Member of Parliament Kojo Oppong Nkrumah has challenged the government’s job creation agenda, arguing that several flagship employment programmes have failed to meet expectations despite strong interest from young Ghanaians.
Speaking in Parliament, the former Information Minister pointed to what he described as significant delays and implementation setbacks across key initiatives intended to tackle unemployment.
He cited the government’s flagship 24-hour economy programme, noting that although it was launched in July 2025, the legislation needed to establish its governing authority was only presented to Parliament several months later in February 2026.
Oppong Nkrumah also raised concerns about the One Million Quotas Programme, saying the overwhelming response from applicants underscored the urgent need for employment opportunities.
According to him, more than 90,000 applications were submitted within the first 48 hours of the programme’s launch. However, he noted that the platform later became inactive before being relaunched with plans to enrol only 30,000 beneficiaries in its initial phase.
The MP further questioned the pace of implementation of the Ejumara initiative, which was designed to support businesses and entrepreneurship.
He said while the programme set a target of assisting 10,000 businesses annually, only 475 entrepreneurs had received grants by March 2026.
Highlighting the desperation among job seekers, Oppong Nkrumah referenced a Ghana Armed Forces recruitment exercise in November 2025 that attracted about 21,000 applicants competing for roughly 2,000 positions. The exercise ended in tragedy when six people reportedly lost their lives in a stampede, while five others sustained critical injuries.
He argued that the situation reflects a widening gap between government promises and actual job opportunities available to young people.
“The youth of this country are not looking for slogans anymore. They want feasible programmes that create dignified, productive and well-paid jobs,” he stated.
