Accra: The International Labour Organisation (ILO) has held a Tripartite Roundtable Discussion on Productivity, Jobs and Growth in Ghana based on the Ghana Statistical Service's (GSS) National Productivity Statistics Report.
According to Ghana News Agency, the discussion included panelists from organized labor, employers, manufacturers, the Ministry of Trade, Agribusiness and Industry, and the Ministry of Labour, Jobs and Employment. It was organized under the Productivity Ecosystems for Decent Work (PE4DW) project of the ILO, in collaboration with the Swiss State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (SECO) and the Norwegian Agency for Development Cooperation.
The panelists provided perspectives on Ghana's macroeconomic policies, sectoral policies, fair sharing of productivity gains (earnings), employment, skills, formalization, as well as social dialogue, governance, and data. Mr. David Marcos, Project Manager for the Productivity Ecosystems for Decent Work, stated that the project started three years ago during an economic crisis in Ghana. The project aims to improve productivity and working conditions while focusing on sustainable growth components in the economy.
Mr. Marcos emphasized that while productivity is crucial, working conditions are equally significant, as access to the global market is linked to decent work. Mr. Luca Fedi, an Employment Specialist, highlighted that the extractive industry in Ghana is performing well but operates in isolation, lacking the necessary linkages for economic transformation. He noted that manufacturing and agriculture sectors need expansion as their productivity is small in terms of employment.
Mr. Fedi pointed out that earnings in Ghana are lagging behind jobs and called for an improvement in minimum wages. The panelists concurred on the need for macroeconomic stability and consensus on achieving it. They also stressed the importance of improving working conditions and addressing infrastructural deficits like road connectivity to prevent food wastage and reduce high urban food prices.
The panelists included Mr. Kingsley Laar, an Economist and Senior Researcher at the Ghana Employers' Association; Dr. Kwabena Nyarko Otoo, Deputy Secretary General of the Ghana Trades Union Congress (TUC); and Nana Poquah A. A. Adiamah, National Coordinator of the Association of Ghana Apparel Manufacturers (AGAM). Other panelists were Mr. George Amoah, Director of Trade Research, Statistics and Information Management (RSIM) at the Ministry of Trade, Agribusiness and Industry; and Mr. Theodore Mawuli Amezah, Senior Planning Officer at the Ministry of Labour, Jobs and Employment.