NDC YOUTH MANIFESTO (2024) - STANDALONE PLEDGE TO YOUNG PEOPLE

Initiate the "Adwumawura Programme" as a start-up engine to facilitate the creation, tracking, and mentoring of a minimum of 10,000 youth-established businesses annually.

Implement an expanded National Apprenticeship Programme especially for young people, including a Business Growth Apprenticeship Module linking established industries and business individuals with TVET graduates, and vocational training and start-up support for trainees in the informal TVET sector/artisans.

Facilitate skills training programmes and provide start-up kits for artisans.

Develop a Comprehensive Credit System specifically for youth entrepreneurs and a database of businesses run by young individuals to guarantee advisory services, create marketplaces, provide managerial support, offer partial credit guarantees, soft loans, grants, and tax incentives.

Establish a Young Entrepreneurs Microcredit institution with a seed fund of Seven Hundred and Fifty (750) Million Ghana Cedis to disburse affordable loans to young entrepreneurs.

In partnership with the private sector, introduce a Youth Innovation and Industrial Parks (YIIP) initiative to scale up youth-created SMEs tailored to district-level economies, create co-working spaces and one-stop business start-up services at district levels, and stimulate market development for products created by young entrepreneurs.

Leverage a Youth-In-Export-Initiative to stimulate foreign demand for Ghanaian products produced by young people.

Implement a Land & Farm Bank Project - a structured framework to ensure young farmers have access to land, farming inputs, and support for animal rearing and other agricultural businesses across the supply chain in the various districts.

Establish 'Farmers' Services Centres' (FaSC) to support farmers especially young farmers by serving as guarantees of farm inputs in the form of improved seeds, fertilizer, environmentally friendly agrochemicals, mechanized services, and top-notch agronomy services provision to the youth-led farms.

Develop a guaranteed marketplace for agricultural produce and stimulate an aggressive development of products from agricultural produce.

Promote agro-processing and value-addition industries to increase the value chain and create job opportunities for the teeming unemployed youth.

Develop agro-production enclaves with appropriate infrastructure including irrigation and networked warehousing systems to enhance youth participation in agriculture.

Improve secondary education by ensuring a sustainable funding source for the Free Senior High School (SHS) education and completing the construction of E-blocks and expanding infrastructure to guarantee access to all students.

Commence the establishment of regional TVET Centres of Excellence integrated with fabrication laboratories equipped with 3D printers, and other state-of-the-art facilities to promote innovation and simulate real work environments.

Extend FREE SHS to cover students in private senior high schools.

Implement a No-Fees-Stress Programme to alleviate the financial burden on parents and students in financing tertiary education, including a 'NO Academic Fees' policy at the University for LEVEL 100 students and re-deploying the Student Loan Trust Fund Plus (SLTF Plus) to give continuing students the option to utilize student loans to directly finance University fees.

Carry out an aggressive BED-FOR-ALL Programme with the private sector to build accommodation facilities on tertiary campuses to provide bed spaces for students and arrest the accommodation crisis on tertiary campuses that has led to unbearable rise in hostel fees.

Engage private investors in student housing to regulate accommodation prices.

Deliver free tertiary education for persons living with disabilities.

Cancel the obnoxious licensure examination for Teacher Trainee graduates.

Reintroduce free sanitary pads to female students in senior high schools.

Scrap the quota system for admissions into nursing and teacher training colleges to expand students' enrollment.

Ensure the prompt posting of trained health professionals and trained teachers.

Establish Free WIFI for all public second-cycle and tertiary institutions.

Fully implement the National TVET Qualification.

Increase the amount allocated for student loans and ensure prompt disbursement of funds.

De-collateralise the GETFUND, and restore it to its original mandate of educational financing.

Implement a 24-hour Economy policy (Formula 1-3-3: Same Job, Three Shifts, Three People) to stimulate economic growth by enabling extended operating hours to create more employment opportunities across various sectors, such as manufacturing and production, retail, hospitality, construction, transportation, and healthcare.

Grant incentives to employers who employ through the Youth Employment Agency.

Create a Youth Employment Bureau at the Youth Employment Agency which will be responsible for the creation of an employment database for young people and host the data on the employment status of young people.

