Navrongo (UE), May 8, GNA - The National Youth Employment Programme (NYEP), on Friday launched two new modules in Navrongo in the Kassena-Nankana East District and Sirigu in the Kassena-Nankana West District, all in the Upper East Region. The Trade and Vocation components, involve the youth in dress making project set up at Navrongo and the youth in basket weaving project set up at Sirigu.

The NYEP is implementing the modules in collaboration with Asongtaba Cottage Industry and Exchange Programme (ACI and EP) and Craft Pro Limited Basket Weaving Project, which are private sector initiatives. The implementing stages of the two modules have four beneficiary packages including training, setting up capital, recovery and provision of micro-credits.

Launching the projects at separate functions, Upper East Regional Minister, Mr. Mark Woyongo stated that the enrolment of the new NYEP modules in addition to the Mobile Phones Repairs and Assembly Module, also launched in the region, was a clear testimony of government's desire to roll out many programmes so as to create the needed employment for the youth in the country.

He noted that the NYEP was a laudable programme but had been abused under the previous administration and the present government was restructuring it to make it more meaningful to the beneficiaries. Mr. Woyongo said 110,796 youth were employed under the NYEP last year across the country and indicated that government intended to engage about 100,000 youth under the programme this year. Some youth were currently under going training under the Youth in Security Services Training at the Police Training College at Pwalugu in the Region, he said. The Regional Minister indicated that government had planned to enact a legislation to streamline the operations of the NYEP and establish the NYEP Fund to make it a more reliable and sustainable source of funding to avoid the hiccups that the programme was currently facing. He called on the youth to take advantage of the programme and develop their talents and acquire the requisite working experiences for more permanent jobs.

Mr. Mark Woyongo noted that one of the major causes of unemployment among the youth was the lack of skill training and requisite experience. He said that the Trade and Vocation modules had been designed to train the youth in artisan work, dressmaking, hairdressing, weaving and food processing to enable them to create their own jobs. Mr. Woyongo said under the Youth in dressmaking project, the beneficiaries would be made to sew school uniforms for school children in the country.

He said government considered the private sector as the largest employer in the economy and was therefore very much determined to create an enabling environment for it to exploit its full potentials towards the overall development of the country. Mr. Woyongo appealed to operators in the private sector who did not have collateral security to put form groups to enable them access credit facilities from the banks and other micro facilities such as macro-credit and Small Loans Centre (MASLOC).

The NYEP Coordinator, Mr. Abuga Pele said government was aware of the poverty level in the Upper West, Upper East and Northern Regions and appealed to the people in these areas to avail themselves of interventions and develop their talents instead of migrating to the southern part of the country in search of non-existent jobs. The Executive Director of ACIP and EP, Mr. Dr George Agulijam said the Exchange Programme, which was currently training about 600 youth in dress making had projected to train 5000 youth under the Trade and Vocation Modules in the country and to assist them to establish their own businesses. 8 May 10