Young Ghanaians have launched a social media campaign named #FixTheCountry calling for better living conditions. The hashtag has become viral.
Social media users in Ghana are supporting to the hashtag #FixTheCountry in large numbers to pressure the government to improve its citizens’ lives. The social media initiative is starting to leave cyberspace and taking first steps in the real world. Among the new movement’s demands are more jobs, no corruption, fewer taxes, and better education.
Young people, who make up most of the African population, have long discovered social media to express their frustrations and to put some pressure on governments. Without admitting that it was giving in, the Ghana National Petroleum Authority last week slightly reduced petrol prices, after an increase produced mass outrage on social media.
Only about 10% of university students or graduates find jobs one year after graduating, studies show. That’s in a country that counts more than 270,000 graduates every year from public and private universities. Dissatisfaction is bound to grow, and the government is well aware of the tensions, especially since more and more users are taking to social media to talk about concrete grievances.
