One hundred and sixty-two job seekers in the Western Region have been offered employment opportunities and training programmes during the Green Regional Job Fair in Takoradi.
Also, 77 of these job seekers have been offered training programmes to prepare them with the necessary skills to be self-employed.
Companies that offered employment openings are Danest Engineering Company Limited, an Oil and Gas Service Company that employed 100 people in the areas of welding and pipe fitting; Vanguard Life Assurance took 50; All Needs Supermarket took five; L’aine Services Limited also took five; and Waterforce Ventures had two.
Also, businesses that are offering training programmes for the job seekers are Waterforce Ventures (organic soap and cosmetics company at Wassa Akropong), 40; and 2PS (soap production company), 37.
Zeal Environmental Technologies Limited also took several CVs of job seekers to include them in their database for future employment.
The Green Job Fair aims at supporting the creation of green jobs and match job seekers to available and sustainable jobs under the GrEEn Projects.
It was on the theme ‘Green and Circular Economy: A sure way to creating decent and sustainable employment and jobs,’ with 20 companies present at the Fair.
Ignitius Baffuor Awuah, Minister for Employment and Labour Relations, in an address read for him noted that these job fairs have been very instrumental in bringing together jobseekers and potential employers to interact on the same platform.
He said it has proven to be very relevant, useful, insightful and practical in terms of linking jobseekers, particularly the youth, to available job vacancies.
He pointed out that the sector’s commitment to promoting green jobs is bolstered by existence of the National Green Jobs Strategy.
The National Green Jobs Strategy, he said, has been carefully put together to harness the green and circular economy’s huge potential. It is designed to promote the creation of green jobs – jobs that are decent and contribute to improving the efficiency of energy and raw materials, and limiting greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions while protecting and restoring ecosystems.
According to him, the creation of green jobs will impact positively on the national economy and efforts to address the unemployment challenge.
Laouali Sadda, Project Manager – Boosting Green Employment and Enterprise Opportunities in Ghana (green) project at SNV Ghana, said sustainable job creation is something SNV is passionate about and dedicated to doing.
“I would also like to acknowledge the European Union for their dedication to skills development, sustainable job creation and support for Micro, Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (MSMEs). Thanks also to the Netherlands Embassy in Ghana for its constant support for the implementation of this important project,” he added.
Mr. Joseph Gharbrah, Chairman of the Association of Ghana Industries, said the green and circular economy presents both a challenge and an opportunity for the labour market and skills – which, in turn, are key factors for enabling green growth.
“The GrEEn Job Fair therefore presents a unique opportunity for addressing the employment challenges and opportunities of the current transition toward a green, low carbon, resource-efficient economy. For that matter, this job fair should be taken as an open field of guidance, consultancy and exploration of multiple career options for job seekers,” he added.
Abdul Mumin Isaah, Chief Executive Officer of Sekondi-Takoradi Metropolitan Assembly, in an address read for him noted that skills and knowledge, when acquired, will help to create decent and sustainable employment while addressing the challenges of rising unemployment among the youth which result in illegal migration and social vices.
Also, he said, it will help address the issue of climate change due to youth involvement in activities that are negatively impacting the environment.
“I urge SNV to scale up existing programmes in capacity development and other programmes of mutual interest. We look forward to increased collaboration for job creation and sustainable development,” he concluded.
