The 2025 edition of the Springboard Road Show is sparking renewed enthusiasm for youth empowerment and agricultural innovation across Ghana, as it tours the Upper West, Bono East, and Ahafo regions under the Ghana Grows programme.
The nationwide initiative, which aims to reach over 500,000 young people across all 16 regions, has brought together traditional leaders, municipal executives, and entrepreneurs with one shared goal: to transform agriculture, skills, and enterprise into engines of national growth.
In the Upper West Region, the Road Show made a significant stop at the Wa Technical Institute, where traditional leaders, including representatives of the Yaa Naa, joined local authorities to support youth participation in agribusiness and skills training. Addressing the gathering, the Municipal Chief Executive for Wa, Alhaji Issah Nurah Danwanaa, highlighted the crucial role of agriculture and Technical and Vocational Education and Training (ATVET) in achieving sustainable development.
“Together, let us drive agriculture and ATVET as the engines of youth and women empowerment for regional development,” he said. His remarks reflected the government’s broader commitment to revitalising the Planting for Food and Jobs Phase II initiative and strengthening TVET reforms to align with industry needs.
At Techiman in the Bono East Region, the forum drew hundreds of young people who were urged to see agriculture not as a last resort but as a frontier of innovation and opportunity. The Municipal Chief Executive for Techiman, Hon. Kwaku Adjei Mensah, said agriculture remained one of the most promising sectors for youth empowerment. “It offers vast potential for innovation, employment, and enterprise,” he said.
The event also focused on mentorship, mental health, and entrepreneurship, with members of the Ghana Grows Girls Club sharing their transformation stories. Among them was Ellen Anyaki, who launched a garlic and ginger paste business after winning the 60-Day Backyard Farming Challenge, and Haggar Sackey, who started Evert & Co., a soap production enterprise now training senior high school students.
In Bechem, the Ahafo Regional edition brought traditional leaders and policymakers together to discuss the future of agribusiness and youth inclusion. The Chief of Bechem, Nana Opaw Nwomaso Boampong Bekoe, called on government to expand support for agriculture and agribusiness initiatives, describing them as “the true pathways to national wealth creation.”
“When you go to Kumasi, most of the big houses belong to farmers,” he said. “These are the kinds of programmes the government should sponsor because they prepare young people to create real value.”
The Ahafo Regional Minister, Charity Gardiner, commended the Springboard Foundation for prioritising young women in agriculture. She noted that nearly 80 percent of participants in the Ghana Grows programme are female, breaking traditional barriers in entrepreneurship and agribusiness.
Led by Executive Director Comfort Ocran and Technical Director Albert Ocran, the Springboard Road Show continues to combine storytelling, mentorship, and enterprise development to inspire youth inclusion and growth. “True capital begins with what’s in your hands,” Mrs Ocran said. “Diligence, integrity, and tenacity build businesses that last.”