Ghana

Labour Market Profile

2014

This Labour Market Profile is a yearly updated report that provides a broad overview of the labour

market's situation and development. The report is based on the latest data available and following

trends. Each section has also accesses to the sources' links that can be used to go more in-depth on

selected themes.

Ghana - Labour Market Profile 2014

Executive Summary

Ghana has been a stable and mature democracy throughout the last two decades. The country continues to show good performance on democratic governance, arising from strong multi-party political system, growing media pluralism and a strong civil society. There has been a very high economic growth in recent years. Large off-shore oil reserves were discovered and extraction started in 2010, and is the main reason for Ghana’s high growth rates in recent years. The oil industry is capital intensive and will produce few direct jobs compared to investment and contributions to GDP. The Ghana Trade Union Congress (TUC) has raised serious concerns about the economy’s policies and management that have implications for the working force. Despite the high economic growth rates, incomes are falling in real terms for most Ghanaians as more good jobs are disappearing faster than they are being created. The economy has also been negatively affected by the Ebola Pandemic during 2014 as the volume of regional transport and trade has continued to fall. Ghana has been identified as “vulnerable” to Ebola outbreaks by the WHO, because of its status as a regional transport hub. Ghana has a rather unified trade union movement with a relatively high density at 7.5% of the total labour force. Decent work in the informal economy has received more attention by the TUC and several unions are working to extend their services to workers in the informal 'sector'. An estimated 58,000 workers from the informal economy are affiliated members of trade unions in TUC. A Council for Informal Workers Association (CIWA) was established in 2013 and a organizational framework is currently being prepared. Several trade union rights violations were registered by the International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC) for the year 2013. There were examples of employers that continued to fire employees for union activity as well as some employers in the Export Processing Zones (EPZ) had persistently resisted the unionization of their employees.

The unemployment and underemployment stand at 4.6% and 5.1%, respectively. The youth unemployment was reached at 8.7%, with a slightly higher rate among females. Up to 300,000 workers are introduced to the pool of jobseekers every year and only around 2% find jobs in the formal sector. The majority enter the informal economy. Actually, the informal economy is the largest employer that has absorbed about 86% of the labour force.

The Daily Minimum Wage was pegged at GHS 6.0 (US$2) per day and took effect on May 1, 2014. It has been increased by 14.5% from the previous minimum wage rate on GHS 5.24 (US$2.5) in 2013/14. The minimum wage is still not enough to support basic living conditions in Ghana. The public pay structure was reformed into the Single Spine Pay Policy (SSPP) in 2009 that aims to ensure that public employees are given similar wages for similar skill levels. Some public employees are yet to transfer into the SSPP. The SSPP has been criticized by many workers and several strikes by public employees have been held concerning the SSPP. The health social protection coverage is high at 74% of the population, but the health expenditure has experienced a decrease. The process of the new Three-Tier Pension System has experienced delays of funds that should provide liquidity into local bond and equity markets. There has been an interest in improving the eldercare sector, e.g. the government adopted a National Ageing Policy in 2010 and eldercare is part of the public Social Security and National Insurance Trust and other schemes. However, the formalizing of public elderly care system is still underdeveloped. Improvement of 'one-stop shop' service of Export Production Zones has attracted more foreign investments. Many new free zone companies are registering and creating many new direct jobs. Ghana has still not ratified the ILO’s Domestic Workers Convention, 2011 (No. 189), but the government expressed to ratify it after 2014.

