IOM presents office and ICT equipment to Labour Migration Unit

Accra, Sept. 10, GNA - The International Organisation for Migration (IOM) on Thursday presented office and Information Communication Technology (ICT) equipment worth about GHC18,000 to the Labour Migration Unit of the Ministry of Employment and Social Welfare (MOESW) in Accra.

The donation, under AENEAS Labour Migration Project, forms part of IOM's contribution towards the effective and efficient operations of the Unit, and is meant to help manage the database of migrant workers in Ghana.

The project seeks to contribute to efforts towards promoting orderly migration within the West Balkans. Presenting the equipment, Mr. Jo Rispoli, Country Representative of IOM, said the project, which was launched in 2006, was initiated in collaboration with the governments of Nigeria, Senegal, Libya and Ghana to address irregular migration.

He said it sought to encourage socio-economic development through migration and assist the growing operational challenges of migration management, while upholding the dignity and wellbeing of migrant workers.

Mr Rispoli said under the project, series of workshops would be organised for officials of the Unit to help build their capacity to establish mechanisms for identification and registration of migrant workers.

He noted that a major achievement of the project was the creation of the National Assessment of Labour Migration Policies, Legislation, Practices and Structures in Ghana.

Mr Stephen Amoanor Kwao, Minister of Employment and Social Welfare, receiving the equipment, said labour migration had taken the centre stage in the development agenda of developed and developing countries. He said the problem was a challenge and opportunity to countries involved in the management of migration. "To reap the enormous potential of labour migration requires the formulation and implementation of appropriate policies as well as the establishment of effective monitoring mechanisms," he said. Mr Amoanor Kwao expressed appreciation to IOM for their kind gesture and promised that the equipment would be well utilised.