Mr Enoch Amegbletor, the Head of the Corporate Affairs of the Ghana TVET Services has stressed the need to break down barriers and create pathways for women, marginalized communities, and persons with disabilities to participate in and benefit from the green economy. He said, while the concept of green jobs and inclusive development was inspiring, funding, curriculum development and ensuring the relevance of TVET programmes in the GrEEn were hurdles that needed to be addressed. ‘But challenges also bring opportunities for innovation, collaboration and investment. Governments, private sector stakeholders and civil society must work together to create an enabling environment for green TVET initiatives to thrive,’ The Head of Corporate Affairs was speaking at the SNV GrEEn Job fair in Takoradi to expose the Ghanaian Youth to entrepreneurial opportunities within the circular economy to take advantage. The GrEEn Regional Job Fair would inspire young people to seek and explore green job opportunities and solutions in TVET and expose participants to career pathway opportunities within the green value chain in WASH, Agriculture and Renewable energy. Mr. Amegbletor said the focus on inclusive transformational development must be deliberate adding that, ‘we must invest in TVET, promote green jobs and work towards a future where our planet is safer’. He acknowledged the European Union and the SNV for the GrEEn Project and its immense support toward developing a curriculum that shaped the minds of the Ghanaian youth to align with sustainable options in TVET. ‘This is why the Ghana TVET Service is honoured to partner the SNV GrEEn project to organise this Job Fair which contributes to government’s efforts to reduce youth unemployment in Ghana’, he noted. The TVET, he said played a pivotal role which increasingly recognized the need for environmentally friendly practices and sustainable development since it equipped individuals with the skills and knowledge to thrive in their careers and contribute meaningfully to the global challenge of climate change. He said, the relationship between TVET and green jobs was inseparable through integrating environmental consciousness into vocational training. Mr Laouali Sadda, the GrEEn Project Manager said SNV Netherlands Development Organization, since 1992 had focused on promoting access to basic services in three areas: agriculture, energy, and water. He said in 2022, alone, SNVs projects directly benefitted 6.2 million people across 24 countries in Africa, Asia and Latin America by promoting systems change, working with and strengthening institutions as well as kickstarting markets. The Boosting Green Employment and Enterprise Opportunities in Ghana (GrEEn) Project is one of our key projects that had and continued to drive system change. In 2019, SNV Ghana started co-implementing the GrEEn Project in partnership with the UN Capital Development Fund and the Ministry of Local Government, Decentralization and Rural Development, with funding from the European Union and the Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in Ghana to promote sustainable and climate-resilient growth of the local economy in the Ashanti and Western Regions. The Project Manager said the SNV with the flagship tool, Opportunities for Youth Employment (OYE) Programme, was working together with institutional and skills training partners to provide practical and employable skills to young people looking for jobs. ‘This skills development, go a step further by matching skills to opportunities in the green and circular economy by linking youth job seekers to employers, coaches and mentors so they can receive on-the-job technical skills, business development support or internship opportunities through the OYE internship programme., CV review, career guidance and counselling’. The fair hinged on career Prospects in TVET: The nexus of green jobs for inclusive transformational development’ and brought together over 500 job seekers, employers, and exhibitors from the green and circular economy.

Source: Ghana News Agency