Founder and President of the Design and Technology Institute (DTI), Constance Swaniker, is pushing for a fundamental shift towards industry-led, demand-driven training, arguing that employers must play a central role in shaping educational curricula while learners gain practical experience in real workplaces.
Speaking at the Industry-Academia Roundtable 2026, Constance Swaniker stressed that aligning education and skills development with labour market needs is critical if Ghana is to transform its youthful population into a genuine demographic dividend.
According to her, a young population alone does not guarantee economic prosperity.
“History teaches us that a youthful population is not automatically a demographic dividend. It becomes a dividend only when education systems, skills pathways, labour markets and economic opportunities are aligned,” she noted.
Constance Swaniker cited data from the World Bank Human Capital Index, which places Ghana’s score at 0.45, indicating that a child born in Ghana today is expected to achieve only 45 percent of their potential productivity as an adult due to gaps in education, health and skills development.
She warned that more than half of the country’s potential human capital is being lost before individuals can contribute fully to national development.
The DTI Founder and President further highlighted persistent labour market challenges, noting that youth unemployment among persons aged 15 to 24 has reached 32.1%.
Even among those employed, many remain trapped in underemployment, informal work and low-productivity jobs.
According to her, the informal sector continues to account for between 74% and 84% of employment, while vulnerable employment among young people increased from 55.6 percent in 2021 to 60.9 percent in 2024.
“These figures remind us that the challenge is not only about creating jobs. It is about creating productive jobs that enable people to build sustainable livelihoods and contribute meaningfully to economic growth,” she said.
While acknowledging Ghana’s progress in expanding access to education, Constance Swaniker argued that the national conversation must now move beyond enrolment figures to focus on economic relevance.
She pointed to improvements over the past decade, including a decline in the proportion of young people with no formal education from 12.4% to 4.3% and an increase in secondary education participation from 23% to 36.8%.
She credited initiatives such as the Free SHS policy for widening educational access but cautioned that educational attainment alone is no longer sufficient.
“Access is no longer enough. The challenge before us has evolved from one of educational access to one of economic relevance,” she stated.
According to Swaniker, many graduates continue to struggle to secure jobs because their skills do not match industry requirements, while employers face difficulties finding work-ready talent despite rising graduate unemployment.
Constance Swaniker disclosed findings from a 2025 baseline survey on human capital development jointly conducted by DTI and the National Development Planning Commission (NDPC), which revealed significant gaps in Ghana’s Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) ecosystem.
The survey found that more than 40% of TVET teachers reported limited alignment between training programmes and industry needs.
It also showed that more than half of institutions had not updated their curricula in over five years, only 17% of assessed laboratories met industry standards, and fewer than one-third of instructors had participated in meaningful industry attachments or professional development programmes within the last five years.
She described the findings as clear evidence that the transition from education to employment remains weak.
“These findings are not merely statistics. They are signals that the bridge between education and employment remains incomplete,” she said.
Constance Swaniker urged policymakers to move away from viewing education solely as a social service and instead position human capital development as a core economic strategy.
She explained that human capital is realised not at graduation but when learning translates into productivity, innovation, entrepreneurship, employability and national competitiveness.
This, she argued, requires stronger collaboration among government, academia, industry and development partners.
The proposed Human Capital Development Strategy, she said, seeks to address the entire journey from learning to earning and from potential to productivity by closing skills gaps and raising productivity levels across the economy.
She called for a coordinated ecosystem where stakeholders work together to prepare Ghanaians not only for today’s jobs but also for future industries and opportunities.
“Human capital is not realized at graduation. It is realized when learning translates into productivity, innovation, entrepreneurship, employability, and national competitiveness. This requires us to move beyond siloed approach and build a coordinated ecosystem where government, academia, industry, and development partners work together towards a common objective, preparing Ghanaians not only for today’s jobs, but for the industries and opportunities of the future,” she stressed.
Drawing on DTI’s experience, Constance Swaniker argued that industry-led training consistently produces better outcomes.
She said programmes are most effective when employers contribute to curriculum design, learners spend time in real work environments, and technical skills are combined with soft skills, entrepreneurship and leadership development.
The approach is reflected in DTI’s “Learns, Works and Leads” model, which focuses on building competencies, confidence and adaptability rather than simply awarding qualifications.
“At DTI, our model is tried and tested. Our experience over the years has demonstrated that industry-led, demand-driven training produces different outcomes. When industry helps shape curricula, when learners spend time in real workplaces, and where technical skills combined with soft skills, entrepreneurship, and leadership development, graduates transition more successfully into employment and enterprise,” she noted.
