Youth unemployment in Ghana remained high at 7.16% in 2023, particularly affecting individuals aged 15 to 24, with a pronounced disparity between genders, according to the updated 2024 Africa Economic Outlook by the Africa Development Bank (AfDB).
The report indicated that unemployment was more prevalent among women compared to men, with rates at 36.7% for women and 29.3% for men.
The AfDB report noted that multidimensional poverty in Ghana slightly worsened from 46% in 2017 to 46.7% in 2022, largely due to the impacts of the Covid-19 pandemic. It also revealed a troubling rise in youth unemployment, calling for urgent reinforcement of the country’s structural transformation needs.
The report highlighted stagnant productivity in services, the dominant employment sector, and slow growth in industry and agriculture. It noted a significant shift in employment shares, with agriculture’s share declining from 53.9% in 2007 to 29.8% in 2019, while industry’s share increased from 14.1% to 21.0%, and services’ sector share rising from 31.9% to 49.2% over the same period.
To accelerate structural transformation, the AfDB report recommended enhancing Ghana’s competitiveness by addressing infrastructure bottlenecks, accelerating agro-industrialization through skills development and value addition, and fostering private sector development.
Additionally, it emphasized the need for a robust policy framework to support technology adoption and innovation.
