The first cohort of the “Cash for Work (CfW) initiative”, a scheme under the Boosting Green Employment and Enterprise Opportunities in Ghana (GrEEn) Project have successfully graduated at Yabiw, a community in the Ahanta West Municipal Assembly (AWMA) of the Western Region.
The 53 beneficiaries were trained on how to identify green opportunities in their communities, set goals towards a green job, and understand what it took to be employed or be an entrepreneur in the green sector.
Other skills that were imparted to the beneficiaries included, how to manage their finances, communicate effectively, deal with conflicts, critically solve and avoid problems, and how to work together effectively to achieve their goals.
Speaking at the graduation ceremony, MrShaibuFuseini, Coordinator of the GrEEn Project, lauded the efforts and contributions of its partners on the project especially in the conduct of needs assessment survey.
He said the findings of the needs assessment survey, which identified the needs and skills gaps prevalent in the municipality formed the basis for the development of the GrEEn Training Manual.
He said the Green Project sought to empower its beneficiaries with life employability as well as orientational technical skills.
The idea, he explained was to provide over 4,000 youth in 10 MMDAs of the Western and Ashanti regions with employability and entrepreneurship skills for the fledgling local green economy.
MrFuseini described the graduation of the first cohort as a turning moment in the implementation of the GrEEn project and said it was an important milestone in the transformational journey of the beneficiaries of the project.
He encouraged the graduands to be at the forefront of the green revolution in Ghana by using the skills acquired to transform their lives and impact positively on the lives of others in their community.
Mr Alexander Mar Kekula, National Director of SOS Children’s Village, described the GrEEn Project as a timely intervention capable of addressing the country’s environmental challenges.
The project, he noted was being implemented at a crucial time when stakeholders who were mindful of the environment and sustenance of the world were promoting climate-resilient and environmentally friendly innovations.
He mentioned activities such as illegal mining, sand wining, indiscriminate felling of trees, and hunting for animals among others as notable economic activities that destroyed the environment.
The effects of such unhealthy economic activities, he said were glaring in most communities.
“Our colourless water bodies are now turning brown and yellow due to these activities. Sand wining without reclamation of the land has exposed a lot of communities to flood activities. A lot have lost their lives and properties due to these activities,” he said.
Mr Kekula congratulated the graduands for their commitment and dedication to the programme and expressed the hope that the acquired skills would shape their thoughts about the environment and give them a good conscience to protect the environment. -GNA
