Segment: From School Founder to Philanthropist: Expanding Access to Quality Education in Ghana

"None of us are successful by our own intelligence and hard work. We are successful because of what society has given to us, and it's imperative that we give back."

These powerful words from a prominent international school founder in Ghana encapsulate the transformative journey shared in this episode. Having educated hundreds of students who've gone on to elite institutions like MIT, Brown, Columbia, and prestigious companies including Microsoft and Goldman Sachs, he could easily rest on his accomplishments. Instead, his 60th birthday marked the beginning of an ambitious new chapter.

The Child Civil Education Foundation represents his commitment to extend quality education beyond the walls of his successful school to reach underprivileged children throughout Ghana. With a substantial personal investment and a laser focus on teacher development in public and low-fee private schools, this initiative tackles the fundamental challenges facing Ghana's education system. The conversation explores why basic education has been neglected, revealing how public schools have deteriorated to the point where even teachers don't enroll their own children – yet these institutions serve the country's most vulnerable populations.

Drawing inspiration from Bill Gates' philosophy of not wanting to "die rich," this educator challenges successful Africans to reciprocate the goodwill they've received from global philanthropists. His insights on working alongside his spouse, balancing motivation with discipline, and addressing systemic educational inequality provide a blueprint for meaningful impact. Whether you're passionate about education, philanthropy, or creating lasting change in developing nations, this conversation offers both inspiration and practical wisdom for making a difference where it matters most.

Ready to explore how quality education can transform lives and communities? Listen now and discover how one person's commitment to "not die rich" is creating pathways to success for countless children across Ghana.

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Host: https://www.instagram.com/derrick.abaitey/

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
to the school that my wife and I founded, Even though
, you know, having educatedhundreds of students that have
gone to the world's best schools.
I see students have gone to MIT, they've gone to Brown, they've
gone to Columbia, they are atJohns Hopkins, they are at
Cornell, they are at UPenn, Rice, all over the place, Cambridge,

(00:24):
UCL, Stalin, all over Ashesi,KNUSD, Legon, and they are
working at Microsoft, GoldmanSachs, Bloomberg, you know
Doctors, you know Confanoche,all over the place, Big

(00:45):
engineering firms around theworld.
So I can sit back and say, ohboy, I have done so well.
The school has created, youknow so many, you know, has
developed so many people, hasdeveloped so many people.

(01:06):
But, Derek, if you live inGhana and you run even a school
like ICS, you cannot live in abubble.
The country is vast and thereare so many children that don't
have the opportunity thatchildren in ICS have.
And that is why, at my 60thbirthday recently, I decided I

(01:28):
would set up a foundation that Icalled Child Civil Education
Foundation, and the purposereally behind this whole thing
is to extend my legacy beyondthe walls of ICS and to extend

(01:49):
the kind of quality, goodeducation that children from ICS
I mean children at ICS aregetting to as many children in
Ghana as possible.
So the focus of the foundationis going to be on developing
teachers in public schools andlow-fee private schools,

(02:12):
training teachers in bestpractices so that the children
that they educate can also havebest experience, succeed and
thrive, succeed and thrive.
The foundation will invest insome scholarships.
You know, for some students thefoundation will invest in some

(02:34):
light infrastructure improvementlike if there was a ceiling or
roofing issue or floor issue,tables and chairs, uniforms,
learning materials, but more thefocus will be on teacher
development, because that iswhere we think we can impact
more children.
I am committed to devote asubstantial portion of my

(03:01):
personal net worth towards thefoundation and I just started
recently with over 1.5 millioncities, with a goal of adding
and growing it in the next fiveto seven years to close to a
million dollars, myself and anumber of people that have
expressed interest that when youget going, please call on us.

(03:25):
We want to partner with youBecause I believe Derek recently
, if you heard Bill Gatesannounce that in the next 20
years he will give away 90% ofhis 200 billion away, and I
think those of us in Africa thathave been recipients of such

(03:53):
goodwill From people like Gatesand other foundations from
around the world, if we havebeen blessed, if we are
resourceful, we should considergiving back in a meaningful way,
because, you know, none of usare successful by our own
intelligence and hard work.

(04:14):
We are successful because ofwhat society has given to us and
it's imperative that we giveback.
And I like what Bill Gates saidI don't want to die rich, and
that was a powerful thing to meand I have resolved I don't want
to die rich, whatever littlethat I have.
I want to die giving that.

(04:37):
What I have, I'll give to myfamily, I'll give to my church,
I'll give to other people thatare needy, but I was going to be
very deliberate and intentionalin giving to society as a way
of enriching those that arecurrently not within my reach as
far as the school is concerned.

(04:57):
So I want to be remembered assomebody who came from the
States.
You know, built great schools,impacted so many children within
the walls of ICS, extended hisreach to many children in Ghana
through the foundation that hecreated, and because of that,
many children in Ghana have hadquality education and a great

(05:22):
future.

Speaker 2 (05:23):
I think you've done fantastic.
In a previous interview which Iwatched, you said that you know
there are potential issues withthe current government
education.
As a matter of fact, I thinkthe words were the education

(05:44):
system is almost broken.
You're educating people.
You've done fantastic with whatyou're doing with your school.
What do you think needs fixingin our government education
system to align with what a lotof private schools are doing and
what actually makes people pushtheir kids into private schools

(06:05):
rather than government schools?

