Vice President Dr Mahamudu Bawumia has maintained that despite the prevailing economic challenges, the government has successfully generated over 2 million jobs in the past seven years.

According to Dr Bawumia, available statistics affirm that this figure represents the highest job creation rate since the country gained independence.

Addressing the launch of a cash disbursement for beneficiaries of the YOUSTART programme in Accra, Dr. Bawumia asserted the government's commitment to further job creation for the youth of the country.

“What is remarkable is that, notwithstanding the global economic challenges, major global economic disruptions that have taken place with regard to COVID-19 that many of you have talked about and its implications on businesses as well as the Russia-Ukraine war, notwithstanding these global challenges, our government over the last seven years has created 2.1 million jobs. This is the highest number of jobs created by any government since the Fourth Republic,” he added.

Meanwhile, a report from the Ghana Statistical Service (GSS) reveals that during the third quarter of 2022, one in every four young individuals aged between 15 and 24 years, equivalent to 24.2%, was not involved in education, employment, or training.

According to the Annual Household Income and Expenditure Survey 2022 Third Quarter Labour Statistics Report, this percentage corresponds to approximately 1.5 million persons within this age group.

The findings highlight a significant portion of the youth population that is not currently participating in education, employment, or training activities.

“More than half of the youth are in Accra (312,394), Ashanti (300,161), Eastern (131,341), and Central (129,182) regions. In 13 out of the 16 regions, more than 20 per cent of young persons, 15 to 24 years were not in education, employment, or training. Eastern Region (30.0%) has the highest proportion of youth, with a figure about twice that of Bono Region (14.5%) which has the lowest proportion,” GSS noted in the report.