Ghana has secured over 200 job placements each in the Bahamas and Trinidad for workers under the Ghana Labour Exchange Programme (GLEP), with additional recruitment underway for the Channel Islands, Lithuania, and Australia across multiple sectors.
The Minister of State in charge of Special Initiatives, Mr Emmanuel Kwadwo Agyekum, in an interaction with the Media on Monday, diaclosed that government is working on deploying workers to other Caribbean nations and beyond, with daily requests coming from countries worldwide following the completion of placements in Antigua.
“Bahamas has about 200 and something, Trinidad is also 200 and something. Then we are finished with Antigua now, so I think the rest are to follow. We have also recruited for the Channel Islands,” the Minister stated during the departure of 121 health workers to Antigua.
He revealed that recruitment is underway for Guernsey, Jersey, and Isle of Man, with representatives from the Chamber of Commerce in these territories having visited Ghana to conduct interviews for hospitality and construction workers.
“The Channel Islands, we are talking about Guernsey and Jersey and Isle of Man. We are hoping for the other ones to go through as well. They also need people from the hospitality industry. They also need people from the construction side as well. And they were actually here to interview them,” Mr Agyapong explained.
The Minister disclosed that Lithuania has requested bus drivers and coach drivers, while countries such as Japan and Germany have expressed interest in recruiting Ghanaian workers but require language training before departure.
“As we speak, we have a request from Lithuania. Lithuania, they need bus drivers, coach drivers and all those things. Japan actually wants us to bring people. But Japan wants us to take them through the language. They have to learn a language to be able to go to Japan. Germany, the same thing,” he stated.
On Australian opportunities, the Minister revealed that he held a meeting with the Australian High Commissioner regarding substantial employment opportunities.
However, he noted that the Australian government prefers individual applications rather to government-led recruitment, which has resulted in only six Ghanaians securing visas so far.
“There’s a huge, huge request from Australia. The only problem is that in regards to Australia, they don’t want us to put it through like the government championing it. But individuals will have to go and make the application. So if you look at Australia, we’ve just gotten six visas. Only six people,” he explained.
The Minister said President Mahama has tasked the ministry to work on expanding access to Australian employment opportunities and ensure more people benefit from the programme.
He confirmed that job requests are arriving daily from the United Kingdom, United States, Virgin Islands, and other countries, reflecting a huge global worker shortage.
“From UK to the Virgin Islands, to the US, they are coming in every day. We are getting the request every day. Yes, yes, there is a huge shortage around the world,” the Minister stated.
The requests span multiple sectors and skill levels, from healthcare professionals to farm helpers, IT professionals, teachers, agronomists, steel fixers, masons, seafarers, truck drivers, grid operators, and bulldozer operators.
On qualification requirements, Mr Agyapong explained that eligibility depends on the specific requests from each country. If employers need pharmacists, pharmacists must apply; if they need steel fixers, applicants must have that skill.
“It depends on the request. If they need a steel fixer, you need to be a steel fixer. If it’s to do with the seafaring, you need to have some skill to be able to qualify. If they need a mason, you need to be a mason to qualify,” he stated.
However, he noted that some countries are also requesting workers without specific skills, who can serve as helpers or in entry-level positions. The UK is running a seasonal workers programme that accepts various skill levels.
“There are also some requests coming in without a skill. Without a skill. So it means you could be a helper or something. UK is doing a program, but that is seasonal workers. So it doesn’t matter the skill,” the Minister said.
Countries have made diverse requests including IT professionals, teachers, and agronomists for St. Lucia, reflecting the wide spectrum of opportunities available to Ghanaians under the programme.
On the economic benefits, the Minister confirmed that remittances from workers abroad are substantial, with foreign exchange inflows arriving daily.
“The monies are coming in. They are enormous. We get the inflows every day,” he stated.
Mr Agyapong encouraged Ghanaians with various skills to take advantage of the opportunities, noting that the ministry has been conducting media engagements on TV stations including City TV to publicize available placements and qualification requirements.
The GLEP, championed by President Mahama, and launched in 2025 seeks to address the backlog of over 80,000 unemployed health professionals and create employment opportunities for Ghanaians across multiple sectors through international placements.
The Chief of Staff, Julius Debrah, led the send-off delegation on Monday that included the Minister of Health, Hon. Kwabena Mintah Akandoh, and other officials who bade farewell to the 121 health workers departing for Antigua.
Richard Aniagyei, ISD
