Kayayei Empowerment Programme launched: 5,000 Female head porters targeted - 2 Hostel facilities inaugurated
An initiative dedicated to empower 5,000 female head porters and offer transitional job pathways to enhance their socio-economic status has been launched in Accra.
Advertisement
Known as the Kayayei Empowerment Programme, it has an overarching goal to empower the female headtop porters, popularly known as kayayei, across the country through the transformative power of technical, vocational education and training (TVET).
The multi-faceted programme will use a rigorous recruitment process to select the initial cohort of 5,000 head porters for a transformative three-week learning experience in essential modules such as baking and beading to be supplemented by soft skills training in personal health care, financial management and entrepreneurial acumen.
The programme is being implemented through the collaborative effort and strategic partnerships forged between government agencies, private enterprises and civil society organisations.
They include the Ghana Enterprises Agency (GEA), the Youth Employment Agency (YEA), the Council for Technical and Vocational Education and Training (CTVET), the Ghana Education Trust Fund (GETFund), the Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) and the District Assemblies Common Fund (DACF).
Others are the Father Campbell Foundation, the National Entrepreneurship and Innovation Programme (NEIP), the Ghana National Gas Company and the Bulk Oil Storage and Transport (BOST) Ltd.
The Vice-President, Dr Mahamudu Bawumia, who launched the programme in Accra yesterday, also inaugurated two newly built hostels at Madina in the La Nkwantanang Municipality and another in the Ashaiman Municipality, both in the Greater Accra Region, to house the beneficiaries.
He said the programme had been meticulously conceived and crafted to provide holistic and sustainable economic empowerment to the “resilient” young women. Dr Bawumia announced that aside from the two hostels constructed at Madina and Ashaiman, others under construction in the Ashanti and Bono East regions would be used to establish similar centres.
He said each of the hostels had been meticulously designed to accommodate and cater for the needs of 300 girls. Describing the programme as a cause close to his heart because it addresses the plight of a marginalised segment of society, Dr Bawumia, who is also the flag bearer of the ruling New Patriotic Party (NPP), said “this noble endeavour resonates profoundly with the core values of our mission, as it squarely addresses the pressing needs of a marginalised segment of our society that has long been relegated to the shadows of neglect and indifference.”
Homelessness
The Vice-President said there were over 100,000 head porters in the country who endured unimaginable hardships such as the lack of shelter, inadequate medical care and harassment in urban centres on a daily basis.
From the harsh realities of homelessness to the glaring deficiencies in access to adequate health care and the pervasive scourge of urban harassment, Dr Bawumia said the plight of the kayayei stood as a stark testament to the moral imperative of urgent intervention to uplift and transform their lives.
More crucial, he said, would be the provision of post-training support and implementation of a track and trace model which would serve as the linchpin of the programme's efficiency, with participants receiving starter packs to facilitate their seamless integration into new economic opportunities and further ensure that beneficiaries did not return to being head porters.
Dr Bawumia said the programme was backed by a robust framework of continuous monitoring and evaluation to ensure its enhancement and personalised assistance for further education and entrepreneurial endeavours.
Drivers
“In addition to the strides already made, I'm thrilled to announce that discussions are ongoing with Metro Mass and Ayalolo to teach them driving. Furthermore, we are in talks to provide them with Information Communications and Technology (ICT) training,” Dr Bawumia stated.
He said those partnerships would further expand the horizons of the Kayayie Empowerment Programme to offer more avenues for skills development and economic empowerment. The Vice-President, therefore, urged all stakeholders to collectively pledge their unwavering commitment and solidarity as they embarked on such a transformative journey to ensure the resounding success of the Kayayie Empowerment Programme.
Commitment
The Greater Accra Regional Minister, Daniel Nii Kwartei Titus Glover, said the projects were a testament to the commitment of President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo and Vice-President Bawumia’s administration.
He charged the La Nkwantanang, Madina and the Ashaiman Municipal assemblies to manage and maintain the facilities and ensure they continued to serve their purposes. The Administrator of DACF, Naa Torshie Addo, for her part, stated that there was no doubt that the plight of kayayei was some of the registered plights over the decade and no one did anything about it.
Challenges
The Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Youth Employment Agency (YEA), Kofi Baah Agyapong, highlighted some of the challenges of female head porters such as lack of shelter, maltreatment, harassment, depression, poor medical care and inadequate child support system.
He said the launch of the programme and inauguration of the two hostels marked a huge step forward to change that narrative.