Through the Ministry of Employment, Labour Relations and Pensions, the government has provided each of the 16 newly inaugurated Public Employment Centres (PEC) in the country with a Toyota Hilux pickup vehicle.
In addition, the Government has provided the Ministry with a 32-seater Toyota Coaster minibus to facilitate staff movement during durbars, workshops, and conferences.
The PECs, which are in all 16 regions, form part of the Ghana Jobs and Skills Project to boost job opportunities and improve skills training across the nation.
The Centres host the Ghana Labour Market Information System (GLMIS), which will contribute to developing critical skills for national economic transformation, minimizing skill mismatches, and reducing unemployment.
Mr. Ignatius Bafour Awuah, the Minister of Employment, Labour Relations and Pensions, presented 12 of the 16 pickup vehicles to Mr. Dawuda Ibrahim Braimah, the Chief Labour Officer of the Department of Labour, for distribution to the PECs.
Mr. Kizito Ballans, the Chief Director of the Ministry, on behalf of the staff, received from the Minister the key to the 32-seater Toyota Coaster minibus.
Four of the PECs, namely Atebubu in the Bono East Region, Odumase in the Bono Region, Twifo Hemang Lower Denkyira in the Central Region, and Konongo in the Ashanti Region, have already received their pickup vehicles.
The second batch of 12 pickup vehicles are for distribution to 12 PECs: Hohoe in the Volta Region, Dambai in the Oti Region, Yendi in the Northern Region, Walewale in the North East Region, Bolgatanga in the Upper East Region, and Wa in the Upper West Region.
The rest are Damongo in the Savannah Region, Kenyase in the Ahafo Region, Tarkwa in the Western Region, Bibiani in the Western North Region, Akim Oda in the Eastern Region, and Amasaman in the Greater Accra Region.
Mr. Bafour Awuah said the pickup vehicles would facilitate the movement of their staff in their respective regions as part of efforts to reach out to communities.
He noted that the government provided the 32-seater Toyota Coaster minibus for the Ministry following a request from the staff to facilitate their movement during the Ministry’s durbars.
He reiterated that the pickup vehicles were supposed to support the work of the various PECs.
He said PECs were centres where people looking for jobs could go and provide their information to the attendants there.
In the same way, employers looking for people to work with could go and log the information on people they want to recruit.
“So, it’s like a marketplace, where employers and employees will meet and exchange ideas. And we expect that a lot of engagements will be done at that level for people to be engaged, to get work to do,” he stated.
“Fortunately for us, not everybody can walk into these 16 centres that we have established. So, because of that, we have also established a web-based portal named https://www.glmis.gov.gh where people can access the same service that they would get when they walk into a public employment centre.”
He added that the Government wants employment services to be easy for persons looking for jobs to access.
He said they wanted persons who were also regulating their world of work, especially inspectors at the various district levels, to have an easy way of reaching their clients, saying, “That is why today we are providing these vehicles to the Labour Office.”
Mr. Baffour Awuah said this was not the only intervention the Government had made to the Labour Department, stating that about a year ago, the Government also made available some 86 motorbikes to the Labour Department to be distributed to their offices around the country to facilitate their movement.
This, he said, shows the Government’s commitment to improving the work of the Labour Department.
On behalf of the staff, Mr. Kizito Ballans, the Chief Director of the Ministry of Employment, Labour Relations and Pensions, expressed gratitude to the Minister and the Government for the kind gesture.
Mr. Dawuda Ibrahim Braimah, the Chief Labour Officer of the Department of Labour, assured the Minister that the vehicles would be put to good use.
Dr. Festus Awuah Kwofie, the Deputy Minister for Employment, Labour Relations and Pensions, attended the event.
 in the country with a Toyota Hilux pickup vehicle.){kind=link}