ), and the Association of African Universities (AAU). She has consulted for several organisations/programmes including the British Council’s Innovation for African Universities (IAU) programme; the Ghana Climate University Network; the Regional Universities Forum for Capacity Building in Africa under its TAGDev 2.0 programme; Rainforest Alliance, Ghana; and the “Teaching for Development: Entrepreneurship and Sustainable Economic Development” programme among the Bonn-Rhein-Sieg University of Applied Sciences, Germany, the University of Nairobi, Kenya and UCC, Ghana. Her consultancy services have yielded several outcomes including capacity building, business incubation/enterprise development policies, and student-led start-ups.
Prof. Mensah has extensive expertise in entrepreneurship curriculum development. She led the development of the first two undergraduate programmes in Entrepreneurship, and a Doctor of Business Administration (Entrepreneurship) programme, at UCC. Her other curriculum development engagements include an Agri-Entrepreneurship course for the University of KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa, under the British Council’s IAU; a Blue Entrepreneurship course for the Africa Centre of Excellence in Coastal Resilience, UCC; and revision of two master’s programmes in Entrepreneurship, and undergraduate programmes at the UCC School of Business.
Premised on the philosophy that entrepreneurship is key to economic development and lasting gains can be achieved through closer interactions among government, industry and academia, Prof. Mensah has initiated several entrepreneurship projects. She promoted the establishment of the University of Cape Coast Business Incubator having garnered experiences from Germany, Israel and Uganda. She also initiated and spearheaded the organisation of the Cape Coast Entrepreneurship Stakeholders’ Forum and an Industry and Innovation Fair, in 2017 and 2019.
As part of her community service, Prof. Mensah is a member of various University boards and committees including UCC’s Executive Committee of Academic Board and the Enterprise Development Committee of the Africa Ocean Institute. Her external committee engagements include member of the Committee for Jesuit Education in Ghana and co-opted member of the Executive Board of the Cape Coast Regional Chamber of Commerce and Industry. She once served as the co-opted chairperson of the Collaboration Sub-Committee of the Ghana Research and Industry Collaborative (GRIC).
In her pastime, Prof. Mensah would treat herself to good music, take care of kids, or behold the wonders of creation through sight-seeing. She is married with four children.
