Agric Graduates Top Unemployment List

A report by Professor William Baah Boateng of the Department of Economics at the University of Ghana, indicates that students who graduate in Agriculture and Social Science top list of unemployed graduates in the country.

According to the report, about 17.2 percent of graduates who studied Agriculture and 18.9 percent in Social Science, did not gain employment in 2015, due to a low demand in the labor market.

The unemployed graduates in these two fields are higher than those in Education, Sciences, Health, Engineering and Humanities and others.

At a forum organized by African Center for Economic Transformation (ACET), on “Youth Unemployment and Joblessness Challenge in Ghana”, Professor Boateng explained that the countries educational curriculum does not create the kind of labor force needed on the market, hence causing a high unemployment rate.

“If you look at our education system there seems to be a mismatch between what we produce and what the labour market wants. Every program taught at the Universities is good, but we don’t need the number of people we have trained in that program to be more than what we need,” he stressed.

According to the report, lower educated youth unemployment rates are reported among those with skill in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM).

To solve the problem, Professor Boateng called for the need to go back to our basic education system to ensure training in mathematics is intensified to get more people in science at the secondary school level to feed the faculty of sciences in the universities and polytechnics.

He further advised that Critical Thinking should be taught in the universities to enable students adopt into every situation when they graduate.

“We also need to look at the quality of training that we have. Many people would think you have to link the training to the job market, but the training should be such that the student comes out and his mind is well trained. Students must be taught critical thinking so that when he comes out he will be able to adopt into every situation especially when the global job market is changing so fast,” he explained.

The African Center for Economic Transformation (ACET) is an economic policy institute supporting Africa’s long-term growth through transformation.

They provide research, policy advice, and institutional strengthening for African countries to develop their economies, reduce poverty, and improve livelihoods for all Africans.

By: Emmanuel Yeboah Britwum/ [email protected]