By Morkporkpor Anku
Accra, May 10, GNA – The European Union (EU) is to launch two initiatives to further support young Ghanaian jobseekers.
The initiatives are the EU-Ghana Pact for Skills worth €25 million and the Jobs, Migration and Development project worth €9 million.
Mr lrchad Razaaly, the EU Ambassador to Ghana made this known at a reception and an exhibition event to commemorate the Europe Day in Accra.
Europe Day held on May 9, every year celebrates peace and unity in Europe.
It is to commemorate the Schuman Declaration in 1950, only five years after the most horrific war in modern history in which 50 million people lost their lives.
The Ambassador said the Union recently inaugurated the Ghanaian-European Centre for Jobs, Migration and Development, together with Germany and the Ghanaian government.
The centre provides direct support to returning migrants and resident Ghanaians looking for jobs and training in Ghana and in Europe.
He said young people were ready to jump at new opportunities and this had been seen through their projects and initiatives, with over €3 billion currently invested in Africa on youth, skills and education at large.
He said in Ghana, “we support over 100,000 young jobseekers to gain skills and training through a number of projects.”
He said the Union had seen that young people were open to learning and this was through the ever increasing applications to the EU’s Erasmus+ programme.
Last year, the Union sent off 45 talented Ghanaian students to European universities, the highest number of Ghanaian students eager to start rich academic and cultural experiences.
He said through the same Erasmus+ programme, hundreds of students in Ghana would also benefit from high-quality training and support to enter a competitive job market.
“When we put together all the scholarships served by the EU and its Member States, it is several hundreds of Ghanaians getting the opportunity to acquire world-class knowledge and training, foster long-lasting links between Ghana and Europe and find new opportunities for exchanges and investments,” he added.
The Ambassador said through their GrEEn worth €20.6 million and WACOMP worth €6.2 million projects were jointly supporting over 500 young entrepreneurs and youth-led enterprises and they have seen their innovativeness and creativity.
Mr Mustapha Ussif, Minister of Youth and Sports, expressed gratitude to the Union for their continuous support of the youth in the area of education through the provision of scholarships for Ghanaian students to study in various European universities.
“We are hopeful that other EU projects in the pipeline, aimed at empowering and developing the youth will be launched soon for mutual benefits,” he added.
GNA