Policy highlights:
- Ghana’s construction sector has greatly contributed to the country’s economic growth, but is facing a large skills gap. The large number of unemployed Ghanaian youth cannot be hired due to lack of education.
- In addition to insufficient education, other factors pose obstacles to job creation in Ghana’s construction sector: contracts generally go to large (international) enterprises, with limited requirements in terms of job creation and no incentive to train young people, and the sector suffers from a negative image due to its poor health and safety record.
- It is recommended that organizations aiming to promote youth employment in the construction sector: 1) build relationships with the government and local firms to promote investment in domestic construction firms, which are more likely to employ local artisans; 2) cooperate with policymakers to ensure the certification of young people’s education qualifications and to facilitate their access to finance; 3) design training programmes that take into account gender inequality and safety issues; and 4) work with other parties (governments as well as the private sector) to provide paid apprenticeships.
