Pursue economic transformation to address youth unemployment — Solomon Owusu tells gov't

The National Communications Director of the United Party (UP), Solomon Owusu, has urged the National Democratic Congress (NDC) government to shift its focus from economic stability to economic transformation to create jobs for unemployed young people.

His comments come after Finance Minister Dr Cassiel Ato Forson, while presenting the 2026 Mid-Year Budget Review in Parliament on Thursday, July 23, highlighted what he described as the government's economic achievements.

Reacting in a social media post later the same day, Mr Owusu acknowledged the reported economic stability but said the government must now prioritise policies that would translate into employment opportunities.

"Having achieved economic stability, what the UP expects from this administration is to go the extra mile to engage in transformation. That is the only way our teeming youth who are unemployed would be employed," he said.

The UP spokesperson called on the government to invest in sectors such as information technology, non-traditional agriculture, vegetable production and value addition to Ghana's mineral resources to accelerate industrialisation and job creation.

He also urged the government to fulfil its plan to process nearly half of the country's cocoa beans locally, arguing that such initiatives could significantly expand employment opportunities.

"The idea by this administration to pursue vigorously the addition of value to close to 50% of our cocoa beans must be realized," he stated.

Mr Owusu further proposed that the Ministry of Works and Housing partner with the private sector, similar to the United Arab Emirates model, to increase the number of high-quality hotels in the country and reduce accommodation costs to boost tourism.

He also criticised the Bank of Ghana's lending policies, arguing that collateral requirements centred on landed property were limiting access to credit and constraining economic growth.