Scrap Policies That Do Not Favor Private Sector

The Director of Labour Research and Policy Institute of TUC, Dr. Kwabena Nyarko Otoo, has called on government to abandon economic policies that do not favor private sector development.

According to him, the private sector is the solution to reducing unemployment rate in the country, stressing on the need for Government to support the private sector in order to create jobs.

He made these remarks at the Organized Labour’s forum dubbed “Developments in the Economy and Their Implications for Workers”, held yesterday in Accra.

“We think government should protect and nurture the private sector. We cannot leave the private sector in the gamble of competition thinking that competition is good for them. It is not every competition which is healthy…infact competition we have had in this country have been so far unhealthy,” he stressed.

Dr. Nyarko Otoo said despite the significant economic growth recorded over the past three and a half decades, the rate of unemployment continues to increase.

He believes government’s flagship, ‘One District One factory’ policy should be strengthened to ensure the country produces her own goods rather than importing.

“The solution for us is to strengthen the one district one factory make sure that some of the simple basic things we can produce in this country we do it ourselves and look to exporting some surplus to the West Africa sub region,” Nyarko Otoo said.

Touching on inflation, he said government needs some strategic interventions in the money market, adding that the inflation targeting regime must be reviewed.

Focus on Unemployment

He called on government to focus on employment rather than targeting inflation.

“We have friends who have graduated from the Universities and are still looking for jobs. So if the people’s concern are about jobs why do we have to target something different?” he quizzed.

The Deputy Minister of Employment, Hon. Bright Wereko-Brobby, on his part, assured the Union of the Ministry’s readiness to provide them with the needed attention and be responsive to all labour issues.

“We in the Ministry want to build trust with the organized labour. But trust cannot be fully enhanced if it is not backed by transparency and so we have decided to lay issues as they are,” he said.

The forum was aimed at educating Organised Labour members on macroeconomic indicators and their implications for the welfare of labour.

By: Emmanuel Yeboah Britwum/ thePublisher