Forty-two YES beneficiaries receive GH¢1.2 million
Forty-two out of 79 beneficiaries of the Youth Enterprise Support (YES) programme have received disbursements totalling GH¢1.2 million.
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The remaining 37 beneficiaries have failed to provide the necessary data and documentation to enable them to access the support required for their set-up as young entrepreneurs.
Twenty-six other beneficiaries are currently being trained in poultry, piggery, aquaculture and vegetable farming, following which they would be screened and given support.
This was disclosed by the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of YES, Ms Helga Boadi, in an interview with the Daily Graphic in Accra yesterday.
The objective of the YES is to help facilitate the country’s economic growth by harnessing the vision and creativity of young entrepreneurs through the provision of financial and expert business support.
Ms Boadi said a total of 107 beneficiaries were named by the YES outfit but two persons had opted out, citing other engagements that would not allow them to fully avail themselves of the YES project.
Inability to meet deadline
She said a deadline was given to all the beneficiaries to provide adequate personal data, register their various companies and open an account with the Ghana Commercial Bank, into which the disbursements would be made.
Ms Boadi said it was regrettable that in spite of those simple requirements, 37 of the beneficiaries had not been able to meet the deadlines.
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She said from observation, it looked as though some beneficiaries expected to be given money without going through due diligence.
But she maintained that “things cannot be business as usual as had been the experience of some social interventions in the past’’.
YES not philanthropic institution
Ms Boadi said the YES could not operate like a philanthropic institution, explaining that the monies given out were interest-free loans payable upon the attainment of sustainable growth by the beneficiaries and not grants.
She announced that another batch of 300 applicants would be meeting the selection committee this month, following which those who would pass would undergo preparations to start the second phase of the programme.
The Youth Enterprise Support (YES) programme was set up by President John Mahama in 2014 with a GH¢10 million seed money.
The President personally introduced the 107 beneficiaries at a ceremony at the Flagstaff House last August.