The Minister of Youth and Sports, Mr Mustapha Ussif, on Thursday, September 22, 2022, paid a visit to the national headquarters of the governing New Patriotic Party (NPP).

He interacted with the national officers and staff of the party on the policies, programmes and activities of his ministry and the pro-youth steps being taken by the government to make life better for them.

The visit, which the national officers facilitated, forms part of the initiatives intended to bridge the gap between government appointees and party officers ahead of the 2024 polls.

The General Secretary of the party, Mr Justin Kodua Frimpong, who received the minister on behalf of national executives, commended Mr Ussif for making time to visit the headquarters.

He sought information from the minister on some of the interventions being pursued by his ministry to enhance the living standards of the Ghanaian youth and sports development.

In his response, Mr Ussif noted that nearly 75% of the country’s 31.8 million population falls within the youthful bracket, hence, the government’s commitment to implement several youth-centred interventions.

He mentioned among other things interventions such as YouStart, Green Ghana, various modules of the Youth Employment Agency and COVET, as having led to the employment, training, capacity building and the provision of financial support to thousands of the country’s youth.

The minister urged the party to liaise with the appropriate government officials and agencies supervising these youth-centred interventions to complement the success of such interventions.

He further encouraged the party to emulate the youth structures of South Africa's ruling African National Congress which, he said, has been crucial to the party’s extended stay in power.

In his concluding remarks, the NPP General Secretary thanked Mr Ussif for his time.

He reiterated the point that this initiative of holding regular party-government meetings would be replicated across the country, particularly in the regional capitals, with the overall objective of providing a platform for government appointees particularly ministers of state and CEOs to interact with party officers and grassroots at all levels.

As part of this initiative, the previous weeks have witnessed visits by some government appointees including the CEO of Ghana Water Company Limited, Dr Clifford Braimah; and the Minister of Lands and Natural Resources, Mr Samuel Abdulai Jinapor.

Other appointees are expected to have their turn in the coming weeks.