daniel mckorley Archives - McDan Group

June 18, 2024
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Executive Chair of McDan Group Calls for African Leadership in Shipping

 

Dr. Daniel Mckorley, Executive Chair of McDan Group, has issued a compelling plea for increased African ownership in the logistics and shipping sectors to bolster regional trade dynamics. Speaking at AFREXIM Bank’s forum in the Bahamas, Dr. Mckorley emphasized the imperative to curtail reliance on external routes that inflate costs and logistical complexities for African enterprises.

 

“The current practice of exporting goods outside Africa only to re-import them is unsustainable,” Dr. Mckorley underscored. He urged financial institutions and governments to champion local ownership initiatives, enhancing operational efficiencies and economic resilience across the continent.

 

Points:

AFREXIM Bank Initiative: Africa Trade Gateway

Dr. Mckorley spotlighted AFREXIM Bank’s Africa Trade Gateway as a transformative platform empowering intra-African commerce. This digital ecosystem fosters seamless B2B transactions among commercial banks, driving economic growth and fostering income generation within Africa.

Impact of AfCFTA

Addressing the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), Dr. Mckorley acknowledged its role in simplifying intra-African trade processes. Yet, he stressed the critical need for enhanced regional connectivity and logistical infrastructure to maximize its potential benefits.

Challenges and Vision

“Control over sea routes dictates business outcomes,” Dr. Mckorley lamented the logistical hurdles stifling intra-African trade. He highlighted platforms like Africa Trade Gateway as pivotal in facilitating cross-border transactions and advocated sustained support for AFREXIM Bank’s initiatives.

In conclusion, Dr. Daniel Mckorley’s impassioned call for heightened African participation in logistics and shipping underscores a transformative moment in the continent’s economic narrative, emphasizing the urgency of indigenous capacity-building to propel sustainable development and economic integration.

Source : News Ghana


June 17, 2024
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Executive Chairman of McDan Group, Dr Daniel Mckorley is making a strong case for more Africans to own the logistics and shipping space.

He believes that this is one of the surest ways to aid intra-African trade and deal with some of the challenges that most African firms face when it comes to moving goods in the region.

He noted that “The practice where products and goods from the region have to be first shipped outside the region and brought back has to stop.”

Dr Mckorley added that financial institutions and the government must also work to give meaning to this proposal.

Dr Daniel Mckorley said this when he joined other panellists, including Banking Chiefs and CEOs of some Multinational Groups at the AFREXIM Bank side discussions in the Bahamas, looking at how to improve Intra- African trade, with the look at the Africa Trade Gateway.

AFREXIM Bank and the Africa Trade Gateway

The Africa Trade Gateway is a dynamic digital trade ecosystem for commercial banks and their trading platforms. It’s one of the initiatives put together by the African Export and Import Bank to aid trade in the region.

It offers what can be described as a B2B marketplace for customers to transact more and generate more income.

McDan Group Chairman on AfCFTA and Trade on the continent

The Group Chairman of McDan Group maintained that “It is not fair that, when I produce in Africa, the product has to go Europe, before coming to a country like Senegal, that is not fair and it has to change.”

“This is increasing my cost as a producer and someone in the logistics space” the Group Chairman of McDan Group added.

“Whoever controls the sea, controls the business, and if we don’t have connectivity in Africa, that becomes a big challenge for all of us”he lamented.

Dr Mckorley highlighted how platforms like Africa Trade Gateway have helped in making payments in his local currency across the continent, and said the necessary support should be given to AFREXIM in terms of the support that they are giving to a lot of African businesses.

He maintained that “The African Free Trade Area deal, or call it AfCFTA, has helped him a lot in terms of doing business in Africa.

“It is now more stressful to do because in Africa, even though a lot of work still needs to be done,” the Chairman of McDan Group added.

Source: MyJoyOnline


April 10, 2024
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In what was a fruitful high-level meeting to promote bilateral trade and investment, Maltese High Commissioner to Ghana, Jean-Claude Galea Mallia, and Executive Chairman of McDan Group, Dr. Daniel McKorley, provided joint recommendations on how to strengthen the commercial relationship between Ghana and Malta.

