Growing Entrepreneurial Talent-A Challenge for Ghana’s Educational Systems.

Abstract

This article is written with my personal conviction as a corporate and financial services industry player and the unabated sheer quantum of unemployment in Ghana. The teeming youth unemployment which culminated in the formation of ‘the association of unemployed graduates’ a couple of years ago, can be traced to the poor formulation of educational policies with particular reference to lack of introducing entrepreneurship education from primary/ junior high schools. Skills and knowledge derived from the teaching of entrepreneurship education from primary/junior high schools is likely to engender indelible imprint in the memories of these pupils and at the same time generate passion at a very tender age. The knowledge acquisition would enable the pupils to carry through to senior high school and tertiary institutions. They would then have made up their minds on the courses of study they would pursue to becoming entrepreneurs. Challenges, such as dearth of qualified teachers and lack of teaching facilities are apparent deterrents. However, with deliberate training and retraining of teachers, will equip them to pass on the necessary knowledge to the pupils. The long-term benefits of introducing entrepreneurship education in primary/junior high schools cannot be quantified, as it would have positive effect in transforming the industrial development of Ghana.