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The National Board of Small-Scale Industries (NBSSI) has facilitated the creation of some 21,892 new jobs in the last three and a half years.
It has also facilitated access to GH38.53 million as a line of credit between January 2017 and March 2020 to 14,738 companies, of which approximately 68.3 percent are companies owned and directed by women.
It was made possible by interventions such as the Coronavirus Relief Program (CAP BuSS) Business Support Scheme, the COVID-19 Recovery and Resilience Program for MSMEs, the WIDU Project and the Young Africa Works Project.
Nation building updates
NBSSI Executive Director Ms. Kosi Yankey-Ayeh made this known in the inaugural weekly nation-building updates in Accra on September 22.
On the theme of ‘Leadership that pays for youth’, the forum was designed to provide stakeholders in Ghana’s political space with detailed updates on key government-implemented interventions.
Decent jobs
Ms. Yankey-Ayeh noted that the provision of decent jobs for youth was an important component enshrined in the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) for 2030 to assist and guide Member States in meeting their respective mandates.
“At NBSSI, we consider this initiative to be timely and a way to promote innovation, creativity and business development, particularly in a period when the global economy has sunk due to the outbreak of the Coronavirus disease.
“We are optimistic that the interventions initiated by NBSSI would add to the already expansive business ecosystem in Ghana and establish a strong position for the nation to leverage its business development agenda to create jobs, wealth and grow the economy as our The goal is to achieve a Ghana beyond aid, ”he said.
Support for youth
According to her, the current government through NBSSI had supported young people in various ways.
He said the NBSSI had disbursed funds through the Coronavirus Relief Program Trade Support Scheme, an initiative aimed at protecting micro, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) from the impact of the predominantly youth-owned pandemic.
He noted that through key government interventions, the NBSSI has been able to substantially reduce the high unemployment rate in the country, as well as maximize the contribution of small businesses to the economic and social development of the country.
Consequently, the Executive Director indicated that the NBSSI has facilitated access to GH ₵ 38.53 million as credit to companies in the country between January 2017 and March 2020.
“14,738 companies created between January 2017 and March 2020 through the assistance of NBSSI, of which approximately 68.3 percent are owned by women,” he stated.
He added that the NBSSI with the support of the current government had been able to create 21,892 jobs.
Programs under YEA
The Executive Director (CEO) of the Youth Employment Agency (YEA), Mr. Justin Kodua Frimpong, also took the opportunity to describe various interventions initiated by his administration that had created around 145,000 jobs.
The interventions, he said, consist of the YEA Job Center, Artisan Directory, Youth in Elite Sports and the School Support Program.
Under its payee count and validation before the payment was introduced in 2017, Frimpong noted that the agency had been able to reduce the number of payees paid monthly from 62,825 to 45,218.
“Without the count and validation, the Agency would have been paying GH ₵ 7 million per month, which translates to GH ₵ 82.5 million annually.
“This is based on prudent management and the institution of effective validation, verification, monitoring and evaluation practices implemented by the current management of the Agency,” he said.
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