The two parties, who took this significant collaborative step on April 4th, 2024, at the Maltese High Commission, explored ways to enhance cooperation on trade, education, and investment opportunities between the two countries.

The meeting, which marks a historic moment in using Ghana and Malta as the gateways to their respective continental blocks in areas of free trade, ICT, Aviation, and Marine Logistics, opened up tremendous untapped potential that both countries can explore and exploit in sectors such as trade, agriculture and fisheries, financial services, tourism and culture, climate change, environment, and pharmaceuticals sectors, among others.

Dr. McKorley, Executive Chairman of McDan Group, expressed gratitude for Malta’s contributions to Ghana’s economy, community development projects, and charitable causes, and emphasized Ghana’s importance as one of Malta’s key partner countries. He also expressed his belief that the cooperation would create opportunities for young people in Ghana in the areas of education, training, and upscaling.

As part of this partnership and collaboration, McDan Group is already doing business with three (3) Maltese companies, one of which is Hatua OnPoint, a provider of finance and business software management solutions to support young ambitious entrepreneurs and innovative start-ups in Ghana.

Speaking on what this means to Malta, High Commissioner Jean-Claude Galea Mallia, who conveyed warm greetings from the Maltese people and government, reiterated his commitment to promoting friendly exchanges and pragmatic cooperation between the two countries, especially in niche sectors such as healthcare, medicines, and aquaculture.

The deliberation also served as a befitting platform for the two parties to discuss the latest advancements, discoveries, and technologies in Salt and Marine chemicals, paving the way for future innovations and collaborations.

This meeting only adds to the opportunities that would foster political, economic, cultural, and trade exchanges in Malta-Ghana relations, which have always been warm and friendly, rooted in shared values and a solid foundation.

 


March 28, 2024

The Founder and Chairman of the McDan Group, Daniel McKorley, has been adjudged Greatest Entrepreneur of All Time at the 14th edition of the Ghana Entrepreneur and Corporate Executive Awards.

The award was in recognition of his visionary and innovative leadership work in the establishment of McDan Group, a Ghanaian conglomerate that delivers a broad spectrum of services in shipping and logistics, oil and gas, aviation construction, salt mining, agribusiness, agro-processing and private security services in Ghana with global offices in Sierra Leone, Liberia, Equatorial Guinea, China,UK and the USA.

Event 

The event which was held in Accra on the theme: “Promoting Digital Entrepreneurship as a tool for sustainable Digital Economic Development”.

It was organised by the Entrepreneurs Foundation of Ghana to celebrate and honour successful entrepreneurs, business executives and public service chief executives who have made significant and positive impact on the economy, sustained business performance and demonstrated outstanding leadership and significant business success in their respective fields over the past years.

About 36 individuals were honoured during the night.

Appreciation 

Mr McKorley after receiving the award commended the organisers for recognising his effort and also expressed his appreciation for the recognition he received for his work.

He said the award might be in his name but the true winners were all the dedicated employees who worked day-in and day-out to make the company one of the most recognisable brands in Africa.

The business mogul said the McDan team always aimed to work as a family and had a united focus on business goals, which enabled them to work with higher expectations.

Source : Graphic Business


March 27, 2024

By Opesika Tetteh Puplampu

Accra, March 27 GNA – Dr Daniel McKorley, the Founder and Chairman of the McDan Group of Companies, Wednesday said putting women at the top management of his companies is not just for equity purposes.

Dr McKorley said he cherished women and put them in managerial positions because they had more potential for business development.

“Empowering women to lead in business isn’t just about equality, it’s about unlocking the full potential for the growth of our economy and society,” he said.

Speaking at the Women Business Dialogue, he said, he had been strong and hardly bowed to failure because of the training and the courage planted in him by his late mother and that courage had lived in him till today.

The economy could not achieve any meaningful growth when women, who constituted over 50.7 per cent of the country’s population, were not empowered in the business world, indicating that no country globally could make it when half of its population was left on the sidelines.

“Our economy cannot thrive when women are not given a seat at the table. I’m sure that in looking at how to promote entrepreneurship and drive exclusive economic growth and jobs, there is no better place to start than with women,” he added.

