Hyundai Motor Company has launched a large-scale talent development project to elevate the level of automotive maintenance technology and assist the independence of local youth in Ghana, West Africa.

Hyundai Motor Company held the launch ceremony for ‘Hyundai-KOICA NextGen’ with the Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA) at the Alisa Hotel in Accra, Ghana on Sep. 3 (local time). This project is being promoted in connection with KOICA’s Inclusive Business Solution (IBS) program, and it is structured so that Hyundai Motor Company and KOICA will invest a total of 5 billion won ($3,846,153.85), sharing the cost equally, for five years by 2030.

The core business is the establishment of an automotive maintenance technology education center equipped with a practical training workshop. Hyundai Motor Company and KOICA plan to begin construction of two education centers during the second half of this year and complete them in 2027. The centers will serve as a hub for sustainable and independent maintenance technology education locally in Ghana.

The educational content will also be significantly reorganized. The curriculum, which was previously centered on internal combustion engine vehicles, will be updated, while maintenance technologies for future vehicles such as hybrid and electric vehicles will be newly added. The new curriculum will go through official certification by the Commission for Technical and Vocational Education and Training (CTVET) in Ghana and will be utilized as a standard for training local professional maintenance personnel.

A support system has also been prepared that goes beyond simple education and leads to practical employment creation. It provides scholarships and internship opportunities to local youth, and it helps with job matching by holding a job fair once a year. For those who wish to start a business, separate education and consulting programs are also planned to be operated.

The number of people receiving direct benefits through this project reaches a total of 405, including local youth and teachers. In particular, it is expected that a virtuous cycle of education will be created as the teachers who have completed the education spread their expertise in the field. The local execution of the project will be handled by Plan International Korea and Plan International Ghana, which are international relief and development NGOs.

Based on the achievements in Ghana, Hyundai Motor Company plans to expand the ‘Hyundai NextGen’ project to various countries. The plan is to contribute to the development of the global automotive industry and youth employment creation through talent development tailored to the industrial environment of each country. This is being promoted as part of ‘Hyundai Continue’, a global creating shared value initiative announced by Hyundai Motor Company in 2022.