Boosting Green Employment and Enterprise Opportunities (GrEEn)

Boosting Green Employment and Enterprise Opportunities in Ghana (GrEEn) is a four-year joint project from the European Union, the Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in Ghana, the United Nations Capital Development Fund (UNCDF) and SNV. The project is implemented in the Ashanti and Western regions of Ghana.

GrEEn is funded under the European Union Emergency Trust Fund for Africa (EUTF), which European and African partners set up in 2015 to deliver an integrated and coordinated response to irregular migration, forced displacement and diverse causes of instability, including climate change. The project contributes to addressing the root causes of irregular migration by supporting sustainable and climate-resilient local economies, green jobs, and development in departure, transit, and return regions.

Objectives:

1. Support the transition of local economies to green and climate resilient development.

2. Improve the employability and entrepreneurship capabilities of selected people by matching them with market opportunities and mentoring them into (self-)employment and enterprise development (focus on green and climate resilient local economies).

3. Create and strengthen local ecosystems that support youth (self-)employment and the development of MSMEs.

GrEEn is implemented in coordination with the Ghanaian Ministry of Local Government and Rural Development (and other relevant ministries) alongside the Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies of the two focal regions. Furthermore, SNV is working with a wide variety of partners, including the private sector, vocational and other training service providers, incubation and acceleration hubs, relevant Ministries, the Ghanaian diaspora, the International Organisation for Migration (IOM), as well as other donors and relevant actors working on green jobs and enterprises.

SNV focuses on the following two result areas:

• Employability and entrepreneurship capabilities of youth, women and returnees are improved in sectors of economic opportunities.

• Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs), offering decent and sustainable jobs to youth, women and returnees, are incubated and/or accelerated and contribute to green and climate resilient local economies.