MTN to tackle youth unemployment

Chief Corporate Services and Sustainability Officer, MTN Ghana, Adwoa Wiafe, has noted that her outfit’s Skills Academy – an initiative of the MTN Foundation – is taking measures to address the unemployment problem in the country, particularly among the youth.

She made this statement at the MTN Skills Academy platform inauguration, which is aimed at developing a more digitally inclusive and future-ready continent. The platform is part of the telecommunications firm’s goal of providing digital solutions for Africa’s progress.

“We must not only focus on digital skills training but also be interested in job creation; as well as the provision of facilities such as skills hubs that will equip Ghana and Africa’s human capital with appropriate skills in the long-term. The MTN Skills Academy therefore comes to add to the different investments we have made in ICT; but unlike previous projects, it focuses on job placement to not only address the digital skills gap but also the serious youth unemployment problem in country,” she said.

The MTN Skills Academy, according to her, is in line with the company’s corporate social investment strategic framework, which has digital skills for digital jobs as its cornerstone.

“We are looking to train 100,000 Ghanaian youth with digital skills and job placements by 2025. For MTN as a group, the target is one million people across Africa,” Madam Wiafe noted.

The MTN Skills Academy, first of its kind in the country, will use technology and partnerships to develop and grow skills that willprimarily assist Ghana’s unemployed and unskilled youth.

It supports MTN Foundation’s US$25million ICT Hub, which focuses on investing in developing and fostering Africa’s rising young population, as well as building a pipeline of prospective innovators, entrepreneurs and academics to bring the ICT Hub to life.

Senior Research Officer, Ministry of Education, Kingsley Boachie, expressed satisfaction with the launch of MTN Skills Academy; adding that the ministry, in collaboration with MTN Foundation, is working on an ICT in education policy to support government’s digitalisation agenda.

“Digitalisation is one of the ministry key agendas. First of all, I would like to express our sincere appreciation to MTN for the MTN Skills Academy – which is in line with the various activities that the ministry is vying for. ICT used to be taught as a subject, but now it’s a medium of instruction.

“The TVET space and STEM education is something that is changing, and we are focusing on skill development. To put everything together, we are currently working on an ICT in education policy. Fortunately, MTN was part of the engagement,” he added.

Under the initiative, young people aged 15 to 24 will be guided via career counselling, digital and financial skills training, job placement needs, work preparation and mentorship.

MTN Ghana Foundation has picked two partner ICT Hubs in Greater Accra to kick-off this initiative: Tshado and Tema. The hubs will aid in recruiting jobless youths to enrol in MTN Skills Academy courses.

They will also build an atmosphere in which jobless people in and around the targetted locations can access the programme online.

Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Mpontu Technologies, Dr. Stephan Nwolley, explained that the changing work environment supports new career options in cybersecurity, data science and artificial intelligence.

“The job market is evolving, with emerging roles like cybersecurity experts, data scientists and AI specialists. This shift is not just creating jobs; it’s creating careers of the future. We are witnessing an era when transitioning from traditional roles to tech-centric careers is not just possible but increasingly common.

“The rise of online platforms like Google, Udemy and Coursera has made quality education accessible to all. These platforms are enabling our youth to gain new skills and transform their careers; turning accountants into data scientists and painters into cybersecurity experts,” he added.

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