He acknowledged females as the next global key drivers of entrepreneurship, adding that there were more women entrepreneurs in Ghana than men.

Dr McKorley explained that “the woman selling ‘Kaklo’ on the street, who has 10 or five children, feeding them together with her husband, is more of an entrepreneur than a banker sitting at a desk.”

He said about 90 per cent of the 1,200 women in Ada paid back an interest-free loan of GHs3 million he gave out, a gesture, which showed how honest they were at their businesses.

In a Harvard Business Review article, it was revealed that women-owned firms in the private sector represented approximately 37 per cent of global enterprises.

He said the percentage was rising, and those firms spanned new fashion houses to visionary high-tech businesses.

To encourage more women to embark on the entrepreneurial journey, Ghana must focus on improving their financial literacy skills by empowering them with the knowledge and understanding of financial management, accessing start-up funding, and making informed financial decisions, he said.

Dr McKorley encouraged women not to shy away from taking on risks in business, such as accessing funding opportunities, as start-up funds played a vital role in fueling work growth, so women should step out of their comfort zones and seize opportunities that may require taking calculated risks.

He called for mentorship and networking programmes for women, both formal and informal, to connect experienced businesswomen with aspiring entrepreneurs, to create a strong support system as guidance and solidarity for navigating the challenges they may face in their businesses.

Dr McKorley urged banks and financial institutions to create dedicated funds or grant programmes to support women entrepreneurs, as the provision of access to capital could be a game-changer to ensure that women had the needed financial resources to start and grow their businesses.

He called on the Government to formulate policies that promoted gender equality in business to benefit society and challenged women to break free from self-limiting beliefs and be confident for success.

Empowering women to be at the forefront of the business world was not only essential for their personal and professional growth but also for the country’s economic development.

Source : GNA

 


January 15, 2024
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The Group Chairman of McDan Group of Companies, Dr. Daniel Mckorley, has received the Chartered Institute of Supply Chain Management (CISCM) Man of the Year 2023 Award.

The award was conferred on him for winning two prestigious awards at the CISCM Recognition and Dinner Night held on January 13, 2024.

CISCM has recognized the McDan Group as the Best Organization for Projects and the Best Organization for International Trade.

The McDan Group was acknowledged as an organization that has in place an effective Project Management system that applies standard PM principles and practices in executing projects (programs) addressing implementation challenges.

Evidence shows the project’s functional activities and the project outcomes positively impact the strategic objectives of the organization, positively impact the society in which the organization operates, engage in sound and ethical processes, use improved or innovative practices in the process, and employ a sound sustainable relationship approach as a tool in the process. The project employs a sound sustainable relationship approach as a tool in the process.

Also, the Group was awarded as an organization that has effectively developed goods and services locally and operated in Ghana fully and exported globally.

Given these feats, the Chairman of the McDan Group, Dr. Daniel Mckorley, was crowned as the Best Integrated Supply Chain Management Personality of the Year 2023.

A citation in his honour reads: “After intrinsic research and analytical evaluation of your immense contribution to the growth and development of the McDan Group of Companies and Ghana at large, through the application of all CISCM’S Value Streams in your Operations, the Council of the Chartered Institute of Supply Chain Management, (CISCM) in recognition of same has the pleasure to confer on you CISCM Man of The Year, 2023. We trust that you will accept this recognition and commit to collaborate with CISCM to propagate and mainstream the adoption and use of integrated Supply Chain Management principles and practices; to support the agenda of promoting effective, inclusive and sustainable socio-economic growth and development in Ghana.”

In his acceptance speech, Dr. Daniel Mckorley said, right from step one of his journey in Supply Chain operations, he knew he was going to become an “icon of excellence.”

He said the CISCM has indeed added additional value to McDan Group’s strides with the awards and recognition.

Dr. Daniel Mckorley noted that the maiden edition of the CISCM Awards means a lot to the Group and averred that integrated supply chain management is the key to its development.

“We shall continue to partner with CISCM to grow. As a CISCM Man of the Year, I will continue to push for the adoption of the integrated supply chain agenda.”


