“Take advantage of Gov’t’s anti poverty initiatives to make headway in life"- Finance Minister to Ghanaian youth

Mr Ken Ofori-Atta, the Minister of Finance, has urged Ghanaian youth to take advantage of the government's initiative to make headway in life.

He mentioned programmes such as the Ghana CARES 'Obaatanpa programme' and those being pursued by the National Board for Small-Scale Industries and the National Entrepreneurship and Innovation Programme, designed to make access to finance and skills in entrepreneurship, agriculture, small-scale industry, tourism, and trade, easier for the youth.

Additionally, he revealed that government was establishing the Ghana Development Bank to provide funds for industries and manufacturing sectors.

“These initiatives, together with the technological advancement, would provide the youth with abundant opportunities to nurture and grow their businesses”, Mr Ofori-Atta advised the Special Guest at the Springboard Youth Dialogues in Sunyani on Monday.

Ken Ofori Atta at the Springboard Youth Dialogue held in the Bono Region.

The Springboard Youth Dialogue is an initiative of the Springboard Road Show Foundation, a youth mentoring platform focused on entrepreneurship, investment, career and talent development for the youth in Ghana.

Participants included young entrepreneurs, start-up business owners, students from various tertiary institutions and prominent youth in the Bono Region.

The programme was broadcasted on radio stations in the middle belt, with the Finance Minister and other resource persons responding to questions from the youth.

Also accompanied by the Finance Minister was his senior advisor Dr Yaw Ansu, the Bono Regional Minster, Justina Owusu Banahene and officials from the Finance Ministry, the National Board for Scale Industries (NBSSI), the National Entrepreneurship and Innovation Program (NEIP) among others.

Mr Ofori-Atta said the Ghana-CARES programme for instance was designed to stimulate economic growth through increased investment in selected sectors such as agriculture, trade and industry, tourism, housing, Science and Technology and the Financial Sector.