New Patriotic Party (NPP) flagbearer Dr Mahamudu Bawumia has renewed his call for Ghana to create more economic opportunities for young people, arguing that the country’s youthful population must be given the space and resources to build sustainable livelihoods.
In a message to mark International Youth Day, Dr Bawumia said young Ghanaians, despite differences in their circumstances, shared common aspirations, including securing decent jobs, starting businesses, living with dignity and having greater control over their futures.
“Different contexts, common aspirations and a shared belief that Ghana can be a place where young people build the future they want,” he said.
Dr Bawumia described the country’s youthful population as one of its greatest assets, citing the talent, determination and ambition demonstrated by young people across various sectors.
He said policymakers had a responsibility to create an economic environment where those qualities could be translated into productive activity and meaningful contributions to national development.
His comments come amid longstanding concerns over youth unemployment, limited access to finance and the difficulties faced by young entrepreneurs in starting and sustaining businesses.
During his tenure as Vice-President, Dr Bawumia advocated an approach to youth employment that combined conventional job creation with entrepreneurship, technical training and digital skills.
One of the flagship initiatives associated with the previous Akufo-Addo-Bawumia administration was YouStart, which was established to provide funding and technical support to young people and youth-led businesses.
The Ghana Enterprises Agency says the programme was designed to help young people and youth-led businesses start, build and expand their enterprises, with the broader goal of creating jobs and promoting innovation.
In November 2023, Dr Bawumia announced at the YouStart Grant Expo that government had allocated GH¢100 million for grants and training for thousands of predominantly youth-led start-ups and micro, small and medium-sized enterprises.
He said the initiative was intended to develop a critical mass of young entrepreneurs who could leverage Ghana’s youthful population to drive economic empowerment and development.
Another intervention introduced during his tenure was the Business and Employment Assistance Programme (BEAP), launched through the Youth Employment Agency (YEA) in December 2023.
The programme was expected to support 10,000 small and medium-sized enterprises and create employment opportunities for 20,000 young people.
It was also designed to assist businesses affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, including through salary support of up to GH¢500 per employee for one year.
At the launch, Dr Bawumia described the youth as Ghana’s “greatest resource” and stressed the need to position them to contribute significantly to the economy.
The YEA also implemented programmes covering areas such as community health, community policing, ICT, entrepreneurship and technical skills.
Through collaborations with the Ghana TVET system and the Energy Commission, thousands of artisans, including plumbers, tilers, masons, electricians, carpenters and fabricators, were trained and provided with certification and tools to support self-employment.
Dr Bawumia also pushed digital skills as an increasingly important route into employment, particularly as Ghana and other economies adapt to the Fourth Industrial Revolution.
In August 2024, he announced a government target to train one million young people in digital proficiency, arguing that digital competence would become increasingly important for participation in the modern economy.
He pointed to initiatives such as the distribution of 1.3 million free computer tablets to senior high school students and the expansion of connectivity under the Ghana Rural Telephony and Digital Inclusion Project as part of efforts to widen access to digital opportunities.
His youth-focused agenda also extended to universities, where he supported initiatives aimed at turning young innovators and students into entrepreneurs.
In 2021, he helped launch the University of Ghana Innovation and Entrepreneurship Programme (UGIEP), which sought to strengthen entrepreneurship and innovation among students and young entrepreneurs.
The programme included a start-up challenge, incubator, venture accelerator, venture fund and an alumni angel investor network, with a $100,000 start-up component intended to provide funding and coaching to young entrepreneurs in partnership with the Global Entrepreneurship Network.
Dr Bawumia also launched the Kayayie Empowerment Programme in May 2024, targeting 5,000 head porters with vocational and entrepreneurial training.
The programme provided training in areas including baking and beading, as well as financial management, personal healthcare and entrepreneurship, with the aim of helping participants develop alternative sources of livelihood.
While these interventions were intended to address different aspects of youth unemployment, the broader challenge of creating sufficient and sustainable economic opportunities remains.
Ghana continues to face pressure to absorb large numbers of young people entering the labour market, while businesses and aspiring entrepreneurs grapple with access to finance, skills, infrastructure and other constraints.
Dr Bawumia’s latest message therefore places the focus not only on employment, but on the wider economic conditions required for young people to thrive.
He said Ghana must create an environment in which young people can secure decent work, build businesses and achieve a stable future.
The approach represents a shift from viewing young Ghanaians primarily as job seekers to recognising them as potential entrepreneurs, innovators, skilled professionals and employers.
For Ghana, the ability to translate its youthful population into productive economic participation could prove critical to determining whether its demographic growth becomes a source of economic opportunity or intensifies pressure on jobs, businesses and household incomes.