Implement a Jobs for You (J4U) programme, to create sustainable and well-paying jobs.

Develop and implement a programme to support graduates of tertiary institutions with technical know-how to form cooperatives to bid for public and private contracts by dedicating specific contracts to such cooperatives.

Employ more young people through the Youth Employment Agency (YEA) and other government agencies informed by data from the Youth Employment Bureau.

Create more jobs for young people through the GHANA GREEN JOBS project.

Deliver a migration policy framework to export surplus Ghanaian workforce through bilateral arrangements with sister nations.

Scrap nuisance taxes that have become burdens on businesses and households, especially the E-levy, COVID-19 levy, and the 10 percent withholding tax on bet winnings.

Pay particular attention to youth development by mainstreaming and coordinating youth development policies, programmes, and initiatives.

Promote and mainstream youth-friendly local content policies in the energy, mining, telecommunications, and manufacturing sectors.

Establish a strong framework for interagency partnership to address critical youth related socio-economic issues such as unemployment, skills development, education, health, entrepreneurship, and substance abuse.

Fully implement the National Youth Authority Act, 2016, Act 939 by enacting a Legislative Instrument, facilitating the establishment of District and Regional Youth Committees as well as the Ghana Youth Federation.

Develop and implement youth work professionalization programmes.

Foster the creation of Neighbourhood Development Brigades and Volunteers to mobilize the energies and initiatives of the youth in developing their communities.

Promote active participation of Ghanaian youth in international programmes and support them to take up leadership positions for their leadership development.

Implement a national sexual harassment policy regime to protect young girls against the unethical use of the balance of power in schools and workplaces.

Implement a zero tolerance for domestic violence and sexual harassment in Ghana.

Create targeted programs to offer livelihood support and temporary employment opportunities for displaced and vulnerable youth.

Expand access to national service to all young people aged 18 as stipulated in the National Service Authority Act.

Enhance the school-to-work transitional value of the national service by introducing mandatory and voluntary learning programmes to promote the acquisition of practical work tools, skills and values.

Broaden the scope of national service projects and programmes to expand agriculture production for young people, digital jobs creation, and enterprise development.

Promote the development of social enterprises through competitions within the national service scheme, motivating young people to create solutions for national development.

Improve the conditions of service of the personnel of the national service scheme.

Ensure sustainable livelihoods, economic empowerment, social stability, and community development for young people in rural areas.

Leverage global funding for climate action to secure financing for sustainable alternative livelihoods support strategies and affordable housing in rural Ghana.

Ensure advance rent payments do not exceed six months in line with rent control regulations.

Promote the recognition of Prior Learning Certification (PLC)/Step-Up Certification (SEC) programme to deliver a structured pathway for artisans in the informal sector to validate and improve their skills and knowledge for academic and career progression, including formalizing and awarding certificates for existing skill sets of artisans through special programmes run by relevant TVET institutions.

Implement the MO-NE-YO insurance Scheme to provide special pension schemes for informal sector workers such as commercial drivers, farmers, fishermen, traders, market women, creatives and artisans, to improve the quality of their livelihood in retirement.

Host the annual marketplace festival for the exhibition of innovations created by young people.

Introduce annual robotic competition, track winners of robotic competitions and encourage investors to invest in their innovations.

Elevate the Ghana Digital Centres to propel the nation into the forefront of the global digital and gig economy.

Facilitate the creation of unicorns developed by young development technology entrepreneurs.

Establish digital innovation hubs.

Train One Million (1,000,000) Youth Coders in in-demand digital skills for the growing Business Process outsourcing (BPO) and Knowledge Process outsourcing (KPO) ecosystems under the One Million Coders Program (OMCP).

Launch a 'Digital Jobs Initiative' to create at least 300,000 skilled employment opportunities for the youth.

Implement a land reclamation action plan through a tree-growing policy employing young people to grow, adopt and nurture trees.

Decentralize regulatory and licensing processes for artisanal miners.

Employ the use of modern technology inclusive of geofencing to protect water bodies, forest zones and farmlands from illegal mining.

Provide access to young miners in responsible small-scale mining to acquire mining equipment through a government support scheme.

Ensure that mining operations are not conducted in unapproved areas, such as water bodies, and that concession holders rehabilitate impacted areas.

