Ghana

The Skills Initiative for Africa (SIFA) is an initiative of the African Union Commission (AUC) and the African Union Development Agency (AUDANEPAD) supported by the German Government and the European Union. SIFA promotes the occupational prospects of young Africans through the support of innovative skills development programmes and close cooperation with the private sector as an integral key stakeholder in the creation of jobs. The initiative consists of two components, a Finance Facility and a Technical Component.

In 2019, Ghana successfully hosted The Year of Return, Ghana 2019, a year-long programme of activities to commemorate the 400th anniversary of the arrival of the first recorded enslaved Africans in the State of Virginia in the United States.

These activities included visits to heritage sites, healing ceremonies, theatre and musical performances, lectures, investment forums and relocation conferences. The aim was to promote Ghana as a tourist destination and investment opportunity as well as to encourage resettlement in the motherland for the Africans in the diaspora. 

In 2018, the IOM launched the project "Integrating Migration into National Development Plans: Towards Policy Coherence and the Achievement of SDGs at National and Global Levels", funded by the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs (UN DESA) through the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development Sub-Fund of the Peace and Development Fund, of which the People’s Republic of China is a major contributor.

The D4C initiative is funded by the IOM Development Fund and capitalizes on the dynamic link between diaspora communities and their home countries to enhance responses to climate change. It strategically focuses on priority sectors in four countries: Moldova, Bangladesh, Ghana, and Jamaica. These countries are all significantly affected by the negative impacts of climate change, and the challenges they face require immediate action from a variety of stakeholders.

IFAD is partnering with Ecobank Ghana under the PRIME Africa initiative to launch
innovative financial solutions aimed at enhancing access and use of remittance services
by Ghanaians in Germany and the Netherlands, as well as their families back home.

IFAD is partnering with Fidelity Bank Ghana under the PRIME Africa initiative to enable remittance recipients in high-migration rural areas to increase their share of remittances saved in formal bank accounts.

In sub-Saharan Africa and in particular in Ghana, adverse drivers of migration include natural and human-made crises, rural poverty, food insecurity, inequality, unemployment, lack of social protection as well as natural resources depletion due to environmental degradation and climate change, which are some underlying causes of out migration.

In collaboration with the African diaspora in Europe, WIDU applies an innovative approach that combines funding and coaching to strengthen new and existing small businesses in Africa, which then leads to the creation of new jobs.

WIDU.africa works in close collaboration with different African diaspora organisations and associations based in Europe. This partnership is vital for the implementation of WIDU.africa and the success of the project as they create a bridge between the WIDU.africa project and its most important actors ñ the diaspora members.

AFFORD Business Centre is a space to connect with entrepreneurs in the UK and on the continent with shared focuses, value-systems, ambitions and experiences as yourself.

The ABC sits within one of the most innovative diaspora social enterprises in Europe, the African Foundation for Development (AFFORD). AFFORD has been working with African diaspora communities, global governments and institutions and the private sector for over 20 years.

The European Union Global Diaspora Facility (EUDiF), through the International Centre for Migration Policy Development (ICMPD), is providing technical support to AFFORD to address SMEs' financing and skills gaps by developing the online fundraising capacity of African diaspora investors. The action is building capacity in crowdfunding for raising philanthropic and investment funds for AFFORD Business Centre (ABC) SMEs in West Africa.