Finance Minister Dr Cassiel Ato Forson says the realization that Ghana economic model failed over the past 69 years is what drives the government's push for a fundamental restructuring of the economy to deliver actual jobs and lasting prosperity.
Addressing the National House of Chiefs ahead of the 2027 Budget presentation scheduled for Thursday, November 12, 2026, Forson argued that traditional approaches have consistently fallen short of creating a sustainable future for the country's youth.
Moving Past Temporary Job Schemes
Forson told the traditional leaders that temporary state employment interventions like the Nation Builders Corps (NABCO) and Youth Employment Agency (YEA) were merely short-term fixes that failed to solve structural unemployment.
"The temporary models may offer immediate relief and experience to our people, but our young people need dependable livelihoods beyond the end of the placement of these temporary models.
"Their future cannot depend on moving from one temporary opportunity to the next." - Ato Forson
He pitched the government's proposed "New Economy" strategy as a departure from these band-aid solutions, designed instead to expand real industries that can absorb millions of school leavers over time.
Value Addition Over Raw Exports
A cornerstone of the new framework involves ending Ghana's historical reliance on shipping raw, unprocessed natural resources abroad.
Forson stressed that establishing domestic processing capacity for agricultural products and minerals is the only way to build real industrial capacity, keep wealth within the country, and generate permanent manufacturing jobs.
He warned that leaving youth unemployment unaddressed threatens national security, raising the prospect of a severe social crisis if the state and private sector fail to build a functional job market quickly.
Fiscal Discipline and Chiefly Support
Ahead of his parliamentary appearance on Thursday, the Finance Minister assured the traditional rulers that government will enforce strict fiscal discipline and prioritize value for money across public procurement and expenditure.
He appealed to the National House of Chiefs to rally their communities behind the New Economy agenda, framing the 2027 Budget as the formal starting point for this structural economic shift.
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