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The Bono Regional Minister, Joseph Addae Akwaboa, has reaffirmed the government’s commitment to inclusive governance, youth empowerment and development.
He explained that adolescents and young people must be placed at the centre of national development and urban planning.
Mr Akwaboa gave the assurance in a speech read on his behalf at the close-out and learning summit of the Resilient City for Adolescents (RCA) Project in Sunyani.
He said the government remained committed to creating opportunities for young people through skills development, entrepreneurship support and expanded participation in governance processes.
“The government firmly believes that the youth are the backbone of the nation and remains committed to creating an enabling environment for them to realise their full potential,” he added.
The three-year project, implemented by the Global Media Foundation (GloMeF) in partnership with Citizens Watch Ghana and the Indigenous Women Empowerment Network (IWEN), focused on strengthening adolescent participation, leadership, innovation, health and city-level governance.
The initiative formed part of the Healthy Cities for Adolescents programme funded by Fondation Botnar and coordinated globally by Ecorys UK.
Mr Akwaboa said rapid urbanisation, unemployment, social exclusion and inadequate access to quality health and social services continued to affect the wellbeing and development of adolescents in many communities.
He, however, said interventions such as the RCA Project had demonstrated the importance of investing in youth and creating systems that responded to their needs.
Mr Akwaboa said the project also strengthened school and community-based platforms to provide mentorship, mental health support and sexual and reproductive health education for adolescents.
He commended GloMeF and partners for implementing what he described as a transformative intervention that had positively impacted many youth in the Sunyani Municipality.
Mr Akwaboa highlighted government interventions such as the National Apprenticeship Programme, Adwumawura Programme, National Coders Programme, TVET support programme and the Youth in Agriculture and Agribusiness Initiative aimed at empowering young people.
According to him, the programmes were aimed at creating sustainable employment opportunities, promoting entrepreneurship and equipping young people with technical and vocational skills.
The Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of GloMeF, Raphael Godlove Ahenu, said adolescents continued to face unemployment, climate vulnerabilities, social exclusion and limited participation in governance.
He explained that the RCA project sought to address those challenges by empowering adolescents socially, politically and economically while strengthening systems that supported their wellbeing.
Mr Ahenu said the project directly impacted 4,102 adolescents and engaged over 800 stakeholders and institutions, with more than 12,000 people benefiting indirectly from the intervention.
He added that the project also supported digital innovation and livelihood programmes that benefited more than 160 adolescents with vocational, entrepreneurial and digital skills training.
Transformation
The Speaker of the Sunyani Adolescent Parliament, Daniel Sarkodie Frimpong, said the project had transformed the confidence and participation of adolescents in governance and community development.
He appealed to stakeholders to sustain the structures and platforms established under the project to ensure continuous adolescent participation in governance and decision-making.
