NABCO cannot solve Ghana’s youth unemployment crisis – Tax expert

Tax expert with Oxfam Ghana, Dr Alex Ampaabeng, has noted that Ghana’s youth unemployment cannot be solved by the introduction of the Nation Builders Corps (NABCO) programme which was initiated by government.

Although he recognizes the importance of the initiative, he said there is a need for a more sustainable way of creating employment for the youth.

Speaking in an interview on 3FM Tuesday, January 4, he said “Any economy where the government is the biggest employer, then the economy is in shambles. Government cannot, so the earlier we empower the private sector [the better]. Every successive government will be saying, private sector is the engine of growth, I think this phrase, we have overused it."

“What practical steps have we used to create that enabling environment for the private sector to thrive? Are loans coming? Are government funding opportunities there? Are the real drivers which will make somebody an entrepreneur and employ one or two or three people available? I think it is time for us to have a more sustainable way of creating employment for the youth. NABCO was a stop gap but I really don’t think Ghana’s employment can be solved with NABCO.”

NABCO was launched by President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, on Tuesday, May 1, 2018.

Mr Akufo-Addo while launching the programme was confident that by the time NABCO trainees exited scheme, “the requisite work readiness skills and experience, often deemed a barrier to their employment as fresh graduates, would have been resolved.”

According to President Akufo-Addo, “NABCO will be the vehicle to deliver one hundred thousand (100,000) jobs in seven (7) prioritised areas, defined as the following modules: Educate Ghana; Heal Ghana; Feed Ghana; Revenue Ghana; Digitise Ghana; Enterprise Ghana; and Civic Ghana.”

Explaining the rationale for the establishment of the corps, President Akufo-Addo noted that the grim story of youth unemployment had been a tragic part of the lives of Ghanaians for far too long in Ghana.

The situation he said was worsened by the ban placed on public sector employment by the International Monetary Fund at the time.

“I gave an indication that a new employment scheme will be launched to tackle the issue of the growing numbers of graduates exiting our tertiary institutions with no job placements in sight,” he said.

NABCO’s central focus, President Akufo-Addo said was create employment avenues and opportunities for young people who hold diplomas or degrees from accredited tertiary institutions, adding that “NABCO will enhance the dignity and self-esteem of our graduates, and will also present them with the added benefit of efficiency and effectiveness in the delivery of some essential public services.”