Business leader and philanthropist Kafui Prebbie, the Group CEO of the PREBBiE Group, marked his 50th birthday with the launch of an ambitious new initiative aimed at transforming lives across Africa. 

The milestone celebration took place during the CEO’s Breakfast Forum, a high-level convening of distinguished CEOs, policymakers, innovators and changemakers under the theme “Leading with Impact: The Next Chapter of Innovation and Sustainability.”

Organised by The Implementers, the project management firm for the Café Prebi Foundation, the forum served as a platform for sharing transformative ideas on leadership, sustainable growth and societal impact in a rapidly changing world.

Speaking at the event on Tuesday, August 12, 2025, Blessing Okam, Communication and Engagement Manager at The Implementers, explained that the gathering was born out of Prebbie’s long-standing commitment to supporting underprivileged communities. 

“Over the last years, Café Prebi, through his foundation, has been taking care of children from three homes Nyamidia, Rafiki, and Mayfe. 

“This year, he’s expanding the support to two more homes, providing healthcare, education, TVET training, and seed capital for aspiring entrepreneurs,” she said.

The foundation is also introducing a targeted empowerment programme for young girls, including a year-long supply of sanitary pads through partnerships with local manufacturers. 

“We want this impact to go beyond Accra. Currently, we are even in Winneba, but the vision is to reach far more communities,” Okam added.

Prof Elsie Effah Kaufmann, Dean of the School of Engineering Sciences and Founding Head of the Department of Biomedical Engineering at the University of Ghana, underscored the importance of understanding leadership beyond titles and positions. 

She stressed that leadership is rooted in vision and service, not self-interest. 

“Holding a position is not the same as leadership.

In fact, you can be a leader of your own life. So, leadership is not about the position. It's about having vision and getting people on board to support that vision, which is bigger than oneself,” she explained. 

According to her, without this understanding, individuals risk making mistakes when given opportunities to lead.

Prof Kaufmann cautioned against the pursuit of leadership roles merely for personal gain, warning that such an approach undermines development. 

“It's not about looking for opportunities to save yourself, to benefit from others. No, it's more of an opportunity to serve others and to make a bigger impact,” she said.

She emphasised the need to spread this knowledge so that leadership is seen as a collective journey toward a greater purpose. 

“If you don't understand this, we will be chasing positions, we'll be chasing for benefits for ourselves, and that will not result in any development for anyone,” she added.