Edward Effah, Kate Quartey Papafio crowned 2013 marketing personalities
The Managing Director of Fidelity Bank Ghana Limited, Mr Edward Effah, has been crowned the Marketing Man of 2013, making him the first head of an indigenous financial institution to win that award.
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The Chief Executive Officer of Reroy Cables, Mrs Kate Quartey Papafio, was also adjudged the Marketing Woman of the Year at the Silver Jubilee edition of the National Marketing Performance Awards, an initiative of the Chartered Institute of Marketing, Ghana (CIMG).
The awards came with citations, plaques and other goodies from sponsors and well-wishers.
Mr Effah and Mrs Papafio replaced Prof Joshua Alabi, the Vice-Chancellor of the University of Professional Studies, Accra (UPSA), and the Chief Executive Officer of Stratcomm Ghana Limited, Ms Esther Cobbah, who, until the awards on Friday night, were respectively the Marketing Man and Woman of the Year 2012.
The two new winners will hold the titles till October next year when another distinguished set of executives in corporate Ghana will be selected and decorated with the honour.
Mrs Papafio was recognised for her hard work, diligence and commitment to duty which led to the establishment and subsequent growth of Reroy Cables from an importer and retailer of cables in the country to a net exporter of the products.
The citation accompanying her award paid glowing tribute to her passion for excellence which inspired her to go into the manufacture of cables, an area that had been dominated by male entrepreneurs.
Her company is celebrated as the only fire-resistant cable manufacturer in the country, an achievement the citation cited as remarkable.
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Believe in the Ghanaian
On the other hand, Mr Effah's foresight and managerial ingenuity as the MD of Fidelity Bank, which he started as a discount house in 1998 before transforming it into a fully fledged bank in 2006, received commendation as his outstanding performance.
An elated Mr Effah, in black suit over a white shirt and a bow tie, accompanied by his 85-year-old mother, his wife and some management staff of Fidelity Bank, went to the podium to collect the coveted prize amid shouts, claps and trumpeting from jubilant awardees and the gathering.
A citation detailing the success story of Fidelity Bank, including its rise from being the 22nd licensed bank in 2006 to the third largest in terms of deposits in 2013, was read at the event.
Prof Alabi decorated Mr Effah as the Marketing Man.
At the event, which was graced by Prof John S. Nabila, the Wulugu Naba and President of the National House of Chiefs, Fidelity Bank was also adjudged the CIMG Bank of the Year, an award its Deputy Managing Director, Mr Jim Reynolds Baiden, led other members of staff to collect.
In his response, Mr Effah dedicated the award to God who, he said, had been the pillar of his life, before turning his attention to his mother, his wife, the management staff of Fidelity and customers of the bank for playing various roles in the success story of his personal life and the bank.
He called for self-belief in the ability of the Ghanaian to do what foreigners were doing in the country, adding that a certain lack of faith in the country had been the bane of indigenous entrepreneurship over the years.
"The awards, to me, are very important because they tell the stories of many successful Ghanaians," he said.
"We began with just a business plan and we have been able to build what was seemingly impossible and the lessons I have learnt are that we need to encourage our youth and Ghanaian entrepreneurs and believe and have hope in ourselves," he said.
Going forward, Mr Effah said, the award would spur him on to continue to do more towards realising his dream that Ghanaians could build a world-class bank when given the chance.
Other awards
The Daily Graphic, which has been in business since 1950, was also celebrated for its brand superiority in corporate Ghana and the media business in particular.
The paper, a daily publication by the Graphic Communications Group Limited, was given that recognition under the CIMG Silver Jubilee Celebrated Brands.
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Under that category, seven other brands, including GTV, were honoured for building brands that had stood the test of time.
In all, 43 awards were given to deserving institutions and individuals for their sterling performances in 2013.
Special awards were also given to Prof J. H. Kwabena Nketia and Mrs Theodosia Salome Okoh in recognition of their respective contributions to the development of music and theatre performance and the designing of the National Flag.
The Head of Marketing and Communications at Stanbic Bank Ghana, Mr Mawuko Afadzinu, and a Senior Client Executive of Nielsen Ghana Limited, Mr Koffi Allagio, were adjudged the Marketing Practitioner and the Marketing Student of the Year, respectively.
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