A year after the introduction of the Youth Employment and Entrepreneurial Project (YEEP) by MTN Ghana in partnership with Plan Ghana, the 100 beneficiaries have made significant strides and employed other young vibrant youth in the Suhum and Nsawam Districts of the Eastern Region.
The move has created more than 50 indirect jobs, thus, exceeding the goal of the YEEP programme, which initially trained 100 young men and women in mobile phone assembling.
The Youth Employment and Entrepreneurial Project is aimed at reducing unemployment and creating reliable and sustainable jobs for young people in the country.
Last year, the beneficiaries were taken through the introduction to mobile phone technology, basic customer service, front end repairs, repair and rectification of faults of mobile phones, and how to maintain a safe and secure work environment.
They were also given start-up tools, an MTN-Plan Ghana branded kiosk and a certificate of participation.
In an interview with the media, the Economic Empowerment Advisor of the MTN Ghana Foundation, Cynthia Mills, said her outfit is satisfied with the impact of the project.
“We are happy about the way they are going about their work because the majority of them are using the skills that we have given them and some of them have even gotten apprentices, which is very good. It tells us that our money hasn’t gone down the drain and the youth are hungry to learn skills. So, when you make that provision for them, they will apply their minds to it,” she indicated.
Testimonies from beneficiaries
One of the beneficiaries, Awatey Derrick, whose shop is located in Suhum, noted that the intervention has changed his life tremendously, adding that: “Because of this programme, I can now afford my daily bread. So if there’s anything I can boast of, I am grateful for the fact that I am able to get something to eat at the end of the day. I don’t need to wonder where my daily bread will come from”.
He added that he is practising a good savings culture and, therefore, he had been able to rent a room to lay his head.
“I am saving a lot of money, and I have now been able to rent. I’m living a comfortable life and it’s all thanks to MTN. I want to say a big thank you to MTN Ghana and Plan Ghana,” he said.
While revealing that he has started training others to also benefit from the skills he acquired from the YEEP project, he called on the MTN Foundation to continue the project to change the lives of others.
On his part, another beneficiary, Enoch Ofori, was full of praise for MTN, saying that through its intervention, he no longer struggles as he used to.
He shared: “The work has been very beneficial. Right now I’m able to save and do things for myself. Before this, I struggled to pay my rent and take care of things that I needed. But through this work, I’m able to sort all these things out. Right now I have four people I’m training and I hope very soon they can also be on their own. This has only been possible because of MTN, and I say a big thank you to them.”
Another beneficiary, Ohene Ansah Diana, also expressed gratitude to MTN Ghana Foundation. She explained that the skills she acquired had made her economically empowered.
“Thanks to the skills MTN Ghana gave me, I am not at the mercy of men looking at taking advantage of needy and vulnerable ladies. So far, the work has been very helpful. At first, we were staying home. Now we can come to work and get something to take care of ourselves and even our dependents. If I didn’t get this, I believe I’d have been depending on a man by now,” she said.
Rosemary Mensah, also a beneficiary, shared: “This business has helped me a lot. At first, things were very hard for me because I only went to the market on market days to sell. But the money I was getting was as not enough. Now with this business, thanks to MTN, I have another source of income which helps me to even take care of my younger siblings”.
