Award winning nutrition health wellness company, Nestlé Ghana, as part of efforts to supporting young people through its Global Youth Initiative program marked the 17th International Youth Day by engaging outgoing national service personnel who have served at various posts within the Company.

The forum forms part of the Company’s ambition to deliver 45,000 – 50,000 apprenticeship and traineeship opportunities and also create jobs for over 20,000 people aged under 30 each year by 2020 globally.

According to Mrs. Agnes Forson, Human Resources Manager of Nestlé Ghana Limited “our focus of making lives better aligns with our belief that developing thriving, resilient communities starts with education and promoting decent employment and diversity. Hence, the commemoration of International Youth Day with our national service personnel”.

Touching on the high rate of unemployment and the role of Nestlé, Mrs. Forson added that, “unemployment is a major issue in the African continent with Ghana being no exception. At Nestlé, as part of our contribution to the attainment of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal 8, we support youth employment by creating equal opportunities for individuals in order for them to be socially and economically active”, she concluded.

At the forum, Mr. Richard Baffour Executive Director of Jobsinghana.com, one of Ghana’s leading job portals shared some job search insights with participants as well as methods in preparing good résumés in the job search process.

Mr. David Adarkwa, one of Nestlé’s longest serving employees with over 20 years of experience, shared his career history with the objective of inspiring the national service personnel and providing them with a guide to thriving in the world of business. He shared that hard work, determination, respect and relationship building are key foundations in starting a career.

Mr. Adarkwa who started working at Nestle as a national service person in 1994 also advised participants to take initiatives and try to find solutions to problems that exist in the business world as they may open employment opportunities that could be their breakthrough to starting a rewarding career.

International Youth Day is an annual awareness day designated by the United Nations to create awareness for cultural and legal issues surrounding the youth. International Youth Day has been in existence for 17 years.