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Is the freeze on employment not worsening the precarious graduate unemployment situation in Ghana?
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The Finance Minister, Ken Ofori- Atta, on Thursday, November 24, 2022, presented the 2023 Budget and Economic Policy of the Government to Parliament, indicating far-reaching measures towards expenditure rationalisation to salvage the current economic downturn in the country that has resulted in severe hardships among the populace. Among these measures, is the announcement of a freeze on employment for civil and public servants, effective January, 2023.
FREEZE ON EMPLOYMENT
The Minister announced also that the purchase of new vehicles shall be restricted to locally assembled vehicles while the allocation of fuel coupons to political appointees and Heads of Ministries, Department and Agencies (MDAs), Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies (MMDAs) and State-Owned Enterprises
(SOES), HAD BEEN REDUCED BY 50 PER CENT.
These were the words from the Minister; “Mr. Speaker, as a first step towards expenditure rationalisation, the Government has approved the following directives which take effect from January 2023. All MDAs MMDAs and SOEs, are directed to reduce fuel allocations to Political Appointees and Heads of MDAs, MMDAs and SOEs by 50 per cent. This directive applies to all methods of fuel allocation, including coupons, electronic cards, chit system and fuel depots. Accordingly, 50 per cent of the previous year’s (2022) budget allocation for fuel, shall be earmarked for official business pertaining to MDAs, MMDAs and SOEs;
EXPENDITURE RATIONALISATION
“A ban on the use of V8s/V6s or its equivalent, except for cross-country travel. All government vehicles would be registered with GV green plates from January 2023; Limited budgetary allocation for the purchase of vehicles. For the avoidance of doubt, the purchase of new vehicles shall be restricted to locally assembled vehicles; Only essential foreign travel across government, including SOEs shall be allowed for board members. Accordingly, all government institutions should submit a travel plan for the year 2023 by mid-December of all expected travels to the Chief of Staff.
“As far as possible, meetings and workshops should be done within the official environment or government facilities; Government sponsored external training and Staff Development activities at the Office of the President, Ministries and SOEs, must be put on hold for 2023 financial year. Reduction of expenditure on appointments including salary freezes together with suspension of certain allowances like housing, utilities and clothing, etc. A freeze on new tax waivers for foreign companies and review of tax exemptions for free zone, mining, oil and gas companies. A hiring freeze for civil and public servants. No new government agencies shall be established in 2023. There shall be no hampers for 2022”.
IMF CONDITIONS
FOR BAILOUT
Indeed, some of these measures, are already in place, however, for the government to muster the necessary courage to ensure that they are enforced to the letter, has been the major problem. It is the hope of many Ghanaians that this time round, the government will put the necessary mechanism in place to ensure an effective monitoring of the process and the implementation of the additional policies and programmes. Already, many are of the firm belief that these are some of the conditions attached to the International Monetary Fund (IMF) offer, to bail the country out of the current economic mess.
AGENDA 111 HOSPITAL PROJECT TO SUFFER
While the majority of Ghanaians do sympathise with the government for the situation it finds itself in now and, therefore, has to succumb to some of these pressures from the IMF for the needed financial bailout, many are also of the view that the freeze on employment within the civil and public services, is a serious development which the government has to take a second look at the policy, since it will not serve the best interest of this nation whatsoever. When this policy is allowed to be implemented as it stands next year, certain critical and vital areas such as the health and education sectors of the economy, will suffer unduly. Already our health facilities across the country are challenged with shortage of professionals such as doctors, dentists, nurses, cardiologists, laboratory technicians, radiographers and X’ray technicians among others, while our universities, colleges, polytechnics, Junior and Senior High Schools lacked the required manpower to manage that sectors. The government flagship Agenda 111 Hospital project is likely to face a major setback as a result of the freeze on employment. The new district hospitals, currently under construction will face manpower problem. Placing a total ban on employment for the next two years, will deal a major blow to our dear country.
PRECARIOUS GRADUATE UNEMPLOYMENT
We are in a country where graduate unemployment has been a major headache to the extent that today, Ghana has in existence, Unemployed University Graduate Association (UUGA). The National Labour Commission estimates a staggering unemployment figure of 700,000. Roughly, 53 per cent of recent graduates are either unemployed or underemployed. The average university graduate, needs up to half a year to find their initial employment if any. According to the 2021 Population and Housing Census by the Ghana Statistical Service, more than 13 per cent of Ghana’s economically active population are out of work.
