The National Board for Small Scale Industries (NBSSI) in collaboration with the Mastercard Foundation has organised an orientation for Skilled Mastercraft persons in Accra.The orientation is to introduce the participants to NBSSI/Mastercard Foundation’s Young Africa Works (YAW) project launched in 2019.

The YAW project will create employment and promote entrepreneurship among young women and men, using three key interventions.

The interventions are Innovation, Creativity and Entrepreneurship (ICE), Apprenticeship to Entrepreneurship (A2E) and the MSME Business Acceleration.

Madam Cynthia Debrah, the A2E Coordinator, told the GNA that the project envisaged 39,000 young women and men to be employed or might have started their own business by 2022.

She said the expectation was that the A2E component would create 8,000 jobs, the ICE would create 25,000 new businesses and would accelerate 2,000 MSMEs.

The Coordinator said the A2E aimed at equipping young women and men with technical and vocational skills that would provide them with income opportunities either through gainful self-employment or salaried employment.

She said the A2E would train 16,000 unemployed skilled young women and men and those from the Vocational institutions.

Madam Jemimah Arthur, Regional Coordinator, NBSSI/ Mastercard Foundation Young Africa Works said the project would adopt an all-inclusive approach to provide opportunities to young women and men irrespective of their socio-economic, cultural or religious background.

She said the project was also aligned with a focus on women’s economic empowerment as a means of bridging the gender equality gap.

Madam Arthur, who is also the Head of the NBSSI Business Advisory Centre, Adenta said it would provide opportunities for young women and men to realize their potentials, unleash their creativity and innovation and develop effective leadership skills.