FOSDA under its Youth Entrepreneurship Support (YES) pilot project has trained Sixteen (16) Youth Entrepreneurs in Leadership and Entrepreneurship, Design Thinking, Business Modelling, Business Management for Growth, Financial Management, Digital Literacy and Marketing, Pitch Deck in the Ashanti Region. The project is funded by OXFAM-Volunteer Cooperation Program (VCP).
The YES project is designed to boost youth startups to scale up and ensure their sustainability. It will provide basic business management skills, marking and branding techniques. It seeks to build business capabilities to grow, thrive and be able to employ other young people.
The two (2) days physical training and 6 weeks virtual training is being delivered by Franklin Owusu Karikari of the National Entrepreneurship and Innovation Plan (NEIP). The capacity building includes a virtual session and coaching program to ensure that the beneficiaries of the project have integrated the lessons learnt into their businesses.

The beneficiaries including 5 males and 11 females have developed a draft version of their business plans using the Business Model Canvas. This will be used throughout the virtual session and coaching to ensure the business plans are viable.
The YES training program was conceived following studies conducted by FOSDA on the impact of COVID-19 on youth businesses and local economies, women and vulnerable groups as well as market surveys conducted in Tamale, Kumasi and Accra. ‘YES’ is also a response to the global economic challenges which has engineered high youth unemployment in Ghana and other African countries.
Partnership for the program comes FOSDA’s youth networks across Ghana. This pilot is partnering specifically with the Ashanti Regional and the Northern Regional Youth Networks. FOSDA is also collaborating with YEfL Ghana and the regional offices of the Ghana Enterprises Agency (GEA) on this Project.