The initiative, which was under the second mandate of Venture Capital Trust Fund (VCTF), was to build the capacity of the next generation of investment and financial analysts for venture capital and the private equity ecosystem.

The Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the VCTF, Michael Abbey, at an orientation ceremony for the participants in Accra on June 2, 2025, said the training was a golden opportunity for the group to polish their talents.

He said their past experiences were good enough and therefore must be leveraged and built on.

“This ecosystem has potential with a huge economic journey for the country,” he said.

Taking the participants through the nitty gritty of the analysts programme, Mr Abbey advised them to be punctual at all times and said they must, as part of the training, learn how to bond, build relationships as well as learn team building skills.

He said those traits were crucial in their chosen fields.

Background

The Venture Capital Analysts Programme (VCAP) was first introduced in 2016 and reintroduced in 2023 with funding from the World Bank through the Ministry of Finance under the Ghana Economic Transformation Project (GETP).

The VCAP was designed and envisaged as a platform for fresh graduates with the passion to take a great step in building a career in venture capital or private equity.

The programme was structured to offer participants real-life practical skills required for the venture capital and private equity industry.

The broad goal and objective of the VCAP was to build capacities and develop human resource base for the venture capital and the private equity industry.

It is a year intensive programme which began with an orientation module from  today (June 2, 2025) to Friday (June 6, 2025).

This is followed by six months intensive classroom sessions and six months practical attachment, coaching and mentoring.

At the end, the trainee analysts are expected to demonstrate understanding of the history, mandate, vision, mission and culture of the fund. 

They are also, among other outcomes, expected to demonstrate understanding of the scope and objectives of the VCAP and the roles and responsibilities under the programme.

Mr Abbey said the VCAP was an opportunity for participants to learn during the programme, work alongside staff at VCTF and other partners, to learn among other things, how to originate deals, analyse them and negotiate terms.

Professional networks

He said it was expected that VCAP would build a network of professionals who could come together in the future to form teams capable of sourcing investments and managing private equity and venture capital funds in the country and across the African continent.

The General Manager of the VCTF, Percival Ofori Ampomah, in a brief remark, assured the trainee analysts of the support of the organisation during their training.

He said he was impressed with the work rate of the 10 selected trainees which included five women and hoped that through the training they would cement their career as finance and investment people.