Tamale North Member of Parliament, Alhassan Suhuyini has said Ghana’s current unemployment rate is close to what existed pre-independence.

He said the rate is increasing due to the failure of the government to institute the right response to unemployment in Ghana

Contributing to a discussion on TV3’s New Day with Johnnie Hughes on Tuesday, he said the increasing rate indicates that Ghanaians are saddled with extreme difficulties at the moment.

“The unemployment situation which by the way has increased in the last five years from about 5 to almost 19 per cent as we speak, that is close to pre-independence unemployment rate.

“That tells you that we are really in difficult times and and the responses that we have been given over the years to the unemployment problem is not yielding the results that we all desire,” he said.

The government announced in the 2022 budget statement the creation of one million jobs for the youth of this country.

The Finance Minister Ken Ofori Atta said “The understanding of the youth employment challenge, as well as extensive consultations with stakeholders including youth associations and educational institutions across the country, have led to the development of the YouStart initiative which proposes to use GH¢1 billion each year to catalyze an ecosystem to create 1 million jobs and in partnership with the Finance Institutions and Development Partners, raise another 2 Billion Cedis.”

“In addition, our local Banks have agreed to a package that will result in increasing their SME portfolio up to GHC 5 billion over the next 3 years. This, Mr. Speaker results in an unprecedented historic 10 Billon Cedis commitment to the private sector and YouStart over the next 3 years.

“Mr. Speaker, YouStart is a vehicle for supporting young entrepreneurs to gain access to capital, training, technical skills and mentoring to enable them launch and operate their own businesses.

“Mr. Speaker, the Ghana Enterprises Agency (GEA), the National Entrepreneurship and Innovation Programme (NEIP), and partner financial institutions, will serve as the implementing arms of YouStart. Entrepreneurs will be able to apply for support through a dedicated YouStart online portal. NEIP will also engage our Faith-Based Organizations as partners for the delivery of essential artisanal skills, business competitions, and feasibility studies and introduction to financing institutions with a commitment of up to 10% of GOG contribution to the YouStart Programme.”