New World Bank report urges Ghana to focus reforms on growth, job creation
The World Bank’s ninth Ghana Economic Update, titled “Addressing Labor Market Challenges and Opportunities in Ghana’s Economic Landscape,” said Ghana needs to improve its business environment, close infrastructure gaps, and accelerate the digital economy and climate adaptation to boost private sector-led growth and job creation.
To that end, the report urged the West African cocoa, gold, and crude oil exporter to address challenges in its energy and cocoa sectors to mitigate fiscal risks and bolster economic stability.
It noted that Ghana’s working-age population is projected to increase significantly over the next decade, presenting a major opportunity for economic growth if the expanding labor force can be absorbed into productive employment.
The report underlined the importance of developing a comprehensive strategy on job creation, structural transformation, and skill development.
Robert Taliercio, World Bank division director for Ghana, Liberia and Sierra Leone, said at the launching event that Ghana has an urgent need to sustain ongoing reforms to restore macro-financial stability to support economic transformation and sustainable growth for jobs.
For his part, Ghanaian Deputy Finance Minister Thomas Nyarko Ampem said the need to create jobs is a “mission critical” not only for the government, but for all stakeholders, as “unemployment and underemployment represent a potential powder keg waiting to explode.”
As the macroeconomy begins to have a meaningful impact, the deputy minister announced that the government will invest approximately 564.4 million Ghanaian cedis (about 52.8 million U.S. dollars) in three youth skills development programs and an additional 410 million cedis in a national entrepreneurship and innovation program in 2025 to unleash the creative potential of Ghanaian youth.
