By thefourlens.com
Sunyani, December 11, 2023
Alhaji Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia, the Vice President of the Republic has on Monday launched an initiative to pay monthly salaries to 20,000 apprentices across the country.
The initiative dubbed “Business and Employment Assistance Program” by Ghana government under the Youth Employment Agency (YEA) was to support the expansion of small and medium scale enterprises in the country.
Dr. Bawumia explained the program was designed to offer monthly financial assistant to apprentices, labourers and all casual workers in the self employed working environment.
It would support 20,000 youth in 10,000 medium and small scale enterprises and each employee would receive GHC500 monthly salary support, he added.
Dr. Bawumia said the objective was to help the artisans get the requisite skills and abilities to create jobs and business opportunities for themselves and other people so that they can make significant contributions to the development of Ghana
He said the YEA in collaboration with the Ghana TVET Service would train them within 6 Months and beneficiaries would be certified and given the needed tools and equipment to work with.
According to the Vice President, 73 percent of Ghana’s population are youth under 35 years, a situation that calls for critical need for more jobs and employment opportunities for the youth.
Hence, the YEA initiative to support all self-employed citizens to boost the informal sector, he said.
In his remarks, Mr. Ignatius Baffour-Awuah, the Minister for Employment and Labour Relations, and the Member of Parliament for Sunyani West Constituency announced that all required tools and equipment for the program are ready.
He said the 20,000 beneficiaries would be in 10 different trades including aluminum fabrication, fashion, plumbing, tilling P.O.P and hairdressing.
Later in an interview, Mr. Kingsley Owusu Acheampong of Kizo Fashion in Sunyani shared his take on the YEA initiative.
He told thefourlens.com that the program would boost the apprenticeship and artisans drive in the country to subsequently reduce unemployment.
Kizo noted the program is going to eliminate many financial challenges faced by apprentices, most especially the vulnerable youth.
Because, “I’m a witness to many young people who because of transportation and feeding, couldn’t lean their prepared trades and later find themselves in other activities that couldn’t help them and the society in general”.
Kizo benefited from the ‘Youth In Garment and Textile Production’ project to expand his fashion business and now has 20 apprentices.
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