When graduates find themselves unemployed, poor, psychological, physical and emotional health and well-being may follow. This impacts on the motivation and drive to actively seek employment, which in turn lessens the probability of unemployed graduates securing employment in the labour market. The underlying causes of youth employment in Ghana, include inadequate job creation despite relative good economic growth, poor access to, and quality of education and a mismatch in skills appropriate to the labour demands. In order to promote youth employment in Ghana, it is important to align formal education programmes and skills development initiatives in the context of fast changing labour market that requires new and different skill sets and to adapt to new technology.
TUC STANCE ON EMPLOYMENT FREEZE
As we speak now, the Trades Union Congress (TUC), the umbrella body of workers in Ghana, is vehemently, opposing the government’s decision to place a moratorium on employment in the civil and public services in 2023. Its Deputy General Secretary, Joshua Ansah, said the group was not in favour of a freeze on employment in the services and took steps to prevent it by engaging the IMF team which came into the country. According to him, the TUC was disappointed in the government for the move, describing it as “a stab in the back because government promised not to do so”. He assured that the TUC would discuss the issue with its social partners and respond appropriately.
Many have suggested that in order to cut down government expenditure and save cost, the government should take immediate steps to downsize its ministers and other political appointees, re-align some of the ministries to take other responsibilities since there are a lot of duplications in the functions of some of the ministries. Expenditures on some of these ministries can be channelled into productive areas of the economy. There are a lot of wastes in public expenditure which need to be curtailed in order to conserve the needed revenue to prosecute our development agenda.
DOWNSIZING GOVERNMENT AND CUTTING WASTES
Placing a moratorium on employment by freezing employment in civil and public services cannot in itself be the panacea for our present economic challenges. The ghost names in the public sector payrolls must be completely eradicated to introduce sanity into the system. The extravagance and opulent lifestyles of some of our ministers and other office holders need to be checked as we find solutions to our hydra-headed challenges.Yes, government has introduced far-reaching measures to cut down public expenditure as requested by the IMF, but the leadership must lead by example by reducing the present size of government and refrain from unnecessary expenditures at the presidency. For instance, the tendency of conveying a special Presidential Chair to and fro by V8 vehicle to state function across the country by the Office of the President must cease forthwith. Besides, the large convoy of state vehicles that always follows the President to public functions both internally and externally must be stopped to save the needed revenue.
LACK OF INTEREST IN GRADUATES’ WELFARE
It is quite obvious that our policymakers and for that matter the government and its political appointees, are only interested in churning out a large chunk of graduates yearly from our various universities and other tertiary institutions, just for cheap political propaganda. How these graduates will manage to secure the needed jobs or employment is not their priority or business at all. If really, they care for these graduates, they would not have accepted this bitter pill from the IMF of putting a freeze on employment.
Contact email/WhatsApp of author:
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By Charles Neequaye
Features
Confronting newborn abandonment in Ghana: When a cry for help is heard in a dustbin – Part 2
The root causes: It is never just one reason
My years of counselling at CPAC show me abandonment is rarely an act of malice. It is the tragic endpoint of seven overwhelming distresses:
1. Severe maternal mental illness —The hidden emergency
a) Clinical Postpartum Depression (PPD): This is far beyond “baby blues.” It is a severe mood disorder that can appear weeks to months after birth. Due to a massive drop in hormones, extreme sleep deprivation, and emotional exhaustion, the mother feels deep sadness, worthlessness, and complete emotional numbness towards her baby. Picture: A new mother sits by her bed all day, staring blankly. Her baby cries for hours, but she cannot lift her hands to carry the baby. She whispers, “This baby would be better off without me.” She does not hate the baby; she feels she has completely failed as a mother.
b) Peripartum Psychosis (Postpartum Psychosis): This is a psychiatric emergency. Rare but extremely dangerous, appearing suddenly within the first 2-3 weeks after delivery. The mother completely loses touch with reality. She hears commanding voices telling her to abandon the baby, or believes the baby is possessed by an evil spirit or is a “spirit child” who will bring a curse. Picture: A mother genuinely believes she heard a voice saying, “Leave this child at the crossroads at midnight or your family will die.” She abandons the baby not out of hatred, but because her broken mind believes she is obeying a higher spiritual order to save her family.
c) Pre-existing untreated Schizophrenia: This is a chronic, severe mental disorder that existed before the pregnancy. The stress of pregnancy and labour shatters her fragile coping. She suffers from paranoid delusions — believing people want to poison her and the baby — flat affect (zero facial expression), and grossly disorganised thinking, making it impossible to plan how to feed or clean a baby. Picture: A young woman whose family called her illness “spiritual attack” instead of taking her for medication wanders away after delivery, completely forgetting she even gave birth, leaving the infant behind.
