TUC launches information guide on labour migration
A pre-decision information guide (PDIG) has been launched in Accra to address the lack of information on labour migration in the country and promote a right approach to the issue.
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It also contains information for migrants to other countries and those desiring to reintegrate into Ghana after life abroad.
It was developed by the Ghana Trades Union Congress (TUC) and the Friedrich Erbert Stiftung (FES).
The information guide came as a result of some gaps identified in a previous labour migration study in the country. It was developed through a consultative process with key partners in migration and employment.
They include the Ghana Immigration Service (GIS), the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Regional Integration (MFARI) and the Labour Department of the Ministry of Employment and Labour Relations (MELR).
The other partners were the Centre for Migration Studies of the University of Ghana and the Returnees and Diaspora Integrated Organisation (RIDEO).
It was authored by Dr Kennedy A. Achakoma, Franklin O. Ansah and Phyllis Agyemang, all of the TUC.
Migration
Welcoming guests to the launch, the Resident Director of FES, Mr Fritz Kopsieker, said migration was a natural phenomenon, adding that it was, however, necessary for it to take place within an orderly and organised structure or policy of a country, for the benefits to be enjoyed.
He said those migrating because of political reasons needed to be protected, while those migrating for economic reasons needed to be decently employed.
He expressed the hope that the PDIG would help people with the required information and commended the TUC for collaborating with stakeholders to help in ensuring decent work for migrants.
The Secretary General of the TUC, Dr Yaw Baah, who chaired the ceremony, expressed happiness that such a guide had been produced and described it as the realisation of a need.
He reiterated that migration was normal among humanity and said: “Many countries today are products of mass migration. Can you imagine the USA without migration?”
Dr Baah also commended the authors and thanked the FES for its partnership with the TUC, as well as the other partners.
Review
Mr Owusu Ansah, who is also the Deputy General Secretary of the Health Services Workers Union (HSWU), took participants through the PDIG, while review and comments were given by a lecturer of the Centre for Migration Studies of the University of Ghana, Legon.
Participants in a discussion on the PDIG wanted its information to be widely disseminated.
