By Rachel Quartey & Rukayatu Musah
Minister for Youth Development and Empowerment, George Opare Addo, has urged students across the country to embrace entrepreneurship and innovation as government intensifies efforts to reduce youth unemployment.
Speaking at the launch of the Students Entrepreneurship and Enterprise Development (SEED) Programme at the University of Professional Studies, Accra, Mr. Opare Addo described the initiative as a major step toward transforming the mindset of young people from job seekers to job creators.
“Today is not just about launching a programme. Today is about planting the future for our students,” he stated.
The Minister explained that the SEED initiative is a direct extension of the Adwumawura programme and is designed to ensure that viable student business ideas do not die at the concept stage.
“Too many brilliant ideas remain in notebooks and never become businesses. Through SEED, we are introducing a structured end-to-end ecosystem that will equip students with practical entrepreneurship skills, mentorship, business registration support, financial inclusion and access to funding opportunities,” he said.
Mr. Opare Addo stressed that the programme would be implemented without political bias, insisting that opportunities should be based on innovation and scalability rather than political affiliation.
“Poverty does not know political colour and when opportunities and jobs are created, it serves the good people of this country,” he emphasized.
According to him, more than ten thousand young people have already undergone entrepreneurship training under existing NEIP programmes, while innovation hubs across the country continue to support youth-led enterprises.
He disclosed that findings from a recent survey by the Ministry revealed that many tertiary graduates spend between two and ten years securing employment after national service.
“One of the biggest problems we have as a country is mindset. The question should not be ‘Who will employ me?’ but rather ‘What problem can I solve?’ and ‘How many people can I employ?’” he stressed.
The Minister also announced plans to establish a Youth Development Entrepreneurship Fund next year to support youth-led enterprises nationwide.
He further indicated that women and persons living with disabilities would receive special consideration under the programme to ensure inclusivity.
Chief Executive Officer of the National Entrepreneurship and Innovation Programme (NEIP), Eric Adjei, called on the private sector and development partners to support government efforts to tackle unemployment through entrepreneurship.
“One thing is clear, youth entrepreneurship development cannot be achieved by government alone. We are calling on private sector players and development partners to come on board to help address unemployment in our country,” he stated.
Mr. Adjei urged students to take advantage of the opportunities under the SEED initiative to build sustainable and impactful businesses capable of creating jobs and contributing to national development.
