The Minister for Youth Development and Empowerment, Hon. George Opare Addo, has reiterated the Mahama administration’s commitment to supporting young Ghanaians with practical ideas that can be nurtured into projects of national interest.
Speaking at the National Youth Forum held at the UPSA Auditorium in Accra, the Minister noted that recent Ghana Statistical Service data indicates young people make up 60 percent of the nation’s population.
Consequently, he emphasised that youth must play a central role in national development and encouraged them to actively speak out on key national issues rather than merely praising government performance.
Through its various agencies, the ministry aims to expand equal opportunities to empower young citizens to shape the future of the country.
At the same event, the Chief Executive Officer of the Youth Employment Authority (YEA), Mr. Malik Basintale, highlighted significant growth in the authority’s reach, reporting that YEA has now recruited over 90,000 young people into various institutions nationwide.
This marks a substantial increase from the approximately 15,000 beneficiaries enrolled when he assumed office, which he attributed to the administration’s focus on youth-centered policies.
Looking ahead, YEA plans to collaborate with the 24-Hour Economy Secretariat to launch new initiatives designed to onboard even more young Ghanaians onto the YEA portal.
Furthering efforts to build capacity, the Director General of the National Service Scheme, Ruth Dela Seddoh, announced a new Memorandum of Understanding with Ohio University in the United States.
This partnership will offer capacity-building and professional development opportunities to help service personnel gain practical skills for the job market, aligning directly with the government’s broader agenda to reset youth-focused policies.
Additionally, the Secretariat plans to make agriculture more attractive to young graduates by offering special incentives to those who choose to undertake their service in the agricultural sector.
By: Rainbowradioonline.com/Ghana
