Labour Market Information System Established

Accra, July 3, GNA - The Ministry of Employment and Social Welfare (MESW) has established a Labour Market Information System (LMIS) as data base on labour issues in the country.

The LMS would help the universities and other tertiary institutions, to tailor their courses to meet the demands of the current job markets.

Alhaji Muhammad Mumuni, the sector Minister, announced this in Accra at the opening of a three-day regional conference organised by PEM/Tack Training International on Monday.

The conference is under the theme: Global Partnership - Local Par Excellence Training for Better Management. PEM/Tack is an international human resource training institution, and participants are from six countries including Ghana, Greece, South Africa and Kenya.

Participants will exchange information and ideas on manpower development and review the comprehensive contributions they have made to the field of human resource development.

Alhaji Mumuni said keen competition in a globalised economy demands the development of a high quality workforce that would be able to meet the needs of industry.

He said the present unemployment rate of 3.9 per cent in Ghana is misleading because there is a wide rate of underemployment especially in the informal sector, which makes the unemployment rate appear low.

Alhaji Mumuni said there are 230,000 new entrants into the job market every year. The majority of the new entrants are junior secondary school graduates, who are without employable skills.

He, therefore, called on all stakeholders to invest in the training of the youth to acquire skills that would make them more marketable.

Mr Eric Pillinger, Chairman of Tack Training Worldwide, identified skills relating to the winning of businesses, efficient management of resources and development of personal productivity, as skills needed for business growth in Ghana.

He said if all these skills are developed and broadly spread throughout the agricultural, industrial and service sectors, everyone gains.

Mr Phillinger, therefore, called for training which addresses the genuine needs of the individuals and the businesses for which they work.

"No one should expect their country or their government to make them more skilful unless they themselves have made the effort to learn, remember and implement new skills."

In a welcoming address, Managing Director of PEM/ Tack Training International Dr V. W. Kwasi Agbodza, noted that there would be greater pressures on the future workforce due to the large number of potential retirees who might still be on the job market.

Dr Agbodza called on African countries to embark on a training development revolution to meet the challenges of international competition.