The Minister for Youth Development and Empowerment, Hon. George Opare Addo, has challenged Ghana’s young people to take an active role in shaping national policy, insisting that their voices must translate into practical solutions and measurable action.
Speaking at the National Youth Forum, Mr. Opare Addo said the gathering was not intended to be another ceremonial conference where young people make speeches, government officials applaud and participants return home without tangible outcomes.
He said the forum was deliberately created to give young Ghanaians the opportunity to speak directly to government about the challenges confronting them, the opportunities they need and the kind of Ghana they want to inherit.
“Today is not a day for government to come and tell you young people what we are going to do for you. Today is a day for we in government to listen to you,” he said.
According to him, young people must be regarded as co-creators and co-authors of Ghana’s future rather than passive recipients of government policies.
He urged participants to speak frankly about what is working, identify areas where government and other institutions are falling short, and propose practical solutions that can be translated into policies and programmes.
Mr. Opare Addo said the Ministry of Youth Development and Empowerment was committed to ensuring that youth policies were guided by evidence rather than assumptions, with research focusing on four key areas: health and well-being, education and skills development, economic empowerment, and youth aspirations, including civic engagement and volunteerism.
He noted that young people constitute a significant proportion of Ghana’s population, citing data indicating that those aged between 15 and 35 account for about 36.9 per cent of the population.
He, however, expressed concern that despite the country’s youthful population and enormous potential, many young people continue to face unemployment, limited access to skills and capital, health challenges and difficulties transitioning from education into decent employment.
“The challenge is not the lack of ambition among Ghana’s youth, but the need for a system that turns our ambition into opportunities,” he stressed.
The Minister said government had consequently introduced and strengthened several initiatives aimed at equipping young people with skills, creating employment opportunities and supporting entrepreneurship.
Among them are the National Apprenticeship Programme, EJUMERA and SEED, which seek to provide practical skills and support young entrepreneurs to develop sustainable businesses.
He also mentioned the Labour Exchange Programme being implemented by the Youth Employment Agency (YEA), the One Million Coders Initiative and the Youth Explorer digital platform.
According to him, the Youth Explorer app serves as a one-stop digital platform connecting young people to information on jobs, skills training, entrepreneurship, education, funding and other opportunities.
Mr. Opare Addo further raised alarm over the growing challenge of substance abuse among young people, describing the drug menace as a national crisis that requires collective action.
He said the ministry had invited the Narcotics Control Commission to participate in the forum because substance abuse had become one of the major threats confronting the youth.
He warned that drug abuse does not only affect individuals but also places enormous pressure on families and society and ultimately becomes a national problem.
The Minister also linked youth empowerment to the government’s broader economic transformation agenda, particularly the 24-hour economy, which he said was intended to expand production, strengthen value chains and create sustainable jobs.
He stressed that the most effective youth intervention ultimately remains an economy capable of creating meaningful opportunities for young people.
Mr. Opare Addo acknowledged that government had not solved all the challenges facing the youth, saying the current interventions represented only the beginning of a broader process.
He therefore urged young people to use the National Youth Forum to provide constructive criticism and practical recommendations that government could incorporate into policy.
“Our responsibility as a ministry is to take what we hear, ground it in evidence, and translate it into policy, programmes, measurable actions and accountability,” he said.
He also called for greater transparency in youth-focused programmes, directing chief executives of institutions under the ministry to make relevant data available on the ministry’s website to enable young people to track government programmes and resources.
Mr. Opare Addo maintained that building Ghana’s future would require collaboration among government, the private sector, civil society, communities and young people themselves.
He assured the youth that practical ideas presented in the national interest would receive serious consideration and action from government.
He concluded by urging young people to speak with courage, clarity and brevity, emphasising that the forum should end with clear direction rather than mere dialogue.
“Your voice matters. Your future matters. Ghana depends on what we do today,” he said.
