The former President, John Dramani Mahama, has asked the Vice President, Dr Mahamudu Bawumia, and the Akufo-Addo government to make the payment of arrears owed the trainees under the Nation Builders Corps' programme a priority. The former president declared at a recent public event that the youth of this country are being shortchanged by the non-payment of stipends to the trainees who have been working under the initiative.
The NABCO program was initiated in 2018 by the Akufo-Addo administration to provide temporary employment for thousands of jobless graduates to equip them with some work experience. However, the program has been ridden with controversies, including delays in paying participants that have left many trainees struggling to meet their basic needs.
The former President described the failure by the government to pay the NABCO arrears as an open display of disregard for the well-being of the youth in the country. He called on Dr. Bawumia, who is also the head of the Economic Management Team, to show he truly cares about the concerns of the youth by ensuring that outstanding stipends are cleared without delay.
The youth are the future of this country, and if we truly care about their welfare, we must ensure that those who worked under the NABCO programme are paid what they are owed. It is disheartening to see young Ghanaians trying to make something for themselves being treated like this," said Mahama.
He also drew attention to the general topic of unemployment among youth in the country, stressing that NABCO, with all beautiful intentions, has so far failed to give the lasting solution to the job crisis. He, therefore, called on the government to invest in sustainable job creation initiatives and vocational training so as to prepare the youth for life.
It has been the case that many trainees have expressed anger at the continued delays, although government officials have only retorted that something is being done to solve this problem of NABCO payments.
Mahama's comments add to an emerging clamor for more to be done on youth development and job creation in Ghana.
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