A new report launched by the Ghana Statistical Service (GSS) on Thursday revealed an “entrenched” long-term unemployment situation in the West African country.
The July 2025 edition of the Quarterly Labor Statistics said the situation has trapped thousands in prolonged joblessness.
The report indicated a slight drop in the average unemployment rate to 13.6 percent in 2024, from 14.6 percent the previous year, noting that despite the marginal growth in employment, “too many jobs remain informal and insecure.”
“The data reveals that the challenge remains most pronounced among the youth, with 22.5 percent of Ghanaians aged 15 to 35 currently unemployed, underscoring persistent pressures on first-time jobseekers and graduates despite the broader gains in employment,” Alhassan Iddrisu, government statistician of the GSS, stated.
Iddrisu added that despite expanding opportunities, there are weaknesses in job quality and the economy’s ability to absorb new entrants quickly.
Gender dimensions also emerged in the report, indicating that female employment consistently exceeded male employment throughout the fourth quarter of 2024, as the employment gap between males and females increased to over 1.1 million, from 632,000 in the first quarter of 2022.
“This is a sign that female labor participation and job creation for women have been strong in absolute terms,” the official noted.
The GSS urged the government to scale up apprenticeship, graduate employment schemes, and job placement services, while reforming and expanding the technical and vocational education and training to match training with demand, especially in digital, industrial, and green economy sectors.
Small businesses, especially those owned by women and young people, also need affordable credit to boost job creation, it added.
Earlier in August, the ninth World Bank Economic Update for Ghana, titled “Addressing Labor Market Challenges and Opportunities in Ghana’s Economic Landscape,” called on Ghana to focus ongoing structural reforms on private-led growth and job creation to absorb the growing youthful population. Enditem
Source: Xinhua
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