As part of efforts to grow Ghana’s green economy, the European Union and its development partners are set to train 300 women in Kumasi, Koforidua and Accra into gainful employment either as entrepreneurs or qualified personnel in plastic recycling, organic waste management or sustainable forestry under the Green Economy Ghana Project.
At least 70 companies and organizations from both Ghana and Sweden will be used to help train the women.
The primary objective of the Project is to empower women and returnees in accessing professional skills, jobs and entrepreneurial opportunities within a growing, sustainable, and inclusive Green Economy in Ghana´, and to support Vocational Education Centres and Business Support Organizations in developing training and services matching Ghana Green Economy market needs.
The project which is financed by the EU ARCHIPELAGO programme will run for a period of 4 years.
It will be funded by the European Union Emergency Trust Fund (EUTF), whose main objective is to strengthen the employability of young people and support job creation in the Sahel and Lake Chad countries.
The project is implemented by a consortium led by Inclusive Business Sweden (IBS), Ghana-Sweden Chamber of Commerce (GSCC), YMCA Ghana, Social Enterprise Ghana (SEG), and Sweden-West Africa Business Association (SWABA).
The project will be implemented at three accredited technical training centres in Accra, Kumasi and Koforidua; YMCA Ghana, Kumasi Institute of Tropical Agriculture (KITA) and Koforidua Technical University respectively.
The project aims at offering technical and entrepreneurial training to 400 women, and foster the creation of Micro Small and Medium Enterprises in the sectors on Plastic Waste Management, Organic Waste Management, and Sustainable Forestry in Ghana.
To achieve these set goals, there will be collaborations with different industry actors both in Ghana and Scandinavia.
Head of Cooperation of the EU delegation, Mr Zoltan Agai said, “The project implemented in the framework of the archipelago program tackles the root cause of Irregular Migration in Ghana which is access to jobs.”
Meanwhile, the Ghana Ambassador to Sweden with concurrent accreditation to the Nordic Countries, Mrs Amerley Ollenu Awua-Asamoa stated “This Project, which is targeted at women in Ghana and returnees to the country, would help in the empowerment of women and ensure they contribute their quota towards national development. It would also see to it that returnees apply the knowledge and skills acquired through their stay overseas, into their operations to help this country. I also hope that some of the trainees will transform their know-how acquired into viable and sustainable startup ventures”.
