�We�re Churning Out Graduates With Unemployable Skills�

THE Deputy Western Regional Minister, Alfred Ekow Gyan, has stated that until Ghana stops producing what he termed �grammar graduates,� the growing rate of graduate unemployment will persist. He described most of the thousands of graduates being churned out in Ghana annually as �unemployable tools adding to the number of graduates sitting at home.� The Deputy Minister, who bemoaned the alarming proportion the development has assumed, called for a paradigm shift to emphasise more on technical and vocational education for the benefit of the nation. "The many years of grammar and general education has only churned out many graduates without employable skills," he lamented. In an address at the annual matriculation ceremony of the Ghana Technology University College (GTUC) here in Takoradi, the Deputy Minister said the repercussion of churning out graduates without any employable skills was the unending graduate unemployment situation confronting the country. To address the problem, he said academicians in the country must be part of the campaign being waged by government to influence the revival and sustenance of technical and vocational courses to empower Ghanaian youth with employable skills. "We should also consider entrepreneurial training so that our graduates would not completely rely on government for jobs but start their own businesses," he stressed. The Member of Parliament for Takoradi Constituency, Kobinah Okyere Darko-Mensah, who also addressed the function, reminded the newly-admitted students of the impact young graduates in other parts of the world have been making and continue to make in their respective countries. He cited global enterprises such as Facebook and Apple for championing initiatives as the result of the creative hard work of young graduates. He, therefore, challenged students in the country to think outside the box and work out modalities necessary to guarantee them jobs. The MP, who is an entrepreneur, challenged the students to stand firm and reject all forms of pessimistic ideas likely to impact negatively on their aspirations and jeopardise their future.