Features
When job seeking by our graduate youth turns bloody at Youth Employment Agency Fair
Employment is a relationship between two parties, usually based on a contract where work is paid for. Employees work for a payment, which may be in the form of an hourly wage for piece of work or an annual salary depending on the type of work an employee does or the sector he or she works. On the other hand, unemployment, refers to individuals who are employable and actively seeking for a job but are unable to find jobs.
UNEMPLOYMENT RATE IN GHANA
In Ghana, the unemployment rate in percentage is calculated by dividing the number of unemployed individuals by the number of all currently employed individuals in the labour force. The current unemployment rate in our country at the moment is expected to reach 4.70 per cent by the end of 2021, according to Trading Economics
Global Models and analyst expectations. In the long-term, the country’s unemployment rate is projected to trend around 4.50 per cent in 2022 and 4.30 per cent in 2023, according to our econometric models.
For the benefit of my patrons, readers and Ghanaians in general, it is important to give a few statistics in percentage about the unemployment rate in the country between 2016 and 2020. In 2016, we recorded 5.45 per cent, 2017, 4.22 per cent, 2018, 4.16 per cent, 2019, 4.12 per cent and 4.53 per cent in 2020 These variations in figures about the country’s unemployment rate show the level of insecurity about the future of our graduates who are churned out yearly from our universities and other professional educational institutions. It is of interest to know that in Ghana today, there is, Unemployed University Graduates Association. The National Labour Commission (NLC) estimates a staggering unemployment figure of 700,000. It appears that no coordinated strategies have been fashioned out to address the unemployment problem in our country.
CHAOTIC SITUATION AT YEA FAIR
The recent maiden Youth Employment Agency (YEA) Fair held at the Accra International Conference Centre on September 10, 2021, which resulted in a stampede as a result of the large attendance of unemployed youth who had thronged the centre to seek for jobs exposed the rate of job insecurity in our country.
The YEA held the event to help connect job seekers to employers. As part of the event, there was supposed to be live recruitment where over 100 companies were reported to have been present to do instant recruitment. However, the situation turned chaotic as the turnout was overwhelming. Video recordings of the event showed how the police had a difficult task in controlling the crowd. It showed also broken glasses soiled with droplets of blood on the floor. A number of these job seekers were injured in the process.
What transpired at the YEA fair in Accra the nation’s capital, really gives cause for worry and concern about the future of the teeming youth who have come out of our educational institutions and looking for non-existing jobs.
HIGH RATE OF UNEMPLOYMENT IN THE COUNTRY
The problem of unemployment in this country has been in existence for so many years and governments have never found a cure to this serious canker. Tried as they could, none of them has been able to address this situation as it continues to worsen. The way the country’s education system is currently structured, has also contributed to the churning out of more graduates into the system with no jobs to absorb them even with their marvellous performance in their education. It will be of interest to know that First Class and Master Degree holders as well as those with Doctorate degrees are finding it very difficult to get jobs. This thorny situation has facilitated the brain drain of qualified graduates to other countries to seek greener pastures at the expense of the country’s development. Medical doctors, engineers, lawyers and other professionals trained with the hard earned foreign exchange, are serving in various capacities in other countries through no fault of theirs because of lack of employment. Indeed, this is a worrying signal we need to address with dispatch.
COUNTRY NOT KEEPING FAITH WITH THE PEOPLE
It is a fact that our economy has not kept faith with the people, hence the huge backlog of unemployment rate in our dear country. The unemployment rate which has become a national security issue is getting more and more desperate and can explode at any time considering what is happening and we need to adopt special measures to address the situation. The problem as it stands now, should give the leaders of this country, a lot of headache and sleepless night. We need to bring all the think tanks together in a major summit to brainstorm on this challenging situation and the way forward.
UNEMPLOYMENT CONTRIBUTING TO CRIMES, CORRUPTION ETC
It is a fact that the rise in crime wave, corruption and other negative practices in our country, can be attributed to desperation among the youth. Some of our idled youth have taken advantage of the situation to engage in all manner of corruption and crime related issues to make a living. Available statistics indicate that most of these heinous crimes in the country are carried out by the youth. We have been paying lip-service in this country for far too long and we need to wake up from our slumber and be proactive in dealing with some of these situations that are pushing the clock of progress backwards.
This country can easily rise above these difficulties if we are able to support our local industries and provide them with the needed resources and inputs to expand production. By so doing, we will be able to absorb the teeming unemployed graduates and provide them with the necessary jobs. Our local textile industries and manufacturing companies are dying gradually and we look on unconcerned. The agriculture sector needs to be revamped and modernised in line with the ‘Planting for Food and Jobs’ agenda of the government to attract and encourage the youth to embrace the concept and work in that lucrative sector.
REVAMPING OUR INDUSTRIES TO ATTRACT UNEMPLOYED GRADUATES
We have abundance of raw materials in this country but how to process them into finished goods has been our bane. The Tema Oil Refinery (TOR), the Ghana National Petroleum Company (GNPC), the Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG), the Bulk Oil Storage and Transportation Company (BOST), GIHOC manufacturing companies and the host of other companies which are facing problems need to be capitalised and revamped to attract foreign investments so that they can employ most of our unemployed youth who are roaming the streets daily in search of jobs.
It is high time we limited the importation of foreign goods which we can manufacture locally and rather built and strengthened our local industries to produce quality goods for our markets. Spending the chunk of our foreign exchange reserves to procure foreign goods is not in the interest of this country which abounds in human talents. Our human resources are among the best in the whole world and that is why many foreign countries continue to knock on our doors for our graduates to help them restructure their economies.
