The Chief Executive Officer of the Youth Employment Agency (YEA), Malik Basintale, has outlined plans for Jobs Connect, a digital platform designed to link young people trained under the agency’s programmes with individuals and businesses seeking skilled services.
The initiative is to strengthen the agency’s efforts to connect skills training with practical employment outcomes.
“We are creating a marketplace where skills can meet opportunities at the touch of a button. We want to ensure that skills acquired by our beneficiaries do not remain idle, but translate into actual jobs, incomes, and sustainable livelihoods.”
Malik Basintale
The CEO indicated that the application will become fully operational within a few weeks, with trained workers already onboarded and make it easier for customers to locate service providers within their communities.
Mr Basintale explained that Jobs Connect would allow users to find workers such as barbers, plumbers, mechanics, carpenters and bakers trained through the YEA. The application is designed to simplify the process of identifying and engaging service providers, reducing the difficulty customers sometimes encounter when searching for reliable artisans.
He encouraged smartphone users with Android and iOS devices to download the application ahead of its full rollout. According to the CEO, the platform is intended to operate across approximately 264 Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies, extending its reach beyond major urban centres.
Beyond helping customers find artisans, the platform is designed to expand the visibility of skilled young people whose services might otherwise remain unknown outside their immediate communities. Mr Basintale highlighted the challenge of locating qualified workers, particularly when they live in different towns or operate without an established digital presence.
He believes a centralised platform could help bridge this gap by allowing customers to identify available service providers and select the worker whose services meet their needs. The application’s nationwide reach, once operational, could also make trained workers more accessible to businesses and households.
Timely Payments And Employment Priorities
Furthermore, Mr Basintale highlighted improvements in the payment of YEA beneficiaries, explaining that payments had been brought up to date at the time of his presentation, while outstanding transfers were still in transit. He commended the agency’s team for improving payment timeliness, contrasting the development with previous periods when beneficiaries could wait six to eight months.
Looking ahead, the CEO outlined broader employment interventions planned for 2027, including programmes in domestic services, delivery logistics and corporate services. These initiatives, alongside Jobs Connect, reflect the agency’s stated objective of expanding employment pathways for young Ghanaians and helping them translate their capabilities into sustainable work.
He also stressed the need to recognise the capabilities of Ghanaian workers and create opportunities that allow them to contribute meaningfully to the economy.
“We are determined to demonstrate that domestic service is not an inferior form of employment, but a legitimate and respectable profession that deserves recognition, regulation, and investment.”
Malik Basintale
Domestic Service Employment Programme
The CEO identified the Domestic Service Employment Programme as one of the agency’s priorities for 2027, explaining that domestic work remains a significant source of employment despite often operating informally. Many people work as housekeepers, caregivers, domestic assistants and household support personnel without adequate professional training or clearly defined employment arrangements.
Mr Basintale pointed to the Domestic Workers Regulations, 2020 (L.I. 2408), under the Labour Act, 2003 (Act 651), as a legal framework supporting the protection of domestic workers. The regulations address matters including written contracts, remuneration, working conditions and rest periods.
Under the proposed programme, the YEA intends to recruit and train young people in housekeeping, home management, caregiving and related services. The agency also hopes to create opportunities for trained workers to serve households in Ghana and potentially access employment abroad.
He observed that some households recruit domestic workers from countries such as Benin, Côte d’Ivoire and the Philippines, even though Ghana has people who could be trained for comparable roles. The programme, he explained, would seek to develop local capacity while promoting domestic service as a respectable profession.
Youth In Delivery Service Programme
In addition to domestic employment, the agency plans to introduce the Youth in Delivery Service Programme, also referred to as the Youth Delivery Brigade Programme. The initiative is intended to respond to the expansion of electronic commerce, online retail and app-based services, which have increased demand for the movement of goods and parcels.
According to Mr Basintale, the YEA’s findings indicate that 10 of Ghana’s 16 administrative regions lack established delivery services of the kind envisaged under the proposed intervention. He characterised this gap as both a service challenge and an opportunity to create jobs for young people in underserved areas.
The planned programme would equip participants with relevant skills, operational support and access to delivery infrastructure. It is also intended to help businesses reach customers more reliably while enabling young people to participate in the growing logistics economy.
The YEA’s next priority is the proposed Youth in Corporate Service Programme, which is intended to broaden access to professional and workplace opportunities. Mr Basintale explained that youth employment policy should accommodate graduates, diploma holders, technical and vocational graduates, secondary school leavers and people without formal academic qualifications who can develop practical skills.
He indicated that the programme would cater for two broad groups: graduates seeking corporate and professional experience, and non-graduates.
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