Registration of unemployed picking up

The nation-wide registration of the unemployed, which started slowly on Wednesday because of what registration officials said was inadequate information on the location of the various centres, is progressing steadily.

According to the Ghana News Agency toured of some centres on Thursday saw a marked improvement in the number of people who had turned out to register.

At the La Veterinary Centre, Mr Osei Kwaku, the registration official said he had registered over 15 people as at 1000 hours.

He said although the inkpad had still not been supplied, he was using the initials rather than the thumbprint of persons who could not sign their names.

At Chorkor Police Centre more than 50 people had registered as at 1100 hours. Mr Jacob Wellington, the officer, said everything was moving on well, adding that those who had so far registered were drivers, school dropouts and basic school leavers.

Mr Aboagye Boateng, the officer at the Mamprobi centre stressed the need for sustained publicity, saying most people in the area were not aware of the exercise.

"I personally had to talk to some youths yesterday about the exercise," he said, emphasising that the authorities need to make available posters that direct people to the various registration centres.

He said he was optimistic that more people would turn out as the information van carries the message to them.

At Abeka Eleganza, there was a long queue of the unemployed. The officer said he had registered a total of 77 persons since the exercise began on Wednesday.

The 14-day exercise being held under the auspices of the Inter-Ministerial Committee on Action for Employment Generation would provide data and profiles of the jobless youth to enable the government to develop appropriate interventions to give them relevant training.

It is taking place in 360 centres throughout the country, comprising 66 public employment centres of the Labour Department and convenient centres that District Chief Executives would identify.

On the second day of exercise in the Brong Ahafo Region registration centres at Sunyani, Chiraa and Berekum recorded much heavier turn-up.

The scene on Thursday was in sharp contrast to what happened on the opening day on Wednesday when low figures were recorded.

Most of the people registered, according to officials, are aged between 18 and 40 who are either unemployed or under employed, many of them fresh school leavers.

They included artisans, farmers, tailors, dressmakers, labourers, watchmen, head porters carriers and truck-pushers.

Two additional registration centres have been opened at Odumase and Sunyani to ease congestion at centres in the Sunyani District, bringing the total number of centres to 41 in the region.

The two-week exercise has come under criticism for the slow pace of the registration, but Mr James Owusu, Registration Officer at the Sunyani Public Employment Centre explained that, "it is important that people answer all the 43 questions on the registration forms to make the exercise complete and credible".

Mr Owusu said 103 people were registered at the centre on Wednesday with 20 names recorded by 8.30 a.m.

At Chiraa, Mr Alex Agyei, Registration Officer, said by 9.00 am on Thursday, 25 people had been registered. The centre registered 60 people on Wednesday.

At the Berekum Public Employment Centre, Mr Nat Richard Kusi, Registration Officer, said the exercise had been smooth, with 100 people being registered on

the first day and 30 as at 10 am on Thursday.

When the GNA visited the Berekum Presbyterian Church centre, registration had been halted due to shortage of forms. People waited in a long queue while the registration officer went for replenishment.

People, who spoke to the GNA, said although the exercise would not bring them employment immediately, it provided "a ray of hope for a brighter future".

"This is an indication that the government has better plans in store for the poor and the unemployed," Mr Moses Kofi Yeboah, Mason/Painter at Berekum said.