Stakeholders Urge Sustained Investment in Youth to Harness Demographic Dividend
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The Story
Stakeholders are calling for sustained investment in youth skills, reproductive health, and drug-abuse prevention to harness Ghana's demographic dividend. Representatives from the National Youth Authority (NYA), National Population Council (NPC), and Narcotics Control Commission (NACOC) met to examine challenges affecting young people and strategies for building a healthy, skilled, and productive population. William Nortey, a representative of the Regional Director of the NYA, stated that the country's future depends on a healthy and skilled youth population capable of creating employment and contributing to national development. The NYA's National Apprenticeship Programme is being implemented in 24 skill areas to equip young people with employable skills and reduce their dependence on government employment. The first phase of this program, which began in October 2025 and is expected to conclude in September 2026, will provide trainees with start-up kits to establish their own businesses. The NYA is also promoting healthy lifestyles among young people through education on the dangers of substance abuse. Nana Ama Obuobi-Donkor, Acting Greater Accra Regional Population Officer of the NPC, noted that population challenges in the Greater Accra Region require the active involvement of traditional authorities, community leaders, and other stakeholders. Separately, a Scottish teaching union has criticized a proposal by Alan Milburn, advising Andy Burnham's government, that primary schools in England should identify children at risk of unemployment from a young age. The union's General Secretary, Andrea Bradley, described the plan as deeply concerning and potentially stigmatizing, suggesting universal free school meals and reduced class sizes should be prioritized instead. She stated that employability is not the sole purpose of education and schools must focus on all areas of development.
The Spread
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What they agree on
- Stakeholders are urging sustained investment in youth.
- Investment in youth skills and health is seen as for harnessing demographic dividends.
- Addressing unemployment and substance abuse among young people is a stated concern.
Where they split
- The National (Scotland) focuses on a critique of a UK government proposal regarding early identification of at-risk youth in primary schools.
- MyJoyOnline emphasizes Ghana's efforts and calls for investment in youth to leverage its demographic dividend.
- The New Yorker and Religion News Service articles discuss the impact of AI on young people's jobs and social lives, and the distinction between the swastika and the Nazi Hakenkreuz, respectively, which are not central to the other articles' focus.
Source Perspectives
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