Unemployment is threat to Ghana- Mrs Ansah-Antwi

Accra, Dec. 6, GNA - Mrs Ethel Ansah-Antwi, a management consultant, on Saturday said the proportion of economically active population available for work but could not be employed is a prime threat to democratic Ghana. She said despite the relative success, as a sterling example of democracy in Africa, there is an underlying tension, that of unemployment. "There are a number of Ghanaians who are without jobs or with very low paying jobs, without access to basic services and who depend on the fringes of society for survival, and that is what threatens us as a democratic state," she said.

Mrs Ansah-Atwi said this at the graduation ceremony of the Baobab Academy, in Accra.

The 43 students, who passed out, were trained in entrepreneurship, ICT, Communication skills and other courses that will help them develop their businesses, by expanding their clientele. It had the theme: Addressing the Unemployment Challenges Confronting our Country.

Mrs Ansah-Atwi said the problem of unemployment normally affects the youth between the ages of 15-35, which according to her, accounted for 25 percent of the entire population. She noted that the unemployment challenge was as a result of the fact that there were imbalances between the growth of the youthful population and the state of job creation.

She stressed that the enormity of the problem called for a creative approach in solving the problem, and that this was exactly what the Baobab Academy was doing, by equipping the young ones with the requisite training and know-how to create jobs for themselves.

"I call on the educational institutions to re-orient their training to provide the needed skills and competences to the youth to create their own jobs," she said, adding that, any effort to create jobs by an individual or institution should be applauded. She called on the students to put into full practice the training they acquired.

The Director of the academy, Ms Belinda Dzoloto said the number one cure for unemployment was quality training and relevant education, adding that, this explained why education had been a job provider. She noted that students went to school with the hope that after graduation they would secure a well paid job in the formal or public sector. "Yet the present realities show that Ghana is in a real dilemma, Ghana's graduate unemployment is rising, opportunities in the public sector are increasingly diminishing" she said.

She stated that to overcome the challenges Ghana's educational curricula should be linked to national development goal but wondered if Ghana could be able to provide this type of education. She said most of the people churned out, carry certificates but could not find job and lacked the ability to create jobs for themselves and others.

Ms Dzokoto said it to solve this problem that the Baobab academy developed a special Diploma in Business Study programme that would help students to develop a deep sense of initiative and problem solving aptitudes. Ms Namley Tetteh, a "chop bar" operator and one of the graduates, said she thought her future was bleak but had been transformed as she has acquired good knowledge towards her business. 06 Dec. 10