Ambassador Amadu on a global platform

Starting business as a teenager is a Herculean task but it was an obsta­cle Chief Executive Officer (CEO) and Chairman of Af­ro-Arab Group, Alhaji Salamu Amadu surmount to become one of the most successful business moguls on the conti­nent and beyond.

The 36-year-old’s success story has not only become an inspiration for many Muslim youth within the Nima-Mam­probi areas but an icon revered across the globe.

With over two decades in business, Alhaji Amadu, leads the Afro- Arab Group con­glomerate which has over 10 subsidiaries with interest in various sectors including im­port and export, real estate, travel and tourism, microfi­nance and sports.

Young Amadu ventured into business at a tender age of 10 with his older brother in what was known as the ‘black market’ business which was handed over to them by their father.

Later after Senior High School (SHS) at Abundant Grace Academy in 2004, he decided to start his own business which birthed the Afro-Arab Group in 2007 as an import and export company for general goods and ser­vices.

It was, however not without challenges as the young entrepreneur had to deal with many people who did not give him a chance to break through in the highly competitive market.

However, with determina­tion and consistency, Alhaji Amadu managed to establish the business and currently is one of the most sought after business personalities in Ghana.

According to him, encour­aging the youth and elderly in the community and the rec­ognition of his contribution to changing lives makes him a satisfied businessman.

Most important to him was the recognition for his resilience after surviving the turbulence of the financial cleanup exercise in 2019 by President Akufo Addo and for­mer President John Dramani Mahama.

“Coming from the Zongo community to build a brand that the most important people in the country would recognise is a success on its own and has been a major in­spiration for me,” he stated.

His immeasurable impact on the lives of the over 100 people employed directly with some provided a land­ed property during the 10th Anniversary celebration of the company means so much to him.

Indirectly, Alhaji Salamu said, over 1,000 people have benefitted from the compa­ny as everything he makes goes back into supporting the community.

For him, his purpose in life is to serve Allah and humanity hence supporting people in education, health, business and other areas.

Going forward, he said, the future looks promising as they focus on building social businesses that will impact on community, not necessarily making money hence coming out with groundbreaking housing policy of allowing Ghanaians to own homes without interest, with a flexi­ble payment plan spread over five years.

That would ensure that poor people secure homes and get value for people as ‘housing is a human right and everyone must have one.’

In view of that, Alhaji Amadu is working towards acquiring the Saglemi Housing Project from the government, refurbish same to make hous­ing accessible to lower-tier Ghanaians.

“I do not think govern­ment must look outside Ghana for people to invest in Saglemi. I have the capacity and wish government would give me the opportunity,” he stated.

Alhaji Amadu’s hard work over the years earned him several awards, notable among them were the 40Un­der40 Africa 2024, the Real Estate Development and Construction Category, Mi­crofinance of the Year, Sports Personality of the Year and Banking and Finance Company of the Year in 2019.

He also earned accolades including a Global Philanthro­pist, One Young World Ambas­sador and Peace Ambassador for African Youth.

Apart from working and impacting the lives of the needy in society, Alhaji loves to spend time with his extended and nuclear family, interact with old friends, play football and attend social activities.

By Michael D. Abayateye