By Solomon Gumah / Ramatu Mantenso Yakubu
Tamale, June 02, GNA – The Center for Opportunities and Rural Development (CORD Ghana), an NGO, has intensified efforts to equip young people with green business skills to transform waste into wealth to contribute to sustainable development.
The initiative formed part of the third cohort of the Sustainable Energy Waste to Resource Initiative (SEWRI), aimed at promoting youth entrepreneurship, reducing unemployment, and addressing environmental challenges through waste-to-resource innovations.
The two-day training, held in Tamale, was organised by CORD Ghana in partnership with the Northern Regional offices of the Department of Gender and the National Youth Authority (NYA) as well as the Network of Youth for Climate Action Africa (NYCA Africa) and the Youth Alliance for Climate and Environmental Sustainability (YACES).
A total of 42 young people comprising 28 females and 14 males participated in the programme, which focused on waste management, resource recovery, green skills development, and sustainable entrepreneurship.
The training featured presentations, practical demonstrations, networking sessions, and group activities designed to enhance participants’ understanding of opportunities within the green economy.
Participants received hands-on training on converting waste plastics into useful products including flowers, pen holders, hand fans, and nets demonstrating the economic value of materials often discarded as waste.
Speaking during the programme, Madam Esther Nyamekye Opoku, Programmes Director of CORD Ghana, said empowering young people with practical green skills was essential to creating sustainable livelihoods while addressing environmental degradation.
She explained that the SEWRI programme sought to educate youth on waste-to-resource conversion, provide practical skills in transforming waste materials into useful products, promote sustainable entrepreneurship and connect participants with organisations operating within the sustainability sector.
Madam Opoku noted that plastic waste remained a major environmental challenge but could be transformed into a valuable economic resource when properly managed and processed into marketable products.
She said the initiative was intended to inspire young people to become environmental stewards and active contributors to Ghana’s emerging green economy.
Mr Amankona Ampofo, Northern Regional Director, NYA encouraged participants to take advantage of growing opportunities within the green sector and position themselves as entrepreneurs capable of creating jobs and contributing to national development.
He urged the youth to embrace innovation, discipline, and environmental responsibility, stressing that sustainable development could only be achieved through the active participation of young people.
Mrs Alhassan Bushira, Northern Regional Director, Department of Gender, advised the participants to remain focused, determined and committed to applying the skills acquired during the training to improve their livelihoods and support sustainable development.
She encouraged them to become environmental protection ambassadors in their communities by promoting responsible waste management practices and sharing knowledge gained with their peers.
She urged the youth, especially young women to take advantage of opportunities within the green economy saying the sector offered enormous potential for entrepreneurship, income generation and job creation.
Some participants described the training as an eye-opening experience that had changed their perception of waste and motivated them to explore green business opportunities within their communities.
They appealed to government institutions, development partners, and the private sector to increase investment in youth-led green enterprises and support skills development programmes focused on sustainability.
The SEWRI initiative is a flagship programme of CORD Ghana aimed at equipping young people with practical skills in sustainable energy and waste-to-resource conversion to promote environmental sustainability and economic empowerment.
GNA
Edited by Eric K. Amoh/Linda Asante Agyei