2. Extreme socio-economic deprivation: For many girls in some parts of Ghana such as Kasoa, Madina, or Bekwai, poverty is not a statistic; it is a daily panic. No money for antenatal care, no money for hospital delivery, no money for baby diapers or formula. When a mother cannot feed herself, the thought of feeding another mouth feels impossible. Some mothers say, “I left her where someone richer would find her, because I could not watch her starve to death in my hands.” It is a distorted act of survival.
3. Intense societal stigma and shame: In Ghana, pregnancy outside marriage, teenage pregnancy, or pregnancy from rape can bring extreme family rejection. The girl is called “spoilt,” beaten, banned from church, or sacked from school. The fear of bringing shame to the family name is heavier than the fear of police. So she hides the pregnancy for 9 months, delivers alone, and abandons in secret to protect her family’s “honour.”
4. Paternal abandonment — The Man Who Ran Away: Behind almost every abandoned baby is a man who vanished. He says, “It is not mine,” or “Abort it,” and switches off his phone. The mother is left utterly isolated — no emotional, financial, or social support. She is criminalised alone, but the abandonment started with him. Psychological research shows paternal denial is one of the strongest predictors of maternal panic and newborn abandonment.
5. Substance abuse disorders: Alcohol, tramadol, and other drug addiction impair the brain’s executive functioning — the ability to plan, judge consequences, and process emotions. A mother struggling with addiction may give birth in a highly intoxicated or withdrawal state, unable to comprehend the needs of the newborn, leading to neglect and eventual abandonment.
6. The spirit child cultural phenomenon and superstition: In some remote pockets of Northern Ghana and even in few parts of Central and Ashanti regions, public health research shows babies born with congenital deformities, severe disabilities, or whose mothers die in childbirth are branded as “spirit children” or cursed. In extreme instances, families, under cultural pressure, mandate that such babies be exposed or abandoned at shrines or bushes. This is not mental illness, but a harmful cultural belief system that still kills.
The invisible wounds
On the baby: Risk of death from hypothermia, sepsis, and infection. Survivors suffer Anaclitic Depression and Failure to Thrive due to lack of touch. As adults, they battle Reactive Attachment Disorder, chronic mistrust, and identity crisis — “Why did my mother leave me in a dustbin?”
On the mother: Lifelong hidden grief, intense guilt, chronic PTSD, depression, and elevated suicide risk. A prison cell does not heal this.
On the nation: Overburdened orphanages like Osu Children’s Home, draining health budgets, and overworked Social Welfare officers.
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“There is no one righteous, not even one; there is no one who understands; no one seeks God. But now a righteousness from God, apart from law, has been made known, to which the Law and the Prophets testify. This righteousness from God comes through faith in Jesus Christ, to all who believe. For there is no difference; – Rom. 3:10, 21-22. (NIV)
Introduction
Dictionaries define righteousness as “behavior that is morally justifiable or right.” Such behavior is characterized by accepted standards of morality, justice, virtue, or uprightness. The Bible’s standard of human righteousness is God’s own perfection in every attribute, every attitude, every behavior, and every word. Thus, God’s laws, as given in the Bible, both describe His own character and constitute the plumb line by which He measures human righteousness.
The bad news is that true and perfect righteousness is not possible for man to attain on his own; the standard is simply too high. The good news is that true righteousness is possible for mankind, but only through the cleansing of sin by Jesus Christ and the indwelling of the Holy Spirit. We have no ability to achieve righteousness in and of ourselves. But Christians possess the righteousness of Christ, because “ For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.” – 2 Corinthians 5:21. This is an amazing truth. On the cross, Jesus exchanged our sin for His perfect righteousness so that we can one day stand before God and He will see not our sin, but the holy righteousness of the Lord Jesus.
Establishing our hearts in righteousness
“Keep your heart with all diligence, for out of it spring the issues of life” – Proverbs 4:23
According to the above verse in Proverbs, our heart is the source of our life. Our life flows from our heart. The Holy Spirit resides in the spirit of the born again Christian. So there is a strong influence of the Holy Spirit in the heart of the new-born Christian. But our heart is also comprised of our soul. As Christians we can choose to focus our soul on the Lord, or on evil things. If we focus on corrupt, immoral, and evil things our heart will be affected detrimentally. It will cause our heart to be crooked or wicked, instead of straight or righteous. So the Scripture says to keep, or guard, our heart. It is wise to protect our heart as what we allow to dominate our heart will inevitably become the fruit, or influence the outcome, of our lives.
