News
Workforce must move to higher productivity—Dr Baah
The Secretary General of the Trade Union Congress (TUC), Ghana, Dr Yaw Baah says the country must work to move majority of its 13 million workforce from a low productivity service sector to a higher one like manufacturing.
This type of development module, he said, was the one employed by advanced countries in Europe and should be replicated here to help achieve the economic transformation envisioned by the Ghana Beyond Aid (GBA) agenda.
Speaking at a virtual forum on COVID-19 and GBA in Accra yesterday, he said economic growth would be minimal with only eight per cent of the workforce in the manufacturing sector and 49 per cent in the service sector.
The forum, organised by the GBA committee was on the theme “COVID-19 and our march towards Ghana Beyond Aid; turning adversity into opportunity”.
It was aimed at stepping up public education and social mobilisation towards achieving the vision.
Explaining the European example of economic transformation, Dr Baah said they used a model in which they moved workforce through agriculture to industry and then the service sector.
“But in Ghana, we have moved large chunk of people from agriculture straight to service sector. We have skipped the industry sector. The industry is the chief provider of jobs”
“That is how we have missed the transformation of our economy and this is the time to change under the GBA. We have to move a chunk of our workers from the low producing informal sector to higher production informal sector”, he said.
According to the TUC boss, the country’s struggle against colonial masters did not end with the attainment of independence, rather it was the beginning of the strife to coordinate her own socio-economic development.
On the COVID-19 pandemic, he said, it had shown the country that the GBA was “indeed appropriate and timely. The GBA vision should be our guide in our efforts to move over the pandemic”, he said.
The Senior Minister, Yaw Osafo-Maafo, in a brief address, described the GBA vision as relevant to the country’s development adding that “if Ghana is to become self-sufficient, it is now.”
Metropolitan Archbishop of Cape Coast, Archbishop Charles Gabriel Palmer-Buckle, made a strong case for a paradigm shift in mindset and attitude to achieve the vision because the country was losing sight of its values and virtues.
He said Ghanaians needed to commit to the values of honesty, transformation, handwork, systematic and patriotism and move from cynicism, mistrust and selfishness, which he said was more dangerous than corruption.
BY JONATHAN DONKOR
News
Craze for x’mas shopping: Crowded markets, low patronage
Vendors of food and other wares associated with the Christmas celebration have expressed surprise at the low patronage despite the increased number of visitors to some of the major markets across the capital.
Four days to the celebration(Christmas), the markets are filled with various products ranging from food, clothing, livestock and many other stuff, but according to the vendors, patrons are doing more ‘window’ shopping.
The Spectator on visits to some of the markets in the capital, notably the Odawna, Makola, Accra Central Business District, New Town and others made similar observations as shoppers crowd them but did little in terms of purchases.
The paper also observed that majority of vendors, originally selling other wares have switched to product related to the festive season.
What it means is that there are a lot more clothes, food and vegetables, livestock and poultry, toys, firecrackers, drinks of different types and many others on display.
The markets have also stretched to the pedestrian pavement, leaving very narrow spaces for commuters to move about freely.
That, in addition to a few of the female vendors dressed in coloured attires to reflect the occasion, has heightened the euphoria, leaving the low sales as the only headache for the vendors.
Speaking with this paper, they sounded very optimistic, believing that sales would improve in the last few days to the yuletide.
According to them, there was the opportunity to sell beyond Christmas as the New Year celebration offers similar opportunity to trade the same wares.
They urged patrons to throng the markets to shop since prices were quite moderate and products affordable for all.
News
Retirement service for Elder John Ackom-Asante,3 others
Retired Deputy Editor of The Spectator, Elder John Ackom-Asante, was last Sunday honoured by the Church of Pentecost Windy Hills District in Kasoa in the Central Region, with a retirement thanksgiving service, after serving for 26 year as an Elder of the church.
He was honoured with a citation and certificate of service along with three other elders who served in the capacity for various years.
Elder Ackom-Asante was baptised at the Darkuman Central Assembly in 1979 and ordained as an Elder in 1997.
The citation read “Your selfless service, zeal, willingness to relate wholeheartedly and your desire to effect change has gone a long way to shape the lives of many people in the church and the nation over the 26 years of your dedication to the service of the Lord.”
Elder Ackom- Asante held many positions at the Darkuman Central Assembly, Obuasi in the Ashanti Region and Tema, serving in various capacities as youth and evangelism ministry leader and marriage counsellor.
He was the founding member of the Darkuman Christian Fellowship, a member of the Greater Accra Christian Fellowship; member of Bible Society of Ghana; founding member Obuasi Chapter Full Gospel Businessmen Fellowship International and founding member of New Times Corporation Christian Fellowship and Chaplain, Methodist University Tema Campus 2009- 2010.
As a professional journalist, Elder Ackom-Asante combined effectively and efficiently his duty as a member and elder of the church and the demands of his profession, with admiration from the church, kith and kin, till his retirement on December
From Alhaji Salifu Abdul-Rahaman, Kasoa
