Steven Nhyira Odarteifio has announced his bid for the National Youth Organiser position of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), promising to reposition the party’s youth wing around economic empowerment and opportunities for young people.

Speaking at a press conference in Accra on Monday, September 14, 2026, Mr Odarteifio said his campaign, which he has named “Economic Mobilisation,” is founded on the belief that young Ghanaians should not need wealth, political connections or established networks before their ideas and leadership potential are recognised.

“Your future cannot be chained to somebody else's definition of when you are ready,” he said, arguing that readiness should instead be judged by a person's ideas, service, character, impact and ability to deliver.

Mr Odarteifio said the NDC’s youth wing must move beyond mobilising young people primarily for elections and become a platform through which they can access economic opportunities throughout the political cycle.

“I do not want a Youth Wing that only knows how to mobilise young people for elections. I want a Youth Wing that knows how to mobilise opportunity between elections,” he said.

Focus on government programmes.

The candidate identified government initiatives including Adwumawura, the National Apprenticeship Programme and One Million Coders as opportunities that could significantly benefit young people if they were effectively communicated and made accessible.

“Programmes alone do not change lives,” he said. “People must know about them. People must be able to reach them. People must be organised around them.”

He said his proposed approach would focus on connecting young people to opportunities in areas including capital, skills development, enterprise, agriculture, technology and markets.

Mr Odarteifio, who described his professional background as spanning agriculture, enterprise and youth development, cited his experience working on agricultural economic enclaves, equipment deployment, artisan manufacturing support and agricultural education.

He claimed these initiatives had created opportunities for more than 100,000 young people, which he said demonstrated his capacity to lead the NDC's youth wing.

If elected, he pledged to help economically impact one million more young people before the end of President John Dramani Mahama's current administration.

‘This is your moment’

Mr Odarteifio also sought to position his campaign as a challenge to what he described as a culture of waiting for political opportunities and relying on established connections.

He referenced historical figures including Yaa Asantewaa, Kwame Nkrumah and Jerry John Rawlings, whom he said demonstrated that leadership could emerge from people who were willing to organise, serve and mobilise rather than simply wait for their turn.

His appeal was particularly directed at party activists, unemployed graduates and constituency organisers who, he said, had been made to feel that they lacked the money, connections or political backing required to lead.

“I see you. I believe in you,” he said. “This is your moment. This is your time to rise.”

Mr Odarteifio said his bid was ultimately intended to complement President Mahama's economic agenda by ensuring that more young people could participate meaningfully in the economy.

He argued that a youth wing capable of delivering economic opportunities and building stronger links with young people could also strengthen the NDC's long-term political prospects, including his stated ambition of helping the party “secure 20 years of consecutive power.”