Building Local Entrepreneurial Skills to Support the Rural Poor for Sustainable Economic Self-Reliance: The youth at Asutifi North District

Abstract

The European Union delegatioin to Ghana has supported a 42 months LED project at the Asutifi North district of the Ahafo Region of Ghana. The project was implemented by CDD-Ghana in partnership with the Asutifi North District Assembly (ANDA). The project aimed to harness local resources, knowledge, ideas, skills, and other comparative advantages to stimulate local economic growth and development, create job opportunities and self-employment, reduce poverty, stem internal migration, and
promote sustainable and inclusive development. The project developed the capacity of 45 youth, women and PWDs to acquire some vocational skills and support them in establishing their own businesses. The target beneficiaries were selected from the communities which are adversely affected by the mining operations in the district.

A baseline survey was conducted in communities located in the three zonal councils (Kenyasi No.1, Kenyasi No.2, and Ntotroso) was conducted to ascertain the skills set that the beneficiaries preferred to learn, and; assess market potentials for the chosen skills. A total number of 650 people, aged between 18 and 45 were randomly selected and interviewed. A total of 39 communities within the three zonal councils were visited for the interviews.