Dr Joyce Aryee, Management and Communications Consultant, has observed that graduate unemployment is a matter of choice.

“To call yourself unemployed because you have not achieved what you are looking for does not make you unemployed,” she said.

Dr Aryee said it is important that the unemployed youth are assertive, proactive and should be able to form a consortium to put ideas together to start business from the small level in order to build confidence for future opportunities.

She made the observation at a career clinic in Accra on Tuesday, organised by the British Council and Barclays Bank on the theme: “Employers and Job Seekers Engagement; Finding Solutions to the Graduate Unemployment Situation in Ghana.”

Dr Aryee, also Executive Officer of the Salt and Light Ministry, advised the unemployed youth to eschew laziness and develop the habit of reading to improve their knowledge and communication skills.

She said most employers are looking for graduates who are smart, analytical, self confident and have good attitude to employ.

Dr Aryee called on the youth to be creative and be ready to start from small ventures.

Mr Francis Damka, Branch Manager of Barclays Bank, said most of the unemployed youth are eager to work in multi-national companies and advised them to start from a humble beginning and be prepared to sacrifice in any given field to learn and gain experience.

Mr Damka expressed the need for the enhancement of allocation of resources from national budgets to strengthen employment promotion activities.

He said measures should be introduced to expand social welfare programmes, while the education system should be restructured to produce graduates who are capable of creating self-employment.