The National Petroleum Authority (NPA) has praised PETROSOSL Ghana Ltd, a leading oil marketing company (OMC), for its commitment to enhancing the skills of women within its workforce and empowering them to assume leadership positions within the company.
NPA’s Deputy Chief Executive, Linda Boamah Asante conveyed the Authority’s commendation during her address at the Women in Leadership Conference, organized by the PETROSOL Women Network.
This initiative aims to develop the leadership capabilities of female staff and equip them with skills to balance family responsibilities while building successful careers. The conference, held in honour of International Women’s Day, was themed “Investing in Women; Energizing for the Future”.
As the guest of honour for the occasion, Mrs. Asante encouraged the female staff of PETROSOL to leverage the PETROSOL Women Network and other women networks. She underscored the importance of seeking guidance and mentorship from senior women corporate leaders who have achieved success through diligence and ethical conduct.
Mrs. Asante encouraged women to dismiss the notion that they are each other’s adversaries. She highlighted her ongoing mentorship of numerous young career women and pointed out several other senior corporate women leaders who invest their time and energy in mentoring young women in the corporate world.
In a related development, Mrs. Ivy Apea Owusu, the Chief Executive Officer of Cirrus Oil Services Ltd and Board Chairperson of the Chamber of Bulk Oil Distribution Companies (CBOD), commended PETROSOL for its PETROSOL Women Network initiative.
She praised it as a trailblazer for women’s empowerment in the industry. Mrs. Owusu also congratulated the company for winning the Employer of the Year award for Championing Diversity and Inclusion in the energy sector at the 2023 Women in Mining and Energy Awards (WIMEA).
She urged young female executives to strive for excellence and also to be ready to take up roles in the energy sector that are perceived to be the preserve of men since a number of women have excelled in such roles.
She shared her personal experiences of taking up challenging career assignments both in and outside Ghana and having to find ways of combining the demands of the roles with the demands of the family and excelling.
Mrs. Owusu also made a passionate appeal to companies to invest in the wellbeing of their staff, especially the female staff, because some of them go through a lot of psychological challenges which tend to affect their productivity and career growth.
The Chairperson of the occasion, Dr. Mrs. Stella Agyenim-Boateng, Vice Chairman of the Public Services Commission and former Deputy CEO of the Volta River Authority (VRA), commended PETROSOL for its dedicated efforts towards women’s empowerment.
She expressed her delight in learning that 46 percent of PETROSOL’s staff are women, particularly in an industry like energy, which is typically male-dominated. Dr. Agyenim-Boateng encouraged the company to strive towards achieving even higher levels of gender balance, aiming for 50 percent or more female representation.
Dr. Agyenim-Boateng also shared her personal experience working in large organisations in the telecom and energy sectors, where she had to apply diligence and tenacity as well as humility to seek the support of her family, when she needed it, in order to excel in her career. She therefore encouraged participants to aim at excelling in their assigned roles and not to be giving excuses for mediocre performance since the survival of businesses depend on high productivity of staff.
Senior business leaders, including Dr. Gillian Hammah, the Group Chief Marketing Officer of the Databank Group and also the Founder, Fairbanks Consulting; Fatoumata Doro, the Managing Director, Tex Styles Ghana Ltd; and Israel Laryea, Executive Head, Influencer Africa, also shared their experiences with the participants:
The Chief Executive Officer of PETROSOL Ghana Ltd, Michael Bozumbil, expressed his delight at the significant contribution of PETROSOL’s female staff to the company’s growth. He used the occasion to honor 10 outstanding female employees for their exceptional performance. Additionally, the Chief Finance Officer, Lawrencia Himans, was recognized with the Outstanding Female Leadership award.
