Ghana Has Many Graduates Who Don’t Fit Into Industry—Otumfuo on Push for Technical Education
The Occupant of the Golden Stool, Otumfuo Osei Tutu II, has raised concern over the growing mismatch between university qualifications and labour market demands in Ghana.
He recognises that large numbers of graduates lack the practical skills required to drive the country’s industrial sector.
The Asantehene urged Ottawa to partner with Ghana to strengthen technical and vocational training, which he described as the missing link in the nation’s industrialisation agenda.
“We have so many students—people who finished school, gotten their qualifications and BA, BSc, and everything—and don’t fit anywhere,” Otumfuo Osei Tutu II stated during a courtesy call by Canada’s Deputy Foreign Minister, Arun Thangaraj, at his Accra residence on Wednesday, November 11, 2026.
To address this gap, the Asantehene pointed to the government’s conversion of former polytechnics into technical universities as a prime avenue for Canadian collaboration.
He emphasised that equipping middle-level technicians is essential if Ghana is to successfully transition from an agrarian economy to an industrialised one.
“Those are areas that we think we can collaborate in terms of supporting everything to train the middle-level people to take over in industry,” he explained. “Because if we say we want to industrialise, we need people who can do it. And when we’re able to get from agriculture, then we get to industry.”
Otumfuo Osei Tutu II recalled Canada’s past support for technical education in Kumasi, noting that reviving that legacy would yield significant mutual benefits.
He assured the visiting official that Ghana offers a stable political environment and a conducive economy for renewed partnership across agriculture, education, and industry.
He was accompanied by Canadian High Commissioner Myriam Montrat, Defence Advisor Lieutenant-Colonel Derek Mattinen, Senior Trade Commissioner Waqas Yousafzai, Political Officer Bertha Desmenu, Advisor Robert Listone and Deputy Director Barnabe Ndarishikanye.
Story by Hajaran Fuseini
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