Former Director-General of the Commission for Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) and a member of Parliament’s Education Committee, Dr Fred Kyei Asamoah, has renewed calls for stronger collaboration between government and industry to improve employment opportunities for graduates of technical and vocational institutions.

Speaking to journalists on Friday, June 26, the Offinso North MP said there was an urgent need to ensure that young people in TVET institutions do not spend years acquiring skills without clear pathways to employment.

He warned that the current situation risks wasting up to two years of the productive lives of many young people if reforms are not implemented quickly.

Dr Asamoah urged the government to move swiftly to bring industry players on board, arguing that effective skills development cannot be achieved without direct private sector involvement in training delivery.

He referred to earlier efforts to introduce a dual training system under which students would combine classroom instruction with practical industry experience for a few days each week. However, he noted that the status of the initiative remains unclear and called for its revival and proper implementation.

According to him, the government alone cannot generate enough jobs for the growing number of graduates entering the labour market.

He argued that the private sector must be the primary engine of job creation, with the government focusing on creating an enabling environment for businesses to grow and employ more people.

Dr Asamoah criticised the widespread expectation that the state should absorb most graduates into public sector employment, describing such expectations as unrealistic given current economic conditions and the limited number of vacancies available.

He further noted that many Ghanaians who travel abroad often secure employment in the private sector rather than in government institutions, suggesting that this reflects the natural structure of labour markets across the world.

According to him, Ghana’s increasing number of tertiary graduates cannot all be accommodated in the public sector, making private sector-led job creation essential to addressing unemployment.

He therefore called for deliberate policies that strengthen collaboration between industry and training institutions to ensure that TVET graduates acquire relevant skills and transition smoothly into the world of work.