The Ranking Member on Employment, Labour Relations and Pensions, Mavis Nkansah-Boadu, has delivered a blunt assessment of Ghana’s job crisis, admitting that successive governments have “failed the youth” by not creating sustainable employment opportunities.
Speaking to Puretvonline.com, the Afigya Sekyere East MP expressed deep concern over rising youth unemployment and said both the New Patriotic Party (NPP) and National Democratic Congress (NDC) must share the blame.
“Let me be the first person to admit that yes, we have failed the youths because there have been some gaps in there,” she stated. “As a political class, we need to do better.”
Nkansah-Boadu warned that continued joblessness among Ghana’s young people poses a serious threat to national stability and development.
“We always say the future of every nation is its younger generation, so if we’re not preparing them to take over, then what are we doing to ourselves as a nation?” she asked.
She stressed that the crisis transcends political lines and requires immediate action.
“Irrespective of our political affiliations, it is time the political class created an enabling environment for them,” she added.
The MP argued that Ghana must strengthen the private sector to drive job creation, noting that in advanced economies it is businesses—not government—that employ the majority of citizens.
“It’s about incentivising the private sector. Unfortunately, we don’t see that much in Ghana,” she said.
She criticised the practice where businesses thrive or suffer depending on which political party is in power, calling for a shift away from partisan economic control.
“When NPP or NDC is in power, they have certain people they want to work with. But looking at where the world is heading, this must stop.”
According to her, government hostility or indifference toward local businesses ultimately harms the youth.
“If the government creates the enabling environment, the private sector creates more jobs—and it is the youth who will work there,” she stressed. “If you punish your private sector, it goes against you as a government.”
Nkansah-Boadu reiterated that successive administrations have fallen short of their promises.
“Yes, I will be the first to admit that,” she said. “There have been gaps in there. We have failed them.”
Her comments come in the wake of tragic stampedes at Ghana Armed Forces recruitment centres in Accra and Kumasi. At El-Wak Stadium, a sudden crowd surge left six young women dead and several others injured, prompting President John Dramani Mahama to suspend the nationwide recruitment exercise and order a full investigation.
Security experts have long cautioned against overcrowded recruitment processes and urged decentralisation and better crowd-control systems.
Families of the victims, civil society organisations, and community leaders are calling for accountability and meaningful reforms to prevent future tragedies.
The Board of Inquiry set up by the Ghana Armed Forces is expected to review safety protocols and determine any lapses that contributed to the incident.
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