The Chief Executive Officer of the Ghana National Chamber of Commerce and Industry (GNCCI), Mark Badu Aboagye, has urged tertiary students to begin creating their own jobs before completing school, warning that limited job opportunities in the formal sector cannot absorb the growing number of graduates.
Speaking at the quarterly Economic Outlook on Channel One TV on Monday, April 27, on the theme “Taking Stock – Ghana’s Economic Turnaround: What Changed & What Comes Next?”, he said youth unemployment remains a major national concern that requires both government and private sector intervention.
“I have been very much concerned about the rate of unemployment and I think that we should tackle this from angles,” he said.
Mr Badu Aboagye noted that government alone cannot solve the problem, pointing out that public sector employment accounts for only a small share of total job opportunities.
“Government alone cannot do it because government employment is just about 6%. It is only when we stimulate the private sector that they can expand and employ our people,” he said.
He expressed concern about the scale of graduate unemployment, stating that about 1.4 million young people are currently searching for jobs without success.
“Every year we churn out more than 200,000 graduates. So they are here thinking that after school they will get a job,” he said, adding that even many older graduates are still unemployed.
According to him, only a small proportion of job seekers secure employment each year, increasing the need for alternative approaches such as entrepreneurship.
“So now be thinking about how you can create your own jobs. Don’t wait because the government cannot employ you, the businesses are not expanding,” he said.
He clarified that his message was not intended to discourage students, but to prepare them for economic realities.
“I am not scaring you, I am telling you the fact,” he said.
Mr Badu Aboagye said the GNCCI is working to support students to become job creators rather than job seekers through structured training and mentorship programmes.
He revealed that the Chamber is establishing Junior Chambers in universities to help nurture entrepreneurial skills among students.
“What we are doing as a chamber is to train these students to become job creators and not job seekers,” he said.
He added that the initiative has already been introduced at institutions such as the University of Mines and Technology (UMaT), Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST), and the University of Ghana, with plans to expand to UniMAC.
He stressed that students often have innovative solutions to national challenges but require guidance and mentorship to develop their ideas into viable ventures.
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