The political agenda of the two major
parties prioritizes the development of the youth in Ghana, and this is well
outlined in their manifestos released in the past few weeks. While the National
Democratic Congress (NDC) released an entire manifesto tailored for youth only,
the NPP on the other hand outlines its promises for the youth in a
cross-cutting manner in various sectors in their manifesto titled “Selfless
Leadership, Bold Solutions for Jobs and Business”.
The manifesto which mentioned the term
“youth” 61 times, laid out a myriad of promises for the youth of the country in
diverse sectors, ultimately geared towards job creation. This article outlines
some of these major promises to the youth and how the NPP intends to empower
this critical voting bloc if elected on December 7.
- Education
Beginning with the educational sector, the
manifesto pledges to recruit more teachers at all levels with improved
conditions, increase student accommodation in all public universities and other
tertiary institutions. The Free SHS/TVET policy is also expected to be enhanced
through the expansion of educational infrastructure to make learning more
effective.
A free tertiary education scholarship will
be introduced for PWDs. These initiatives viewed from the youth perspective,
will eliminate all financial barriers for the youth in accessing higher
education.
Additionally, Ready-for-Work Certifications
in emerging technologies will be incorporated into the education curriculum,
from secondary to tertiary levels.
- Technology
The NPP has promised to train 1 million
young people in various areas and levels of digital skills, by establishing a
National Robotics, Engineering, and AI Lab for research and the local training
of young Ghanaians, provide venture funding and grant support for commercially
viable tech projects by Ghanaian startups, and offer 'live lab' opportunities
to these startups under a Matchmaking Programme. These interventions as stated
in the manifesto, will enable young people to be equipped and empowered in the
tech space and make Ghana the digital hub of Africa.
Additionally, the party plans to create
jobs by setting up a Fintech Fund with $100 million in seed money. This
initiative will attract private sector investment to help Ghanaian start-ups,
including the youth to develop payment and financial services solutions,
particularly those that can be exported beyond the country and West Africa at
large.
- Business
Under business, a Bawumia government would abolish
the electronic transfer levy (E-Levy) and establish an SME Bank to meet the
special financing needs of small and medium businesses, which employ over 80%
of Ghanaians. Ultimately, NPP envisions to build Ghana into a world-class
digital economy through policies, competitive incentives and investments, where
the youth, are the primary focus.
- Health
The promise to provide better healthcare
for all in the health sector, intends to recruit more young healthcare
graduates with improved conditions of service.
The manifesto outlines the establishment of additional sites for drone
services at Funsi and Kintampo which will create job opportunities for the
youth who are in the tech and logistics space.
- Railway Expansion
The party promises to expand the railway
network across the country which will translate to creating more job
opportunities for the youth in the country. The NPP plans to partner with
private sector investors to expand railway network with a focus on the Western
and Eastern lines in the medium term. This will create jobs for youth in
construction.
- Creative Arts and Tourism
The NPP has promised to partner with the
private sector to establish a streaming and digital management platform for
Ghanaian content developers in the creative arts. This will be beneficial to
many of the youth who are into content creation.
Additionally, the party’s proposed Travel
Protocol Service (TPS) for the creative community, will enable artistes,
performers, creatives who are largely youth, to honor international
performances and shows.
- Jobs
Apart from all the job creation avenues
mentioned above, the NPP also seeks to create jobs for artisans and built
environment professionals through reviving and resourcing the public works
department to maintain publish infrastructure.
The party also pledges to recruit more
youth into the security services and create jobs through the minerals industry.
A Youth and Women in Cocoa Programme will be introduced to create jobs for
young people and women in Agric. The existing Enable Youth programme will be
strengthened to take more youth and Persons with disabilities (PWDs) in poultry
farming.
Conclusion
The above are among many other promises the NPP highlighted in its manifesto for the millions of Ghanaian youth. In assessing the manifestos of both the NDC and NPP, one thing is quite clear – the promises and ideas are abundant and easily identifiable, however, from experience, implementation has always been the challenge. Both parties have not been really convincing in proving how different they will be in the next 4 years. This leaves voters with the choice to do the scrutiny and make their decision.
Click on the Download button at the end of the article to access the full NPP manifesto.
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