One way to approach life is to continually ask the question, “How will this decision or action affect my heart?” Everything we do, every thought we entertain, everything we watch, read, or listen to, shapes our heart. Therefore, the future prosperity of our life will flow from how well we care for our heart.
Think of everything you do, every moment of time, as a seed. We have been given responsibility for choosing which seeds to plant in our heart. What will you grow in the garden of your heart? What seeds will you choose? Our heart is our garden, and our life is the fruit of our garden. So next time you are tempted to dwell on a bad thought, think, “Do I want this seed to grow and manifest in my life?” Next time you are tempted to indulge in a sinful action ask yourself, “Do I want the extension, or fruit, of this sinful action to be what I am known for?”
God gives us the freedom to plant whatever we like in our garden. God loves us regardless of the good or bad choices we may make in our lives. You may be reaping the fruit of some poor choices right now. And God is still saying, “I love you.” But He has wise advice for us; He desires we have a good life. He says, “Guard you heart with all diligence.” This Hebrew word translated ‘diligence’ conveys the meanings of: prison and guard (ibid). A superintendant of a prison is very particular as to what goes in and out of his prison. A prison has very tight security. Just as a superintendant watches over his prison, so we should also supervise our heart (our lives). We should exercise meticulous security with regards to what enters into our heart. Actually, even what comes out of it, as the Scripture says, “ Wherefore, my beloved brethren, let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath” – James 1:19, as “For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks.” –Matthew 12:34b.
If what goes into, and what comes out of, our heart determines the success of our lives, what is the first important principle to establish in our heart? “In righteousness you shall be established;” – Isaiah 54:14
Righteousness is the key foundational truth we need to first establish in our heart. Jesus said, “But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you.” –Matthew 6:33. Notice Jesus said, “His righteousness”, not our own righteousness. We have to seek and understand God’s righteousness. Isaiah 54:14 says, “Their righteousness is of me, saith the Lord.” God’s righteousness comes from God, not from within us. Humans cannot make themselves God’s righteousness, as all humans have sinned and are therefore inferior to God. God’s righteousness is a gift from God: “ For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.” – 2 Corinthians 5:21
Righteousness, or right standing with God, has been attained for us through the exchange Jesus made on our behalf. Jesus took our sin and gave us His righteousness. God’s righteousness is imparted to us when we are made a new creature in Christ – 2 Corinthians 5:17. This righteousness is a gift from God and undeserved by us: “For if by the one man’s offense death reigned through the one, much more those who receive abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness will reign in life through the One, Jesus Christ.”- Romans 5:17
Through our faith in Jesus’ blood, shed to remit our sins – Romans 3:25, God imparts righteousness to us by His grace. We actually become a new righteous creation, fully identifying in Jesus’ death, burial, resurrection and ascension. This is the foundational miracle we need to understand and have established in our heart. All the other miraculous promises of God come the same way, by God’s grace through faith. Righteousness must be established in our heart for us to truly have faith to receive our rich inheritance in Christ. Jesus has been made unto us righteousness (1 Corinthians 1:30). We are now “For all the promises of God in Him are Yes, and in Him Amen, to the glory of God through us”. – 2 Corinthians 1:20
Establishing our minds in righteousness
God expects that, when we accept Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior, we will be radically changed. In Romans 12:2 He tells us, And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind,
This transformation is to be a metamorphosis, of a magnitude at least comparable to that by which a caterpillar becomes a butterfly. He expects us to become totally different.
Scripture uses many different images to express the change that should occur: We become “a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.“ – 2 Cor 5:17. It is almost as if we become a new species. Scripture speaks of the “first Adam” who was earthly and fell into sin, and the “second Adam” (Jesus Christ) who was sinless and holy – Rom. 5:12-19; 1 Cor 15:44-49.
We are “made new in the attitude of our minds” – Eph. 4:23.
We “put off our old self” and “put on the new self” – Eph. 4:22,24; Col 3:9-10.
We “live by the Spirit” and not by the flesh – Gal. 5:16; Rom 8:13.
We become “instruments of righteousness” rather than “instruments of wickedness” – Rom. 6:13.
Each of these metaphors, in a different way, emphasizes the magnitude of the change that is expected. Each is dramatic and astonishing in itself; their cumulative effect is even more powerful. We are talking about a tremendous transformation. It should be visible to others, but its internal effect should be far greater than what others can perceive.
The goal of this transformation
What is the goal of this metamorphosis? Scripture states it in a number of different ways, which overlap and can be seen as different ways of expressing the same basic concept. Scripture often does this, because our minds are inadequate to comprehend, and our language inadequate to express, the full scope of God’s revelation to us.
To be continued!
Stay blessed!
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