Contents

Trade Unions ......................................................................................................................................... 4

Trade Unions in Ghana .................................................................................................................................. 5

Employers’ Organisations ....................................................................................................................... 6

Central Tripartite Structures ................................................................................................................... 6

National Labour Legislation .................................................................................................................... 7

ILO Conventions ..................................................................................................................................... 8

Trade Union Rights Violations ................................................................................................................ 9

Working Conditions.............................................................................................................................. 10

Workforce ........................................................................................................................................... 11

Unemployment and underemployment ..................................................................................................... 11

Sectoral employment .................................................................................................................................. 12

Migration ..................................................................................................................................................... 13

Informal Economy ....................................................................................................................................... 14

Child Labour ................................................................................................................................................. 15

Gender ......................................................................................................................................................... 15

Youth ........................................................................................................................................................... 16

Characteristics of the Working Age Population ..................................................................................... 17

Vocational training ...................................................................................................................................... 18

Social Protection .................................................................................................................................. 19

General Economic Performance ............................................................................................................ 20

Trade ................................................................................................................................................... 21

Trade agreements ....................................................................................................................................... 21

Export Processing Zones (EPZ) ..................................................................................................................... 21

References ........................................................................................................................................... 22

Trade Unions

Trade unions in Ghana (2014) Number of trade unions 25

Dues (standard) 1-2% of basic

salary

Members of trade unions1 800,000

Trade union members share of labour force 7.5 %

Trade union members to waged workers 48 %

Female member share of trade unions2 30 %

Affiliated trade unions from the informal economy

58,000

Number of CBAs N/A

Waged and salaried workers covered by CBAs (2006)3

70 %

Share of workers covered by CBA N/A

Labour force (2013)4 11,058,000

It has been estimated that 800,000 workers are trade union members and with a density at 7.2% of the total worker force. In terms of trade union members of waged workers, it has been assessed as 48%. Estimation of trade union density from 2005-06 showed that 38% of the working age population who had a job had trade unions at their workplaces. There were considerable differences between industries, ranging from Constructions' 6.6% and Utilities' 75%. In Ghana work places with unions have comparatively better employment and working conditions compared with workplaces where there are not unions. One reason is that unions are able to negotiate for improved conditions and monitor compliance with labour standards. On average unionized workplaces have higher proportion of workers with signed contracts, access to social protection and a higher average wage. The legislation allows workers - except for the armed forces, police, the prison service, and some other security and intelligence agency personnel - to form and join unions of their choice without previous authorization or excessive requirements. The law allows unions to conduct their activities without interference and provides reinstatement for workers dismissed under unfair pretenses. There is a legal framework for collective bargaining. Only unions that represent the majority of workers in a given company, however, can obtain a collective bargaining certificate, which is required to engage in collective bargaining. The coverage rate of Collective Bargaining Agreements

(CBA) has been estimated as 70%. The data is somewhat outdated, though.

According to the U.S. Country Report on Human Rights Practices,

5 the government has generally protected

the right to form and join independent unions and to conduct legal strikes and bargain collectively. Trade unions engaged in collective bargaining for wages and benefits with both private and state-owned enterprises without government interference. However, no union had ever gone through the complete dispute resolution process involving arbitration, and there were numerous unsanctioned strikes during the year. Some employers continued to fire employees for union activity.

Unions in Ghana can be grouped into five categories: i) Members of TUC, ii) members of GFL, iii) non-affiliated unions national unions, iv) non-affiliated sector-based unions, and v) enterprise based unions. The TUC has 18 affiliated national unions (Group 1). GFL has 9 affiliated unions (Group 2). There are six non-affiliated national/industrial unions (Group 3), 14 sector-based non-affiliated unions (Group 4), and 25 enterprise-based unions. Five of fourteen sector based unions in group 4 do not have a bargaining certificate whereas 18 of the 25 enterprise based unions do not have a bargaining certificate.

6

Ghana Trade Union Congress (TUC)

7

The Trades Union Congress (TUC) was founded in 1945 and is the centre of 18 member national unions and 9 associate members in the informal economy. It has a membership of about 500,000 workers. The membership has been decreasing in recent years, following the decrease in formal sector employment. With the decision to affiliate associated members among informal economy workers, has increased slightly again. TUC estimates a membership of 300,000 for unions outside TUC.

