The Ministry of Business Development on Saturday the 14th of July, 2018 launched the maiden edition of the School Entrepreneurship Initiative (SEI), a project to promote entrepreneurship among young people.
The initiative is to serve as a panacea to graduate unemployment and to as well incubate Students at the Secondary School level with Entrepreneurship skills, the ministry has said.
Saturday's launch was under the theme “Innovation and Entrepreneurship Education – A Bridge in realising the Ghana beyond Aid Agenda”.
Speaking at the events,which was held at the Assembly Hall of the Achimota School, the Minister for Business Development Ibrahim Awal Mohammed announced that Government has already made plans to support students to establish their own businesses before they complete school.
"We want to impact two million students over the next five years in tertiary and second-cycle institutions," he said.
"Out of this two million, we are expecting that 35% of them would have started their own businesses before they leave school and we will support it."
The SEI is a novelty project aimed at promoting growth and development of entrepreneurship and to accelerate job creation from students.
It is expected to engage thousands of students through Entrepreneurship training annually.
It will also come along with an inter-schools competition for which competing schools will be challenged to
come up with ideas of creating business, which is on of the functions entrepreneurs.
In his Key Note address, the deputy minister of Education, Hon Dr Yaw Osei Adutwum expressed his delight over the initiative, which has come at time when Government's Ghana Beyond Aid campaign jas gathered momentum.
He commended the Minister for Business Development Ibrahim Awal Mohammed "for spearheading this noble initiative", saying the SEl competition will "attract premium attention nationwide" with the right approach.
"As an educationist by training, and having been engaged in entrepreneurial work for a considerable period, I have always been passionate to see young people employing their talents to create and explore opportunities for themselves and to be self-reliant in so doing," he said.
"I am particularly delighted to note that the Ministry, through the Student Entrepreneurial initiative, is spearheading a business plan competition among senior high schools detailing what plans the entrepreneurial clubs want to pursue, thereby fostering teamwork, sharing of ideas, research and project execution.
"The rewards for winning schools, which include trips to important entrepreneurial hubs such as Silicon Valley in the US and the Tech City of London, are commendable."
The NPP Government,since assuming power in 2017, has embarked on a number of projects to stimulate enterprise activities and the SEI is regarded as one of the steps being taken to achieve the Government's Ghana Beyond Aid agenda.
Hon Dr Yaw Osei Adutwum underscored the need to equip young people with the skills and aptitude to explore their surroundings and identify gaps, which they can maximize through innovative thinking, strategic planning and measured risk.
Twenty students each from Presec-Legon, Accra Girls, St. John Grammar, West Africa and Odorgorno S.H.S.s were present for the launch.
By Fiifi Abdul Malik/ghanaguardian.
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