General News of Tuesday, 18 July 2017
Source: Myjoyonline.com
2017-07-18
President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo
President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo says the success of his government will be measured by the number of jobs created in the country.
He noted the greatest challenge the country faces over the years has been the creation of jobs.
At his first encounter with news editors held at the Flagstaff House Tuesday, the President said he shares in the frustration of the unemployed youth.
“Their parents are even more anxious about the future of their children,” he said.
The President marked six-months in office on July 7, 2017, with the country’s unemployment rate estimated at 5.20 percent.
A key promise the President made to Ghanaians during the 2016 general elections was the creation of jobs to absorb the teeming unemployed youth.
The governing New Patriotic Party (NPP) in pages 23 and 24 of its 2016 manifesto, promised to pursue “aggressive” measures to create jobs when voted into government.
They include; industrialisation and value-addition to agricultural produce, providing tax and related incentives for manufacturing businesses and providing a reliable and cost effective mix of energy supply for businesses.
The Ghana Statistical Service said the figure represented a dip from last year’s which was 5.96 percent.
These measures form part of the party’s ambitious projects such as one district, one factory, plants for food and jobs, Zongo and inner city Development and one village, one dam, free senior high school, which are expected to facilitate job creation.
But six months into office, many of government’s projects to drive job creation have not commenced. A key project is the one district, one factory policy which was scheduled to start in June 2017 but has delayed.
The programme Coordinator, Gifty Ohene Konadu has explained the delay was due to a China facility government received which demands the policy be realigned.
The President said the many measures his government has put in place are yielding dividends, although the unemployment rate is still high in the continent.
He said the inflation rate has dropped to 12.1 percent from 15.4 percent in December 2016, which according to him is the lowest in four years.
“It is my hope and expectation that these statistics will soon translate into tangible results,” President Akufo-Addo said, adding his government is still committed to job creation.