8

Ghana Federation of Labour (GFL)

9

In 1998 the GFL was established as a national centre. The founding organisations were the Ghana National Association of Teachers (GNAT), the Ghana Registered Nurses’ Association, the Textiles, Garment and Leather Employees’ Union and the Lotto Receivers’ Association. Subsequently, the GNAT withdrew from GFL. It is now a non-affiliated union, and with 178,000 members it is also by far the largest union in Ghana.

Trade Unions in Ghana10

Members, Dues, Collective Bargaining Agreements (CBA) and Occupational Safety and Health committees

Trade Union / Trade Union Centre

Affiliation To national trade union

centre

Total Members

(2009)

Female Members

(2009) Dues

Number of CBAs

Workers covered by CBAs

Number of OSH com-mittees at

workplaces

Ghana Trades Union Congress (TUC) 500,000 (2012)

- - - - -

Ghana Federation of Labour (GFL) 178,000 (2012)

- - - - -

GAWU General Agricultural Workers’ Union

TUC 44,000 - - - - -

GMWU Ghana Mine Workers’ Union TUC 2,000 - - - -

PSWU Public Services Workers’ Union TUC 42,000 - - - - -

MDU Maritime and Dock-workers’ Union

TUC 6,000 - - - - -

CBWU Construction and Building Materials Workers’ Union

TUC 21,000 - - - - -

TWU Timber and Wood-workers’ Union

TUC 36,000 - - - - -

RWU Railway Workers’ Union TUC 11,000 - - - - -

PUWU Public Utility Workers’ Union TUC 29,000 - - - - -

GTPCWU Gen. Transp., Petro. and Chem. Workers’ Union

TUC 5,000 - - - - -

TEWU Teachers and Educational Workers’ Union

TUC 42,000 - - - - -

REU Railway Engine-men’s Union TUC 1,000 - - - - -

CWU Communications Workers’ Union

TUC 18,000 - - - - -

LGWU Local Government Workers’ Union

TUC 21,000 - - - - -

NUS National Union of Seamen TUC 1,000 - - - - -

HSWU Health Services Workers’ Union

TUC 29,000 - - - - -

GPRTU Ghana Private Road Transport Union

TUC 44,000 - - - - -

UNICOF Union of Industry, Commerce and Finance

TUC 39,000 - - - - -

FUSSAG Federation of Universities Snr. Staff Association of Ghana

TUC - - - - - -

GNAT Ghana National Association of Teachers

- 178,00011

- - - - -

GRNA Ghana Registered Nurses Association

- 12,000 - - - - -

CSA Civil Servants Association - 70,000 - - - - -

TEGLEU Textile, Garments and Leather Workers’ Union

- - - - - - -

JUSSAG Judicial Services Association of Ghana

- - - - - - -

Employers’ Organisations

Ghana Employers' Association (GEA)12

The Ghana Employers' Association was formed in 1959, two years after Ghana’s independence. GEA is structured into the Annual General Meeting, the Council, the Executive Committee, the Advisory Committee, the Administrative and Finance Committee, the Education and Training Committee and the Secretariat. The president of the GEA is Mr Terry Darko. The organization represents over 1,500 employers.

The functions of GEA are to consolidate employers into one effective body and to represent, promote and defend their interests in their dealings with organised labour and Government and its agents. It seeks to promote good working relations between employers and their employees and assists employers in negotiating collective bargaining agreements with organised labour.

Central Tripartite Structures13

The National Tripartite Committee (NTC) The Committee is composed of the minister of labour and five representatives each of the government, employers´ organisations and trade unions. The Committee sets the minimum wage, and gives advice on employment and labour matters including labour laws, labour standards, industrial relations and occupational safety and health. National Labour Commission (NLC) The Commission is composed of a chairperson and two representatives each of the government, employers´ organisations and trade unions. The commission settles industrial disputes, investigates labour complaints and promotes effective labour cooperation. If settlement fails the commission can appoint a mediator and if that fails an arbitration panel, both with the consent of the involved parties. The NLC is insufficient in entering on strikes. For example, during the implementation of the Single Spine Pay Policy (SSPP) many workers in the public sector have held several strikes with the aim to ensure that wages can sustain basic living conditions.

