About 1,500 youth in the Upper East Region are to benefit from the government’s National Entrepreneurship and Innovation Programme (NEIP) by the close of the year.
The 1,500 youth which are being selected from the 15 municipal and district assemblies across the region are to receive training in the area of entrepreneurships and grant support to start their own businesses.
Speaking to the Ghanaian Times at a kick- start of the training of the youth at Bongo on Friday, the lead consultant of Dansyn Ghana Limited who are into the training, Mr Daniel Nang, stated that the programme which had just started in four districts in the region is part of the President’s support for entreprenteurs and business development and is expected to cover the remaining 11 districts in the region at the end of July this year.
The District Chief Executive (DCE) for the Bongo District, Mr Peter Ayinbisa, who encouraged the youth to take the training and support seriously to help improve upon their livelihoods and families, explained that the overall objective of the programme is to provide integrated, nationwide support for start-ups and small businesses.
He said President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo last year awarded 1,350 entrepreneurs across the country with cash to start and expand their businesses under the NEIP Business Support Programme.
He said the grant, ranging between GH¢10, 000 to GH¢100, 000 was given to young businessmen and women on August 7, 2018 to start their own businesses and noted that the current training, this year was a follow up to the last programme.
“The NEIP Business Support Programme is an initiative by the government under the Ministry of Business Development to support unemployed Ghanaian youth through training and funding.
Additionally, the aid is to assist them set up their businesses and boost existing ones,” he stressed.
Most of the youth at the training programme regretted that during the last package, it was only four persons that were selected from the region to benefit from the programme and, appealed to government to ensure that the trend was not repeated.
