[{"bbox": [96, 152, 1135, 366], "category": "Text", "text": "Given the complex and transversal nature of green and digital jobs and related skills policies, the action will build on the past experiences of skills development and on solid partnerships with key leading institutions – the Ministry of Employment and Labour Relations (MELR), the Ministry of Education (MoE), the Commission for TVET, and the newly established TVET Service. Through these partnerships, the action will consolidate relations with other key line ministries and with different levels of government to ensure an integrated approach to skills development. This will be done through a whole-of-government approach. This approach will support accountability and results through targeted capacity building, assistance with monitoring and impact evaluation frameworks. It will also offer support to enhance governance through social dialogue and stakeholder engagement."}, {"bbox": [96, 376, 1135, 511], "category": "Text", "text": "The action contributes to the Team Europe Initiative on Smart, Green and digital recovery in Ghana, to which the Czech Republic, Denmark, France, Germany, Hungary, Spain and The Netherlands participate. It will consolidate EU-Ghana partnership on employment and will initiate a solid policy dialogue in the fields of education, skills and professional development. It will also contribute to the EU-Ghana partnership on migration by offering, where possible, alternatives to migration to potential and returning migrants."}, {"bbox": [96, 521, 1135, 630], "category": "Text", "text": "Moreover, by improving the efficiency, relevance and quality of Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET), with a focus on green and digital skills, the Action will also significantly contribute to the Global Gateway, especially its pillar on *Education and research* and, indirectly, to the *digital sector* and *climate and energy* pillars."}, {"bbox": [85, 669, 323, 701], "category": "Section-header", "text": "# 2 RATIONALE"}, {"bbox": [85, 735, 234, 762], "category": "Section-header", "text": "## 2.1 Context"}, {"bbox": [96, 781, 1135, 994], "category": "Text", "text": "After two decades of GDP growth above 5%, Ghana is now a lower middle-income country, where poverty rates have decreased by half. However, this economic growth has not been fully inclusive and has led to increased inequality, mainly between the richer south and the poorer north, feeding insecurity and violence. The unemployment rate has not decreased in the last five years: 32.8% of the population 15-24 years is unemployed⁴. Despite the lack of data, unemployment among youth with disabilities may be higher, since they face unequal opportunities. Their low participation in education can also lead to unemployment. An estimated 40.1 percent of the total persons with disabilities never attended school⁵, and the difference between males and females is significant, corresponding respectively to 47.9 percent and 31.5 percent⁶."}, {"bbox": [96, 1005, 1135, 1166], "category": "Text", "text": "In 2016, it was projected that, because of the country's growing youth population, 300,000 new jobs would have to be created each year to absorb the increasing number of unemployed young people. Yet the structure of the Ghanaian economy in terms of employment has not substantially changed in several decades. Most jobs are low-skilled, requiring limited cognitive or technological know-how. The quality of these jobs is reflected in low earnings and less decent work. Therefore, a great challenge for Ghana is to create access to an adequate number of high-quality, productive and decent jobs."}, {"bbox": [96, 1177, 1135, 1390], "category": "Text", "text": "The country's educational system channels about 210,000 unemployable unskilled and semiskilled young Ghanaians (including about 60% of graduates at various education levels and those who exit early) into the labour market each year.⁷ The quality of education in Ghana and the weak link between the education sector and the productive sectors of the economy remain major challenges. Academic training is generally not aligned with labour market dynamics, which constantly call for new and different skill sets. In addition, the usage and application of technology are limited, but those tools are critical, given the changing nature of work. Employment support services are minimal, and most of the existing services are ineffective, particularly those offered by public training academic institutions and the public employment services due to under-resourcing and underfunding."}, {"bbox": [96, 1401, 1135, 1456], "category": "Text", "text": "The proportion of secondary school graduates opting for qualified vocational training is very low: the number of young people transitioning from school to formal training programmes is currently only around 7% of junior high"}, {"bbox": [85, 1530, 397, 1553], "category": "Footnote", "text": "⁴ Ghana Population and Housing Census 2021"}, {"bbox": [85, 1554, 397, 1577], "category": "Footnote", "text": "⁵ Ghana Population and Housing Census 2010"}, {"bbox": [85, 1578, 1143, 1621], "category": "Footnote", "text": "⁶ ILO, “TVET opportunities in the Ghanian hospitality and tourist sector”, 2020, https://www.ilo.org/wcmsp5/groups/public/---ed_emp/---ifp-skills/documents/publication/wcms_754220.pdf"}, {"bbox": [85, 1622, 500, 1645], "category": "Footnote", "text": "⁷ Ghana Ministry of Employment and Labour Relations, 2016"}, {"bbox": [1038, 1681, 1143, 1705], "category": "Page-footer", "text": "Page 5 of 33"}]