Nearly 3,000 NaBCO personnel recruited in Upper West Region

A total of 2,769 young men and women have been recruited under the Nation Builders Corps (NaBCO) programme to serve in various state departments and agencies in the Upper West for the next three years.

“It is certainly better to engage the youth in productive areas, however small the income will be, than leave them with the security implications that go with idle hands,” the Upper West Regional Minister, Alhaji Sulemana Alhassan, said during the second Regional Coordinating Council meeting in Wa.

He said unemployment was one of the major threats to national security which the government acknowledges, and has in response, established NABCO to reduce the number of joblessness among the youth.

Touching on education, Alhaji Alhassan said quality, inclusive and equitable education contributes greatly to sustainable human development which serves as a bedrock for rapid economic growth.

He called for mass support for the sector to help provide quality and inclusive school setting for the younger generation.

He noted that there was a strong correlation between education and income, education and health, education and sanitation, which demanded reliable education system for the younger generation.

He said the government’s vision to build Ghana beyond aid could not be achieved without providing the youth with access to quality education, especially at the secondary school level.

He described the implementation of the free SHS policy ahead of most other leading poverty intervention programmes as bold and courageous decision by the government that would change the destiny of the people of Upper West.

On security, he said the Region has been generally and relatively peaceful, saying the municipal and districts security council’s were doing well in terms of keeping surveillance, detecting early warning signs of security threats and restoring calm during violent clashes.

Neighbourhood watchdog committee concept has been introduced in various jurisdictions in the Region that require community involvement in ensuring peaceful atmosphere.

The Minister described the concept as a sustainable means of checking crime in local communities.

Deputy Upper West Regional Police Commander ACP Peter Ndekugri also backed the neighbourhood watchdog committee, saying it was a good approach that help the Police to fish out criminals within communities.