October 26, 2022

Chief Executive Officer of McDan Group of Companies, Daniel Mckorley, has urged entrepreneurs in the country to be resilient and take advantage of the current macro-economic conditions to build a solid foundation that can propel their businesses to transcend the country’s borders, by leveraging on the Africa Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA).

According to him, just as businesses were able to innovate and adopt technology to survive the shocks of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, similar tenacity is required from entrepreneurs in these trying times to survive but, this time around, the ability to look beyond the borders of this country should be their target.

He added that the hardship being experienced now does not spell all doom or gloom, but rather key attention must be paid to the significant level of ease of mobility that has been restored through technology.

“As I always say, in adversities like these real leaders emerge; stronger and more resilient countries are seen; and able countries take advantage to become the new economic force. And similarly, it is in times of adversities like this that innovative entrepreneurs emerge and become the world’s new game-changers.

It is not all doom and gloom; this is the time when Ghanaian entrepreneurs must take advantage of what is happening and launch products that will penetrate the AfCFTA. This is because it is in times like these that we see stronger businesses, and I believe this is the opportunity for vibrant, strong, young entrepreneurs to get ready and lead the fourth industrial revolution,” he said.

Dr. Mckorley further mentioned that his organisation is committed to promoting trade in the sub-region and has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the AfCFTA secretariat to provide logistics support for easy mobility of goods and services.

“My company’s partnership with AfCFTA will be a critical contributor to the transformation we want to see on the African continent. The agreement will spearhead industrial transformation and economic development, boost intra-Africa trade, and create employment.

“All businesses looking at exporting cargo should note the McDan Group of companies is here to facilitate that trade and bring growth to the economies of Africa,” he said.

He mentioned that unless the goods are able to move from one country to another, all the boardroom discussions and MoUs signed will be meaningless; hence, entrepreneurs must take advantage of the transportation logistics that his outfit is providing to ensure their goods reach all countries on the continent.

He made these remarks at the Ghana Economic Forum (GEF) 2022 – an annual event organised by the B&FT – on the theme ‘Building a robust and resilient economy through technology, finance, investment, trade and entrepreneurship’.

The AfCFTA secretariat has adopted a special instrument described as the Guided Trade Initiative (GTI), which has set the ball rolling for commercial trading to commence for the first seven countries to have met all requirements and expressed strong readiness.

Ghana is one of the first seven countries to start trading under this arrangement, and the McDan CEO believes that if entrepreneurs are able to think beyond the borders and take advantage of available logistical support they could be lead beneficiaries of the continental trade area.

 

Source: https://www.ghanaweb.com/


October 10, 2022
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The Minister of Trade and Industry, Alan Kyerematen has lauded a leading Ghanaian logistics company, McDan Group, for successfully signing an agreement with African Continental Free Trade Area secretariat to facilitate the haulage of goods under the African Continental Free Trade Area.

The agreement which was signed on Friday, 7th October, 2022 was announced at the launch of the AfCFTA Guided Trade Initiative at the McDan Private Jet lounge at the Kotoka International airport in Accra.

Speaking at the event, the Trade Minister commended the efforts of the Chief Executive of McDan Group, Daniel McKorley for his initiative to facilitate the transportation of goods under AfCFTA and also called on other entrepreneurs to follow suit.

“I want to end on this note by celebrating one entrepreneur in Ghana, McDan who is signing an agreement with AfCFTA to invest in cargo planes and sea freight vessel to support trading under AfCFTA. Without sea freight, air cargo, this is not going to work”.

“I think this should be a call to other entrepreneurs across the continent to start looking at investing in the logistics services”, he added.

The launch of AfCFTA marks the beginning of commercial trade between eight countries and is operating on a pilot basis. The countries include, Ghana, Kenya, Rwanda, Tunisia, Tanzania, Egypt and Mauritius.

Already, Ghana has issued a certificate of trading to Keda Ceramics Company Limited, a tiles manufacturing company located at Shama in the Western Region to export products to Cameroun.

Also, Benso oil Palm Plantation (BOPP), a palm kernel oil production company in the Western Region is expected to export palm kernel oil to Kenya.

On the other hand, Ghana has received a consignment of coffee products from Rwanda all under the AfCFTA guided trade initiative.

 

Source: https://www.myjoyonline.com/


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