APA – Accra (Ghana)
The unveiling of the new intervention to facilitate the employment of 20,000 young people as a practical step towards a reduction in youth unemployment is one of the leading stories in the Ghanaian press on Wednesday.
The Graphic reports that a new intervention to facilitate the employment of 20,000 young people as a practical step towards a reduction in youth unemployment has been unveiled in Sunyani, the Bono regional capital.
The Business and Employment Assistance Programme (BEAP), a flagship initiative of the Youth Employment Agency (YEA), will nurture young entrepreneurs and empower them to generate employment opportunities for the large pool of unemployed youth in the country.
It is expected to provide opportunity for 10,000 employers in the micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) sector with the aim to revive MSMEs affected by the global pandemic to re-hire at least two employees they have laid off, employ new ones and provide essential skills for enhanced productivity.
Targeted to benefit young people between 16 and 35 years in all sectors, it is also expected to cushion the impact of the economic difficulties on the country’s most economically active population.
An amount of GH¢120 million allocated to the initiative will be distributed among beneficiary MSMEs, with each expected to engage a maximum of five employees.
Each employee will receive a monthly allowance of GH¢500 as a top-up to their regular wages for a year as a way of offering crucial support for businesses to recover and expand.
The MSMEs will also be connected to the YEA Job Centres and applicants looking for work experience and job opportunities, with recruitment assistance to support beneficiary businesses with the selection of the employees.
The Ghanaian Times reports that until peace is restored to all parts of the African continent, it is unlikely that our struggling economies will be transformed, and poverty and dis-ease may fester as a consequence, Dr Bryan Acheampong, a former Minister of State in charge of National Security, has said.
He said peacebuilding was imperative in Africa as almost all African states required it to achieve positive peace and overall development.
“A significant number of countries on the agenda of the UN Peacebuilding Commission are found in Africa,” Dr Bryan Acheampong, the Minister of Food and Agriculture, stated at the 12th Joint Graduation ceremony of the Kofi Annan International Peacekeeping Training Centre (KAIPTC) in Accra at the weekend.
The joint graduation ceremo¬ny, on the theme: ‘Educating the Next Generation of Peacebuilders in Africa,’ was chaired by Prof. Samuel KwakuBonsu, the Rector of the Ghana Institute of Management and Public Administration (GIMPA).
Some 37 post-graduate students were awarded various degrees in Master of Arts in Gender, Peace, and Security (MGPS), Master of Arts in Conflict,Peace and Security (MCPS), Executive Master of Arts in Conflict, Peace and Security (EMCPS), Weekend Master of Arts in Conflict, Peace and Security (WMCPS), Weekend Master of Arts in Gender, Peace and Security (WMGPS).
Dr Bryan said virtually all parts of the Africa continent, state and societies continued to grapple with extraordinary challenges that were threatening both state and human security.
The newspaper says that the Minister of Food and Agriculture, Mr Bryan Acheampong, has been commended for transforming
Ghana’s agricultural landscape, making significant strides in innovation and development.
He has also been commended for bringing changes in the celebration of this year’s National Farmers Day.
Mr George Kwarteng, a farmer from the Eastern Region, in an interview said, “Generally speaking, the five-day celebration of our able farmers was a success, although the dynamics of the celebration were slightly changed to enrich the general celebration of our gallant farmers, it was a great success.”
He said the addition of an awards night and dinner to the programme was a good initiative, but added that there was room for improvement in subsequent ones.
Mr Kwarteng suggested that the criteria used in selecting the various award winners must be properly laid out to the general public.
“Under his leadership, the most significant day on the agricultural calendar, National Farmers’ Day, witnessed remarkable changes breaking away from the traditional cash prize rewards,” he said.
This year’s celebration included the presentation of plaques and citations to the national winners.
The Ghanaian Times also reports that rating agency, Fitch, has revised its crude oil forecast for 2024 to $80.0 per barrel from the previous $75.
It is, however, projecting a lower price of crude oil in 2025 to $70 per barrel, same as its earlier forecast of $70.
Presently, crude oil is going for $76 per barrel on the world market.
Therefore, if the price forecast is to hold and based on the stability of the cedi, fuel prices at the pumps will not change much in 2024.
The increased Brent and WTI oil benchmark assumptions for 2024, it said, are supported by OPEC’s continued attempts to support oil prices, including the recent decision by several members to join Saudi Arabia and Russia in implementing additional cuts in the first quarter of 2024.
According to the UK-based firm, the market was likely to be in a deficit of about 1.2 million barrels per day in the second half of 2023, according to the International Energy Agency.
It explained that OPEC+’s additional curtailments suggest that the deficit could persist in the first half of 2024, provided that compliance with production cuts remain strong
GIK/APA
Ghanaian press zooms in on unveiling of 20,000 Youth jobs initiative, others
