Accra, June 24, GNA – The Youth Employment Agency (YEA) since 2017 till date, has engaged a total of 144,521 youths, Mr Bright Wireko-Brobbey, the Deputy Minister of Employment and Labour Relations, has informed Parliament.
The breakdown includes Community Protection Programme 17,500; Arabic Instructors Module 3,000; Youth in Sports Programme 1,988; Youth in Sanitation Programme 45,000; Graduate Internship Programme 150, Regional Flagship Programme 300; School Support Programme 7,730; and YEA Job Centre 1,012.
The rest are Youth in Elite Sports 1,000; Youth in Afforestation 60,000; Entrepreneurship Training 5,000; Agricultural Extension Officers 1,200; M&E Evaluation Assistants 558; and Project Assistants 83.
Mr Wireko-Brobbey made the disclosure on Friday, on the floor of Parliament in his response question by Mr Ibrahim Murtala Muhammed, Member of Parliament (MP) for Tamale Central.
The MP asked the Deputy Minister the number of people the YEA had engaged under the programme since 2017.
The Deputy Minister said the Youth Employment Programme as established by the Youth Employment Agency Act, 2015 (Act 887) was an intervention programme aimed at providing Ghanaian youth with employment opportunities.
He said the primary objective of the Agency was to develop, coordinate, supervise and facilitate the creation of jobs for the youth.
He said the sources of funding for the National Youth Employment Programme per section 23 of the Youth Employment Agency Act, 2015 (Act 887) were moneys approved by Parliament for the Agency, 80 per cent of Communication Service Tax (CST) and 10 per cent of the District Assemblies Common Fund (DACF) subject to the formula approved by Parliament in accordance with article 252 of the 1992 Constitution.
Others are five per cent of the Ghana Education Trust Fund (GETFund) subject to the formula approved by Parliament in accordance with the Ghana Education Trust Fund Act, 2000 (Act 581) and donations, gifts, and grants.
Mr Wireko-Brobbey said currently, a total of 11 modules under the Youth Employment Programme were functional:
Community Protection Programme, Youth in Sports Programme, Youth in Sanitation Programme, Regional Flagship Programme, School Support Programme, YEA Job Centre, Youth in Elite Sports, Youth in Afforestation, Entrepreneurship Training, M&E Evaluation Assistants and Project Assistants.
GNA