Facilitate the setting up of mining equipment pools in each small-scale mining district, to ensure easy and affordable access to necessary mining equipment.

Establish a Small-Scale Mining Board to regulate the sector and create a revolving fund for capitalisation of SSM and MSM companies.

Facilitate equipment financing and mining input, research and standardisation, gold recovery optimisation, and post-mining land reclamation services.

Strengthen the capacity of mining regulatory institutions to ensure efficient and effective regulatory operations with quick turnaround times.

Introduce a system of offset programmes that sets aside part of the royalties due to government for direct leverage on infrastructure development in mining areas.

Work with industry stakeholders to revamp the local goldsmithing and jewellery subsector to increase value addition and global competitiveness.

Partner young people to create and promote 'The Black Star Experience' as Ghana's flagship Culture, Arts, and Tourism brand to redefine and affirm Ghanaian identity, attract investments, create new jobs, and increase tourism for the teeming youth in the creative industry.

Partner young people to undertake a year-round celebration under 'The Black Star Experience', covering Pan African Month, Ghana Film Festival and Awards Month, Ghana Music World, Culinary Month, Architecture/Design/Arts and Crafts, Fashion and Textiles Month, and Literacy/Literary Month.

Provide a sustainable financing mechanism to drive the development of start-ups in the creative arts space.

Develop the capacity of young creatives and facilitate technical and logistical support such as state-of-the-art booths, film studios, recording studios and creative hubs to produce creative content.

Institute a Creative Arts Fund to provide sustainable financial support for start-ups, and for ailing large, medium and small creative enterprises.

Introduce the concept of "Cultural Villages" to showcase Ghana's diverse culture and boost domestic arts and tourism.

Facilitate partnerships with international cultural organizations to promote knowledge exchange, collaboration, and exposure to diverse artistic practices.

Train identified staff of Ghana's musicians abroad to perform as cultural attaches with the mandate to promote cultural exchange, provide information about Ghana's culture, history and values, facilitate collaboration, grants and residences for artists, scholars and cultural professionals, and organise writing exhibitions, concerts, festivals and other cultural events.

Revive schools and colleges sports at all levels, including Primary and Junior High schools, in consultation with relevant stakeholders.

Promote community teams and competitions in various sports.

Amplify government's focus on sporting activities and events in schools and colleges.

Reinforce the juvenile component of all national sporting activities.

Develop a strategy to build talents in professional sports.

Establish frameworks in consultation with sporting federations and key industry players to develop talent in professional sports.

Expand national investments portfolio and interest in sporting activities beyond football.

Implement Free Primary Healthcare services at the basic level (sub-district, and CHPS levels).

Introduce 'Risk Exposer Insurance' for health workers to provide financial protection and support in the event of injuries, illnesses, or other risks encountered on the job.

Introduce the 'Food for Health Initiative' to educate the public on the health and nutritional benefits of indigenous Ghanaian foods.

Support the development of infrastructure and spaces such as community parks to facilitate physical activities and foster a fitness culture among citizens.

Establish hotlines under the NHIS framework for individuals to access mental healthcare and e-counseling services at the district level.

Encourage more public universities to establish herbal medicine research departments to increase innovation and knowledge development in the sector.

Commence the establishment of market and transport station clinics to provide basic healthcare services for traders, passengers, drivers, and the general public.

Upgrade school sickbays into satellite clinics managed by health professionals in all boarding schools for quality 24-hour healthcare and prompt referral services to students and teachers.

Develop a regulatory framework to allow interested pharmaceutical outlets to attach licensed clinics (managed by healthcare professionals) to their practice for increased access to primary healthcare services in communities.

Develop a health-worker migration policy framework to facilitate documented migration of health workers, promote knowledge exchange, and regulate the impact of 'brain drain' on the health system.

re-introduce and regulate the vehicle tax waiver scheme for health professionals.

Introduce performance and evidence-based health worker and facility awards to motivate health workers and promote quality standards in health care delivery.

Reward healthcare workers who accept postings to rural communities and underserved areas with a five-year work abroad programme.

Introduce degree and specialist nursing programmes in colleges of nursing to support career advancement, and skills upgrade of nurses to meet global standards.