Speaker 1 (06:08):
Well, you know, I think we know the problems are
many, but one area that I thinkgovernment over the years have
neglected is the basic level.
I mean, if you've driven aroundtown and seen basic public

(06:30):
schools, the buildings some arefalling apart the paintings, the
classrooms, potholes in theclassrooms teachers' motivation
is way low.
I have discovered in myinteraction with public school
teachers.
Most of them don't trust thesystem enough to put their own

(06:54):
children there.
So how do you expect?
And so the public schools endsup being patronized by the very,
very poor who can't afford totake their kids even to the
low-fee private schools.
And, derek, the sad part isthis People from poor homes are

(07:18):
the ones that need the best ofeducation, because education is
the best equalizer.
If we want to create a countrywhere everybody has a chance to
succeed and not just a few of usto succeed and not just a few

(07:40):
of us, then those that are Icall it trapped in the public
school system really need moreopportunities than those that
are from middle-class families,because for a lot of us, to be
honest with you, even if youwent to the public school, you
still figure a way, you know, toget to where you want to be or
you have some backing People inthe public schools.

(08:01):
They have no backing.
And so if you have a governmentthat really cares and I know
the government over the yearshave done their best the high
school system and all of thatand training teachers.
But they need to pay attentionto the basic schools and teacher

(08:22):
development.
But I think it's also not justgovernment, it's also people in
the public school system, theteachers.
They need to understand that weare all in this together and
that every Ghanaian teacher oreducator must endeavor to

(08:44):
contribute his or her quota tohelping these poor children come
along.
We should not give up on them,we should not believe in them,
and you know a lot of teachersgo to school, they put their
bags and then they're out.
We are contributing to a systemthat is broken.
And you know what?

(09:04):
Because private schools havestepped in.
You go elsewhere in the world,when there's a new community,
the government will go and builda public school, but for so
many years in Ghana, privatepeople have just stepped in.
So in middle classneighborhoods they will start a
school.
The government has known how todo that for so many, many years

(09:29):
, and the ones that were createdmany years ago.
They're also not taken care of.
So I think that this currentgovernment and governments that
will come in the future reallyneed to pay attention to the
business school.

Speaker 2 (09:49):
Doc, you've had relations with previous you know
ministers of education.
You've had conversations,you've sat on panels where these
conversations have been goingon.
You know what are they tryingto do about it.

Speaker 1 (10:02):
I think the system is .
I mean the problem is muchdeeper than that.
I think the system is.
I mean the problem is muchdeeper than that.
I think that leadership, fromwhat I know in Ghana, is really
what the president decides.
Really, the minister may haveall his ideas about what he can
do the previous, the form, Imean the current but it is what

(10:25):
the government the president andhis government wants to do With
all your ideas.
If the president says that'snot part of my vision, it won't
happen.
But yeah, we've tried, I'vesupported in so many ways and
I'm still trying to support, butthe government has to see that
we need to touch the foundationlevel.

(10:46):
You can't have even a greathigh school when the basic is
weak.
You can't build asuperstructure on a foundation
that is shaky, and that issomething I think that we don't
see and the government needs tosee that.

Speaker 2 (11:03):
What's one thing you like about working with your
wife in one business?

Speaker 1 (11:09):
The one thing that I would say is that she is the
only person that usually has theboldness to tell you what you
are doing.
That is not right.
So that's a positive right.
So because even your topleadership may see sometimes,

(11:32):
you know, usually at meetings,they will share things that are
not going well, and in ICS wereally respect the views of
everybody.
But when it comes to somepersonal issues, things that you
said, things that you said,things that you did that people
are afraid to talk about, ittakes your spouse to say this,

(11:57):
you didn't say it.
Well, you know, and, and that Ivalue, you know, uh, from
working with my, my wife thankyou.

Speaker 2 (12:05):
Is there anything we could have spoken about that we
haven't?
That you still think we canhave a quick chat about?

Speaker 1 (12:10):
No, I think we've covered quite a lot.
We've covered quite a lot, butI really commend you, derek, for
what you are doing to reallyshape the minds of young people
and for the entire Ghanaianentrepreneurial you know
community.
We need to be having these kindof conversations to build each

(12:33):
other up and to support eachother to grow in this laudable
journey of business, and so Icommend you for doing this and
doing it in a manner that iskind of selfless.
Thank you.

Speaker 2 (12:50):
Thank you so much.
Our question is motivation ordiscipline, both Okay.

Speaker 1 (13:00):
You need to be disciplined, and I've talked
about some of the things,whether it's fiscal discipline,
paying your debt, getting up anddoing what you have to do, and
discipline is I like the Nikeslogan just do it.
Just do it.

(13:21):
Don't wait Tomorrow, don't push, but just have the discipline
to do what you have to do.
So it's important, but we canbe motivated also, you know.
So things like what you'redoing helps people, because life
can be tough.
You know, sometimes you maywant to do all that you want to

(13:41):
do.

Speaker 2 (13:47):
You may have all the discipline, but some urging,
some, you know, can be helping.
Connected Minds Podcast.