By Edward Dankwah
Accra, Oct. 28, GNA – Mr. Nicholas Awotwi, the Director of the Institute of Local Government Studies (ILGS), has called on Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies (MMDAs) to invest in youth-led enterprises to accelerate job creation and local economic development.
He said local governments must move beyond providing an enabling environment for businesses to actively support young entrepreneurs through incubation, entrepreneurship training, financial assistance and business development services.
Mr Awotwi was speaking at a breakfast meeting organised by the Institute in collaboration with the Ministry of Local Government, Chieftaincy and Religious Affairs in Accra, on the theme: “Scaling Youth Enterprise and Job Creation Through Local Governments.”
He said national statistics indicated that one in every three young people was unemployed, requiring the country to create between 300,000 and 500,000 jobs annually to absorb the growing youth population.
He said the Institute had conducted a three-year social experiment in five municipalities, supporting young entrepreneurs in agribusiness, fish farming and poultry production with between GH¢60,000 and GH¢75,000, alongside entrepreneurship training and assistance with business registration.
Mr Awotwi said the study examined how local governments could partner businesses and young entrepreneurs to create sustainable employment, noting that although the 261 assemblies had identified three economic potentials each, many were yet to commit adequate resources to developing those opportunities into viable businesses and jobs.
He called for improved reporting of jobs created by assemblies and urged them to support local products to supply markets being developed under the government’s 24-hour economy initiative.
Mr Awotwi proposed that each assembly support at least 100 youth-led enterprises through incubation and entrepreneurial training, explaining that if each business created two or three jobs, the initiative could make a significant contribution towards the national employment target.
He also called for part of the District Assemblies Common Fund to be dedicated to local economic development, alongside stronger internally generated funds and flexible partnership arrangements to support businesses.
He said sustainable job creation required closer collaboration between local governments and the private sector, adding that assemblies must prioritise employment and enterprise development alongside infrastructure provision.
Madam Rita Naa Odoley Sowah, the Deputy Minister of Local Government, Chieftaincy and Religious Affairs, said District Assemblies must strengthen their capacity to lead local economic development by connecting young entrepreneurs to markets, finance, technical support and viable business opportunities.
She said creating an enabling environment through infrastructure and effective public services was important but would not automatically translate into productive investment and sustainable employment.
“Assemblies must identify local economic opportunities, address constraints facing businesses and coordinate support across sectors,” she stressed.
The Deputy Minister said findings from action research conducted by the ILGS highlighted challenges, including inconsistent support for youth enterprises, inadequate working capital and weak market linkages.
Madam Sowah said the Ministry was considering a framework to strengthen district economic analysis, improve youth enterprise support, connect existing industrial facilities to supply chains and build the capacity of local government officials.
She added that the Ministry would also review the guidelines for using the District Assemblies Common Fund to ensure that allocations supported local economic development.
Madam Sowah called for stronger collaboration among sector ministries, District Assemblies and development partners to ensure that national employment programmes responded to local needs and delivered sustainable results.
She said promoting local economic development was a statutory responsibility of District Assemblies under Section 12(1)(c) of the Local Governance Act, 2016 (Act 936).
She urged local authorities to measure their success not only by the infrastructure they provided but also by their ability to help residents generate income, expand businesses and secure sustainable livelihoods.
GNA Edited by Benjamin Mensah