Ghana’s Finance Minister, Dr Cassiel Ato Forson, has issued a stark warning regarding the country’s youth unemployment levels, identifying 1.34 million young Ghanaians as individuals who are neither employed, in education, nor in training. Speaking in an interview on Thursday following the presentation of the 2027 Budget to Parliament, Forson described this demographic, commonly referred to as NEETs, as a significant threat that demands immediate governmental intervention. He characterized the current situation as a "bomb waiting to explode," emphasizing the urgency of addressing the issue before it destabilizes the broader society.
According to MyJoyOnline, the minister projected that without specific policy interventions, the number of young people outside the workforce and educational systems could rise to approximately 1.7 million over the next four years. He argued that the long-term consequences of this trend would affect the entire nation, necessitating a structural shift in how the government approaches economic development. To counter this trajectory, Forson outlined the government’s New Economy agenda as the primary mechanism for change. This policy framework aims to restructure the national economy by directing investment toward eight specific sectors identified as capable of generating substantial employment opportunities.
During the same address, Forson defended the government’s recent fiscal strategies, which involved easing the primary surplus target after two years of strict fiscal tightening. He noted that Parliament had originally approved a primary surplus target of 1.5 percent of Gross Domestic Product for 2025. However, the government achieved a surplus of 2.5 percent, which Forson described as a "down payment for policy credibility" intended to restore confidence in economic management. He stated that this excess performance allowed the government to save 1 percent of GDP, providing the fiscal space necessary to adjust its approach in 2027 without harming the economy.
The minister characterized the earlier stabilization measures as "shock therapy," asserting that they delivered results within two years that would typically take much longer to achieve. With economic stability reportedly restored, Forson positioned the New Economy agenda as the logical next step in confronting the growing number of young people excluded from the labor market. He maintained that investing in the identified sectors is essential to absorbing the NEET population and preventing the projected increase in unemployment. The government’s strategy relies on this structural economic shift to create sustainable jobs rather than relying solely on temporary fiscal adjustments.