By Amoako Kwame
National Chairman of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), Johnson Asiedu Nketiah, has clarified that the party’s job creation commitments should not be interpreted as guarantees of automatic public sector appointments for all young people.
He explained that the NDC’s approach is centred on skills development and support for entrepreneurship.
Addressing supporters in the Nandom Constituency on Wednesday, May 20, 2026, Mr. Asiedu Nketiah said youth unemployment remains Ghana’s biggest challenge, but cautioned against what he described as a common misunderstanding of the party’s campaign message.
“It is true that when we were campaigning, the biggest problem in the country then, and still the biggest problem now, is youth unemployment. So we promised that when we come into power, we will implement initiatives that will address the unemployment issue,” he said.
He noted that some supporters had interpreted the promise to mean that every young person would automatically receive a government appointment.
“Some of you have interpreted that to mean that everybody will be given an appointment letter to work in the government service. Please, that is not what we mean,” he said.
Mr. Asiedu Nketiah explained that sustainable job creation depends on equipping young people with the necessary skills and providing access to capital to establish their own businesses, rather than expanding government employment opportunities.
“What we mean is that as a country develops, there comes a stage where other forms of employment become more attractive than government jobs,” he said.
He added that the government’s role is to help young people develop their skills and talents, while also providing the necessary facilities and seed funding to enable them to establish businesses that contribute to economic growth.
He further noted that it would be unrealistic for the government to absorb all unemployed youth into the civil service.
“But we seem to think that if you are not given a government appointment letter, then you are not employed. Please, it will not be possible for the government to issue appointment letters to every young person in the country,” he stated.
Mr. Asiedu Nketiah also highlighted planned initiatives such as apprenticeship schemes and entrepreneurship support programmes.
“That was why, when we were campaigning, we told you that you don’t need a certificate to be able to work. And so we will implement policies like the free apprenticeship programme, the entrepreneurship programme, the youth in enterprise programme, and the one million quotas programme,” he said.