Our leaders need to put an end to the wasteful spending on unnecessary things that do not help in the growth of the economy and channel our meagre resources into productive ventures so as to create the needed jobs for the teeming unemployed youth.
Contact email/WhatsApp of author:
0277753946/0248933366
Conflict at work is more common than you might think. According to 2022 research by The Myers-Briggs Company, more than a third of the workforce reports dealing with conflict often, very often, or all the time in the workplace.
Addressing a dispute might feel tense or awkward, but resolving the conflict is typically well worth it in the long run. Whether you are trying to mediate conflict between colleagues or are directly involved. Last week we looked at three and this week is the remaining four steps you can take to manage workplace conflict.
4. Find common ground
The best way to handle workplace conflict is to start with what you can agree on. Find common ground between the people engaging in conflict. If you are directly involved in the conflict, slow down and focus on results instead of who’s right.
If you are the mediator for conflict resolution between coworkers, observe the discussion and help point out the common ground others may not see.
5. Collectively brainstorm solutions
When deciding how to handle workplace conflict, it can be tempting to problem-solve on your own. Sometimes, it feels easier to work independently rather than collaboratively. However, if you want to achieve a lasting resolution, you will need to motivate your team to get involved.
Brainstorm possible solutions together, and solicit input from everyone involved on the pros and cons of each option until you settle on a solution that feels comfortable to everyone. This will help all team members feel a sense of ownership that can help prevent future conflicts.
6. Create an action plan
Once you have created an open dialogue around workplace conflicts, it is time to resolve them. Just like any other work goal, this requires creating a concrete plan and following through.
Create an action plan and then act on it. It does not matter what the plan is, as long as you commit to it and resolve the conflict as a result.
7. Reflect on what you learned
All conflicts offer an opportunity to grow and become a better communicator. Identify what went well and what did not.
Work with your whole team to gather learnings from the conflict so you can avoid similar situations in the future.
Today, I continue with my narration of personalities and their accomplishments as members of the Ghanaian Diaspora in Finland, with a focus on Mr Joseph Osei Amoah.
Mr Amoah is one of the senior members of the Ghanaian community in Finland and a top member of the Ghana Union Finland, an association of the Ghanaian migrant community in Finland.
He is an active and a well-respected person in the Ghanaian community in Finland. Mr Osei Amoah moved to Finland in the mid-1990s, and he has lived in Helsinki all this time.
Accomplishments and honours
It is important to recount accomplishments as part of the success stories of the personalities of Ghanaian descent in Finland in order to highlight their exploits both within the Ghanaian migrant community and in the wider Finnish society.
Mr Amoah holds a Master’s degree in Demography from the University of Helsinki. At the time he came to Finland in 1994, he had majored in Economics at the Bachelor’s level at the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST).
Sometimes affectionately called “Chairman” in the Ghanaian migrant community, Mr Osei is a former Chairman of the New Patriotic Party’s (NPP) branch in Finland, assuming office around 2015, a few months after the branch was formed, until 2019 when he did not run again for the elections. He helped to bring vibrancy into the NPP Finland branch.
Religious life
Mr Amoah is a prominent member of the Global Methodist Church in Finland. In spite of his busy working life and other responsibilities, he remains a committed member of the Global Methodist Church in Finland.
He plays a key leadership role in the church, which is attended by many Ghanaian migrants and other African migrants, Finns, and those of other nationalities.
His position in Asanteman Finland
Mr Osei Amoah is an outstanding member of the Asanteman Finland, where he is the Gyasehene, a prominent position as a sub-chief in the Asante (and Akan) royal hierarchy, in the functioning of the traditional authority systemgenerally in Ghana.
The Asanteman Finland is an association formed purposely with the aim of supporting each other as well as to ensure unity among its members and others outside of the group.
One of its top priorities of Asanteman Finland is to display the Asante culture in Finland. Mr Osei Amoah finds this as very important since by upholding the traditional culture and heritage, the association enables its members and especially the young ones to get the chance to learn and appreciate Asante and Ghanaian cultural values. They do this through rites such as marriage, the naming ceremony, and death and funeral rites, which makes the people to learn more of their provenance and not forget their origins.
“My point is that, by displaying the traditional heritage it helps people to learn more about their provenance. For, I think it will be embarrassing to go home and see that even the young ones have much knowledge about how to perform certain rites whilst those of us in the diaspora may be deficient in understanding those practices”, he argued. It is also very important for the young ones who are born in Finland to learn what the culture of their original society is, he continued.
The Finnish educational system
Mr Osei has a lot to say about the Finnish educational system, which he sees as very good. “When we came to Finland, education was free. There were library books and manuscripts readily available in the library, and one could print or make as many photocopies as possible for your studies. There was more flexibility. One could read books and write exams on them for the necessary grades in order to complete your studies”. In his opinion, Ghana could learn much from the Finnish system, which is one of the best in the world.
He said the only initial challenge he found in Finland was how to master the Finnish language, without which it was difficult to get a job befitting one’s status after the studies. But things have changed today and there are many English courses so it is easy to study and get a job that matches your studies, especially in the area of ICT, he said.
His role in the Ghanaian community
Mr Osei Amoah has been very active in the Ghanaian community, as I have indicated earlier. He is still very active in the Ghana Union Finland, and has played a leadership in many functions organised by the Union, as a non-governmental organisation for the Ghanaian migrant community in Finland.
Mr Amoah has been a counsellor and mentor who has guided many young Ghanaian migrants on their career paths and has also been part in settling various kinds of conflicts between opposing parties or persons. In conclusion, I would say Mr Osei Amoah has succeeded in embossing his name in the golden pages of visionary Ghanaians in both Sweden and Finland.
With Dr Perpetual Crentsil
