Finance Minister Ken Ofori-Atta has announced that the Nation Builders’ Corps (NABCO) will be phased out by September this year.
He has therefore advised beneficiaries to take advantage of the YouStart initiative.
Delivering the mid-year budget review, the Minister said ”Mr. Speaker, our iconic National Builder’s Corps (NaBCo) programme, which was initially to run for three years and extended for an additional year, will be completed by 1st September, 2022.
The Programme- which engaged a 100,000 young graduates, has prepared thousands of them for the world of work. So far we have invested approximately GH¢2.2 billion. As they exit, the current cohort on the programme are encouraged to take advantage of the YouStart initiative and other existing programmes in our drive to Build an Entrepreneurial Nation.
He explained that ”government’s policy is to support dynamic young entrepreneurs access training and funds to build their businesses and become a significant pool of job providers for their fellow young people.
We, however, recognise that our post-COVID economic recovery has been uneven and risks remain high.
According to the IMF, the global outlook is grim and has darkened significantly, and global uncertainty is exceptionally high, and 2023 is even more uncertain. However, in the 2022 Budget, we committed ourselves to chart a course towards growth and fiscal sustainability and this Mid-Year Fiscal Policy Review reasserts that commitment. ”
He further revealed that “Mr. Speaker, since March 2022 we have successfully piloted the ‘YouStart’ programme. Over 70 participants across the country went through a two-week mandatory training to equip them with the requisite skills in entrepreneurship, financial management, good corporate governance, marketing and customer service, among others.
Mr. Speaker, a total amount of GH¢ 1.98 million was disbursed under the pilot to 46 individuals and 8 Associations/Groups (with membership of between 6 and 45) based on specific needs to enable them scale up their businesses and contribute to the job creation agenda of Government.”
About NABCO
The Nation Builders Corps (NABCO) programme is a government initiative to address graduate unemployment to solve social problems. The focus of the initiative will be solving public service delivery in health, education, agriculture, technology, governance and drive revenue mobilization and collection.
This new scheme recognizes the role played by other pathways that currently exist under various government institutions and agencies. In a sense, NABCO ultimately offers a convergence for the employment initiatives landscape.
Among the existing Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) with schemes addressed to youth unemployment include: the Ministry for Business Development, Ministry for Local Government and Rural Administration, the National Vocational and Technical Institute (NVTI), Council for Technical and Vocational Education and Training (COTVET), the National Youth Authority (NYA), and the Youth Employment Agency (YEA), and the National Entrepreneurship and Innovation Plan (NEIP) to cite some examples.
In particular, the YEA has affected, positively, the lives of many non-tertiary graduates through the innovative modules that have continued to engage lots of young people. In the case of the NABCO, the distinguishing element would be its concentration on addressing the growing phenomenon of unemployment and disillusionment among young people leaving tertiary institutions.
By: Rainbowradioonline.com/Ghana
