By: Lucy Mawufemor Kpeglo and Benjamin Nii Nai Anyetei
The Youth Employment Agency (YEA), in partnership with the Ghana Police Service, has successfully trained and graduated 12,000 young people under the Community Protection Assistants (CPA) programme.
A passing-out ceremony for the latest batch took place at the Tesano Police Training School.
The event was attended by the Minister for Youth Development and Empowerment, Mr. George Opare Addo, and the CEO of YEA, Mr. Malik Basintale.
The CPA programme was launched to reduce youth unemployment and support community policing efforts. It followed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed on May 19, 2025, between YEA and the Ghana Police Service. The signing was witnessed by the Minister for the Interior, Mohammed Mubarak Muntaka.
The programme targeted young Ghanaians aged 18 to 35. Participants were given basic training in policing and will now be deployed to communities across the country to assist the police and help maintain safety.
With this latest graduation, all 12,000 recruits under the CPA module have now completed their training and are ready to begin work.
The Minister for Youth Development and Empowerment commended the recruits for their discipline and urged them to uphold professionalism in their new roles as frontline support in the fight against crime.
“This graduation is a strong testament to our dedication to equipping Ghana’s youth with both opportunity and responsibility. These Community Protection Assistants are being strategically deployed to safeguard our communities while earning meaningful livelihoods.”
Mr. Basintale, in his remarks, noted that the initiative does not only provide jobs for young people but also complements the Ghana Police Service in its mandate to safeguard communities.
“Today marks a pivotal moment in our national agenda to merge youth empowerment with public safety. These young men and women will be the bridge between the Ghana Police Service and our neighborhoods, fostering trust, peace, and collaborative security.”
The CPA module falls under YEA’s broader strategy to engage young people in roles that support the police in community policing efforts. Successful graduates serve an initial two-year contract with the agency, with the opportunity for absorption into the Ghana Police Service upon meeting the requisite standards.
