It is just four months until Ghana’s
General Elections on December 7th and the race to win voters' attention is on. Unlike
countries like Kenya and Nigeria where campaign periods are regulated, Ghana
has a “loose”
electioneering campaign regulatory regime. As a result, political parties
and movements are already undertaking activities to gain the support of the
electorates, particularly the youth.
While past elections in Ghana have had
largely nationalistic campaigns, the country’s current economic situation and
ever-growing youth population has changed the dynamic this time around with
politicians trying much harder to target and get a bigger bite of the youth
voting bloc.
Another basis for the scramble for youth
votes is the fact that young people made up more
than 55% of the 2020 voter register and the 2021
population and housing census shows that this trend is likely to continue.
One of the two major political parties, the
National Democratic Congress (NDC) is already betting big on the youth
population, even going to the extent of outdooring a manifesto solely targeting
the age group.
The party’s outdooring of the Youth
Manifesto held on August 12 at the UPSA auditorium marked the first time in
Ghana’s political history, a major political party launched a solely
youth-focused policy document. The document itemizes the policies and job
opportunities the John Mahama-led NDC intends to implement and create for the
youth if voted into power, come December 7th, 2024.
Here are some of the key takeaways from the
plethora of policies proposed by the party to address the brain-drain and growing
unemployment in Ghana:
- Implementation of a 24-hour Economy Policy,
also known as the Formula 1-3-3
This policy mentioned at the launch promises
to create more job opportunities for young people across diverse sectors of the
economy. Explaining the policy, the party said it will utilize the ‘1-3-3
formula’ where one job will employ 3 people in 3 working shifts. The policy
will aim to create an enabling working environment for private sector and
government services to expand and run on a 24-hour basis. This is expected to
be achieved through granting incentives to employers through the Youth
Employment Agency and abolishing taxes like the E-levy and COVID levy.
- Creation of a new Ministry for Youth
Development
The next NDC government seeks to enhance
political inclusion and welfare of the youth through the creation of a
youth-focused ministry. The Ministry will oversee the development and
implementation of development policies and initiatives that will be geared
towards the economic and social elevation of the country’s young population.
- Enhancing Secondary and Tertiary Education
in Ghana
Under education, the NDC seeks to undertake
a massive transformation of the sector through investing in educational
infrastructure, creating sustainable funding streams for the Free SHS policy
and expanding the policy to cover private schools. Academic fees at the
University will be waived for first year students, while the student loan trust
fund plus will be re-deployed with an increase in the allocated amounts and
prompt disbursements to cater for continuing students. Also, persons with
disabilities will access free tertiary education. Private sector will be
partnered to invest in accommodation for students on tertiary campuses while
Wi-Fi access will be expanded to students at public second-cycle and tertiary
institutions across the country. Also, the Party reiterates in the youth
manifesto, the cancelation of the teacher’s licensure exam and the prompt
posting of teacher and nursing trainees.
- Empower Youth in the Informal Sector
Informal Sector Workers such as commercial
drivers, farmers, fishermen, traders, creatives and artisans will be enrolled
in a specialized pension scheme through the implementation of the “MO-NE-YO”
insurance scheme. Additionally, existing artisan skills will be validated and certified
through relevant TVET institutions.
- Empower Youth in Digital Skills
In the digital skills sector, the NDC
intends to implement the digital economy accelerator, one million coders and
digital jobs initiatives programmes. These programmes are envisioned to
identify and promote businesses of young entrepreneurs; train one million youth
in digital skills; and create 300,000 skilled employment opportunities for young
people to thrive.
- Support Youth in Agriculture and
Agribusiness
Recognising that agriculture is a critical
sector in Ghana’s economy, the NDC promises to revitalize the interest of the
youth in agric and harness the potential of the sector to create jobs for them.
The party says it will achieve this by implementing a “Land and Farm Bank
Project” and establishing farmer service centres across the country to enhance
access to farmlands and inputs for young farmers. Also, agro-processing will be
promoted and a guaranteed marketplace created to complete the agriculture
supply chain.
- Youth Entrepreneurship and Skills
Development
Under this pillar of the NDC’s plan for the
youth, the party proposes a comprehensive credit scoring system for youth
entrepreneurs to improve access to finance. The party also seeks to establish a
microcredit institution with a GHS 750 million seed funding for youth
businesses. “Youth Innovation and Industrial Parks” will also be set up to
scale up SMEs and serve as co-working spaces for young people.
- Youth in Mining
Mining was the third
largest contributor to Ghana’s GDP in 2023 and the NDC intends to cash in
on those gains by anchoring part of its ambitious economic empowerment plans
for the youth on the sector. The party plans to recruit young people in a “Mining
Lands Reclamation” scheme to plant trees and get paid while doing it. Licensing
for artisanal mining will be decentralized in the next NDC government and young
miners will receive support to acquire mining equipment to support their
business.
- Creative Arts and Sports
The NDC says it will partner young
creatives to launch and promote a flagship culture event called “The Black Star
Experience”. This will be aimed at promoting culture and tourism. Funding
avenues will be created to support youth startups in the creative space
financially and logistically. School sporting activities will also be rejuvenated
to identify and nurture local talents to feed the growing sporting industry.
The Party also indicates that it will employ a holistic approach to sports,
expanding government’s focus away from just football to all sporting
disciplines.
- Healthcare
The NDC caps off the youth manifesto with the health sector. Here, the Party promises to reward health workers who accept postings to rural areas with a 5-year work abroad programme. Specialist nursing training programmes will also be decentralized to help young nurses upgrade and advance their careers. A vehicle tax waiver scheme will also be introduced to incentivize health workers. The Party also promises to introduce a formalized health-worker migration framework to address the brain drain in the sector.
Conclusion
These takeaways form the bedrock of the
NDC’s agenda for the youth if voted into office on December 7. The Party’s
youth manifesto is grounded on skills and career development, support systems
and job creation to bridge the country’s youth unemployment gap. However, what
remains to be seen, is how the Party will fund most of these policies in the
face of an IMF programme, a harrowing indebtedness to lenders, and its own
self-imposed promises of expenditure cuts.
This article is part of Penplusbytes' informational series ahead of Ghana's 2024 General Elections, implemented as part of our Voters' Compass project, under the African Elections Project. This is being done in partnership with VoteSwiper and supported with German Federal Foreign Office’s funds by ifa (Institut für Auslandsbeziehungen), zivik Funding Programme.
Follow the 2024 Ghanaian Election on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook on @Ghanaelections.
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