By Jesse Ampah Owusu, GNA
Accra, June 23, GNA – Mrs Perpetual Ofori-Ampofo, President of the Ghana Registered Nurses and Midwives Association (GRNMA), has urged the Government to address local nurse and midwives shortages at hospitals before deploying them to other countries.
She said Ghana faced shortage of nurses and midwives, especially those trained in specialised and critical care.
Mrs Ofori-Ampofo made the call at the National Dialogue on Global Labour Mobility and Bilateral Labour Arrangements in Ghana on Monday in Accra.
The two-day event, organised by the International Organisation for Migration (IOM) Ghana, brought together key stakeholders to explored how Ghana could better harness international labour mobility to drive job creation, skills development, and economic growth.
Mrs Ofori-Ampofo called for priority in terms of getting the services of health professionals retrained in the country.
She said Ghana currently had about 140,000 nurses and midwives, which was woefully inadequate for a population of more than 35 million.
Mrs Ofori-Ampofo urged enhanced engagement and collaboration between the Government and stakeholders in the health sector before nurses were migrated.
She said they were often not engaged as stakeholders before their members were transferred to other jurisdictions.
“As a country, we must also create those retention strategies that can attract them to stay rather than opt to move out,” she said.
“There are serious systemic challenges, which the Government needs to address. And, at the same time, prioritise health workers, knowing that they form the core of the health system.”
Meanwhile, Dr Abdul-Rashid Pelpuo, Minister of Labour, Jobs and Employment, said his Ministry was strengthening the governance framework of labour mobility through policy, legal, and institutional reforms.
“We envision a labour mobility governance regime where the rights of Ghanaian migrant workers abroad are respected and protected,” he added.
Dr Pelpuo said they aimed to position labour mobility as a strategic national asset that expanded opportunity, strengthened skills, and supported Ghana’s economic transformation.
GNA
Edited by Agnes Boye-Doe