GHC1 billion made aside to help young entrepreneurs. The government has put in place a framework to help young entrepreneurs start new enterprises or expand current ones.
The government will provide financial and technical assistance to young entrepreneurs in the country as part of the Youth Start initiative, which aims to help them grow commercially viable firms and create jobs.
The Minister of Finance, who announced the intervention during his presentation of the 2022 budget statement and economic strategy to Parliament on Wednesday, November 17, 2021, said it will assist solve the issues that young entrepreneurs confront in the country.
“Mr. Speaker, this understanding of the youth employment challenge, combined with extensive consultations with stakeholders across the country, including youth associations and educational institutions, has resulted in the development of you start an initiative, which proposes to use GH1 billion to create 1 million jobs in partnership with Finance Institutions and Development Partners.” Additionally, our local banks have agreed to a package that will result in a GHC 5 billion increase in their SME portfolio over the next three years.
“you start is a mechanism for assisting young entrepreneurs in obtaining finance, training, technical skills, and mentoring to enable them to start and run their own enterprises.” you start will be implemented through the Ghana Enterprises Agency (GEA), the National Entrepreneurship and Innovation Programme (NEIP), and partner financial institutions.
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GHC1 billion made aside to help young entrepreneurs
Entrepreneurs will be able to apply for funding through the YouStart website. “Our Faith-Based Organizations will also be partners in the delivery of critical craft skills,” he continued.
You start an initiative, he claims, is intended to teach people basic business orientation. Financial institutions will determine credit criteria, while GEA and NEIP will provide training support, particularly for standardized SME loans, he said, adding that the project will be operational by March 2022.
In the past, the government has launched a slew of programs to combat the country’s high rate of youth unemployment. Access to capital and skills in entrepreneurship, agriculture, small-scale industry, tourism, and commerce is made simpler for the youth through programs like Ghana CARES’ Obaatanpa’ and those pursued by the NBSSI now GEA and NEIP.
Furthermore, the government is seeking to establish the Ghana Development Bank, which will offer money to the economy’s manufacturing and industrial sectors.
According to the Minister, these measures, together with government interventions in the 2022 budget, would provide ample possibilities for young people to nurture and build their enterprises.
