Volta TUC to expand activities of women

Ho, Oct. 12 GNA - Nadia Ibrahimma, Head of Women's desk of the Ghana Trades Union Congress (TUC) on Tuesday urged the Volta Regional Women's Committee of the TUC to expand its activities into the informal sector. Speaking on "Trade Unions and the informal economy", at a day's seminar for the Women Committee members in Ho, she said the TUC needed to get the informal sector into its fold if the Congress was to maintain its influence in the labour sector of the economy.

Nadia Ibrahimma said the role of the TUC in the informal sector was to provide social protection for those in that sector and that it was only when that sector was organized under the TUC that it could muster the strong voice to influence Government's policy to address such social protection issues.

She said the need for the TUC to organize that sector under its ambit became even more important because between 80 per cent and 90 per cent of those in that sector were women and the fact that the sector was becoming increasingly prominent in the economy.

Nadia Ibrahimmah, therefore, urged the Regional Women Committee to identify those who wielded influence in that sector and to get them involved in their activities in order to cultivate their interest and belongingness in unionism.

Speaking on "Women and GPRS I and II", Mrs Margaret Obrikorang, Executive Director of Strength of Women Foundation, urged the Women Committee members to study and understand the import of the Growth and Poverty Reduction Strategy II (GPRS II) Document so as to gain the confidence to talk on it and ensure its proper implementation. She said the document was a non-partisan one, which required bodies such as the Women Committee of the TUC to protect against partisan abuse.

Mrs Obrikorang, therefore, urged the Committee members to educate especially women in the Region to organize and take advantage of its programmes and projects rather than shying away from it because of alleged partisan patronage in previous projects and programmes. 10 Oct. 06