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ECONOMICS

Young people require support systems to expand their enterprises

Rosy Fynn, Ghana Country Head for Mastercard Foundation says young people require support systems, access to innovative finance, markets and business development services to expand their enterprises and to create work opportunities for themselves and their peers.

Date Created : 10/25/2022 12:00:00 AM : Story Author : Ghanadistricts.com

She said all these would help and enable the young people to realize their potential and contribute meaningfully to the development of the Ghanaian economy.

Madam Fynn was speaking at the Second Edition of the Youth Economic Forum (YEF) on the theme: “Youth voices and action for economic growth, resilience, and employment.”

The Youth Economic Forum is part of the three-day Business and Financial Times’ Ghana Economic Forum, in partnership with the Mastercard Foundation.

The Forum is one of the initiatives of the Mastercard Foundation towards the realization of the vision of its Young Africa Works strategy for Ghana.

“Everywhere we look, we see youth agencies at work and their collective effort is gradually driving transformation in many sectors, including agriculture,” she added.

She said the Foundation remained committed to supporting the ambitions of young Ghanaians and creating pathways to dignified and fulfilling work opportunities for them.

She said that was why their Young Africa Works strategy sought to enable access to dignified work opportunities for three million young women and men by 2030 by deepening efforts in the agricultural sector and exploring opportunities in emerging sectors of the economy.

She said the Foundation believes that by doing this, and working alongside their partners, government, the private sector, and young people, “we will unlock the full potential of young people to contribute to building back our economy and creating work opportunities for themselves and others.”

“Your ambitions are valid, and your voice is your biggest asset to, own your voice, and act towards achieving your ambitions. We believe in you! And we are solidly behind you,” she added.

She said the vision of the Foundation for Ghana by 2030 was that Ghana would become a continental demonstration of young people, especially young women, harnessing opportunities to shape the future of work and to create an inclusive economy with enhanced resilience for the most vulnerable.

Madam Fynn said young people want stakeholders to believe in them, they want them to help amplify their voice by providing the platform for them to share, engage and contribute to national conversations.

“And they want us to showcase their agency by creating opportunities to demonstrate their creativity, leadership, and the changes they are driving in their communities in response to the challenges that confront other young people,” she said.

Dr. Godwin ODWIN Acquaye, Chief Executive Officer of BFT, said the objective of dedicating a day solely for the youth was to better amplify the opinions/voices of the youth and give impetus to their ideas.

He said the young people form the vanguard of the next generation of national economic leaders.

He said it was incumbent upon them to solve some of the nation’s most intricate and exciting challenges, "so let the YEF and the world be your canvas, your playground and your marketplace of ideas."

He urged them to consider the opportunity to network as they go through discussions on marketing, Agri-business, Creative Art and Culture and Entrepreneurship.

"Networking and the act of networking are of paramount importance to people’s careers and social lives alike and one of the best parts of YEF is the opportunity to meet and network with peers, friends, mentors and professionals," he said.

He said YEF was full of diverse approaches and viewpoints, and “I think that the idea of connectivity within a larger cohesive network gives a thesis for our discussion of so many seemingly divergent topics.”

The CEO said to utilize the opportunity to speak about how the various topics interact with each other and ultimately could not exist without each other.