Government must aid in job creation strategy for sustainability - Organised Labour

Abraham Koomson, Secretary General of the Ghana Federation of Labour (GFL), has stated that employment opportunities, particularly for the country’s youth, must be available to sustain Ghana’s economic growth.

Speaking at the Ghana News Agency, Tema Industrial News Hub Dialogue Platform, he said that the government should revamp the industries and also create more jobs in order to help reduce crime and other immoral activities because when people work they will end up with a better income.

He said for Ghana’s economy to develop sustainably, the government must restructure industries so that they would improve working conditions by hiring more people to work there, thereby lowering the unemployment rate and increasing productivity.

In addition, the government could decrease Ghana’s present reliance on imports by constructing more factories or industries. Therefore, in order to help the manufacturing industries, produce more products, the government must prioritize revamping the industries.

Mr. Koomson also claimed that the government’s proposed and implemented high interest rate increases on the manufacturing sectors would contribute to the collapse of companies and could result in a high unemployment rate due to the layoff of workers.

The establishment of jobs would lead to a high level of employment and economic growth, which would enable a sharp decline in Ghana’s unemployment rates, the GFL Secretary-General stated.

He reiterated that the government’s capacity to create jobs would contribute to the maintenance of a robust economy.

As part of the measures to rescue the nation from the current economic difficulties, the government should also take a close look at the management of state resources and money, Mr Koomson stated.

“Block leaks in procurement contracts to collect revenue,” and advised the government that “if it wishes to increase revenue, it should be able to close systemic leaks.

“If the government is asking the citizens to tighten up their seatbelts to help rescue the country, there should be a corresponding initiative from the state to check all the loopholes in the procurement system,” he said.

He noted that, “the nation can accumulate more money by identifying and closing the loopholes within the procurement contracts.”

The bidding process has been tainted, and sometimes funds for contracts are given out using dubious practices, Mr Koomson noted.

“Organized Labour is pleading with the government to strengthen the legal system of the nation to deal vehemently with individuals who misuse and mismanage state funds,” he said.