Entrepreneurship must become a core subject in JHS & SHS — not as theory, but as practice

By Daniel Affum ODONKOR

The Member of Parliament (MP) for Nhyiaeso, Dr. Stephen Amoah, on Feb 11, 2026, urged government to make entrepreneurship a core subject in Junior and Senior High Schools.

For some, this was news; for me, this has been a life’s mission.

In 2020, as part of my Master’s research at Coventry University, I investigated whether entrepreneurship education should be formally embedded as a subject within the British curriculum. Through structured research and practical engagement with Ultra Education CIC, the findings were clear: the case for early, structured entrepreneurship education is not theoretical but necessary and viable. The same framework can be adapted and implemented within the Ghanaian education system.

Nations that embed entrepreneurial thinking early do not just create business owners only; they also create problem solvers. Today, Ghana and much of Africa faces three urgent realities: 1) Rising youth unemployment; 2) A mismatch between formal education and market needs; and 3) An overdependence on government and white-collar job expectations.

We cannot out-subsidise this problem. We must out-educate it. But let me be clear: making entrepreneurship a “subject” is not enough. If poorly designed, it will become another examinable course where students memorise definitions like:“Entrepreneurship is the act of…” or “List five characteristics of an entrepreneur.” That changes nothing.

What we actually need

Entrepreneurship education must be practical, experiential and ecosystem-based.

If we are serious, here is what it should include:

1. Financial literacy from JHS

Students must understand money, savings, pricing, cost structures and basic investment thinking before they leave school.

2. Micro venture execution

Every SHS student should graduate having started something — even small: a campus enterprise, a production project, a service venture or a digital experiment. Not simulations. Real execution.

3. Failure as curriculum

We must normalise business failure as learning curve and not something to be ashamed of.

4. Industry integration

Local artisans, SME owners, agribusiness operators, tech founders should be part-time contributors to entrepreneurship modules.

5. Vocational integration

Entrepreneurship must not be separated from skill acquisition. A plumber with entrepreneurial thinking creates jobs; a seamstress with entrepreneurial literacy builds a brand; and a welder with financial discipline scales.

This is why through the Chaste Global Foundation, we have focused on vocational training combined with entrepreneurial orientation. This is because skill alone is not enough. Mindset without skill is also not enough. The real transformation happens at the intersection.

Why this is urgent for Ghana and Africa

Africa’s population is young. By 2035, more young Africans will enter the workforce annually than in the rest of the world combined. The question is simple: Will they be job seekers or value creators?

If entrepreneurship becomes core education at JHS and SHS level, we reduce dependency mindset, we increase innovation across informal sectors, we improve SME survival rates, we stimulate local production, we create dignified work in communities, and we shift national psychology from consumption to creation.

This is not about turning every child into a CEO. It is about embedding initiative, problem identification, value creation, financial discipline and resilience.

These qualities benefit doctors, engineers, teachers and artisans alike.

But policy must go beyond announcement

For this reform to work, government must answer critical questions: who trains the teachers? How do we avoid purely theoretical assessment? How is access to micro-capital integrated? How do we measure real outcomes?

Curriculum reform without ecosystem reform will fail. We need Ministry of Education, NBSSI/Enterprise Ghana equivalents, technical and vocational institutions, private sector operators as well as foundations and NGOs – all aligned.

My position

This is not political; it is developmental.

Entrepreneurship education is not a luxury subject but a needed national infrastructural scheme. Roads connect cities; entrepreneurship education connects potential to productivity. Ghana has talent; Africa has creativity. What we need is systemic cultivation.

I commend the Member of Parliament for raising this in the House. Now the real work begins. If we get this right, we don’t just change curriculum;

we change the trajectory of a generation.