14 But

these strikes have been classified as illegal by NLC, which argued that there was a lack of understanding of the SSPP.

15

The Financial, Business and Services Employees Union (FBSEU) submitted the rules and constitution of its Standing Negotiating Committee to the Parliamentary Service Board. The rules and constitution was refused, though. It was reasoned that the Parliamentary Service did not have the right to join a union. The FBSEU petitioned that the parties signed the rules within 21 days. It was not met by the Parliamentary Service Board. Afterwards the NLC filed an enforcement process in the High Court. The case remains before the courts.

16

It is registered that no union had ever gone through the complete dispute resolution process involving arbitration. Other bi/tripartite organs

The Social Security and National Insurance Trust (SSNIT)

The National Vocational Training Institute (NVTI)

Member of various committees on development and regulation

The National Development Planning Commission (NDPC)

The Public Services Joint Standing Negotiation Committee (PSJSNC)

The Ministry of Manpower Development, Youth and Employment (MMDYE)

National Labour Legislation17

Constitution

The constitution of 1992 establishes the right to satisfactory, safe and healthy work, equal pay for equal work, adequate resting periods, maternity leave and protection from child labour. Freedom of association is guaranteed, and workers are free to join and form union. Special incentives for firms employing significant numbers of disabled people are to be instituted. The constitution also encourages participation of workers at workplaces Labour Act

The Labour Act of 2003 introduced trade union pluralism in Ghana. The act regulates various working conditions including the right to strike, freedom of association, prohibits anti-union discrimination and recognises the right to collective bargaining. It regulates trade unions and employers’ organisations and collective bargaining agreements. The act also establishes the Labour Inspection, the National Tripartite Committee and the National Labour Commission. Children’s Act

The Children’s Act of 1998, which defines a child, is a person below the age of eighteen years. The law prohibits engaging a child in exploitative labour, defined to mean labour depriving the child of its health, education or development. The law also defines hazardous work. Commission on Human Rights and Administrative Justice Act

The Commission on Human Rights and Administrative Justice Act of 1993 covers a Commission on Human Rights and Administrative Justice to investigate complaints of violations of fundamental human rights and freedoms, injustice and corruption, abuse of power and unfair treatment of persons by public officers in the exercise of their duties. National Vocational Training Act

The National Vocational Training Act of 1997 and the National Vocational Training Regulations enjoin companies to introduce apprenticeship schemes when there is a technical business attached to the establishment. Employers are therefore obliged to provide training for their employees for the

attainment of the level of competence required for the performance of their jobs and to enhance their career. National Pensions Act The National Pensions Act of 2008 establishes a contributory three-tier pension scheme consisting of the following: i) a mandatory basic national social security scheme; ii) a mandatory fully funded and privately managed occupational pension scheme; and iii) a voluntary fully funded and privately managed provident fund and personal pension scheme. Human Trafficking Act The Human Trafficking Act of 2005 covers the recruitment, transportation, transfer, harboring, trading or receipt of persons, within and across borders, by the use of threat, fraud and exploitation of vulnerability or by paying to gain consent as well as induced prostitution and other forms of sexual exploitation, and forced labour. AIDS Commission Act The Ghana AIDS Commission Act of 2002 establishes a Commission, of tripartite-plus composition, to formulate a national HIV/AIDS policy. National Health Insurance Act A National Health Insurance Act of 2012 consolidates the National Health Insurance Authority, remove administrative bottlenecks, introduce transparency, reduce opportunities for corruption and gaming of the system, and make for more effective governance of the schemes. Free Zone Act The Free Zone Act of 1995 permits the entry into any free zone by any office authorized by the Minister for Trade and Industry, and declares that any obstruction of such entry amounts to an offence punishable by fines or imprisonment. Fair Wages and Salaries Commission Act The Fair Wages and Salaries Commission Act of 2007 implement public service pay policy and develop and monitor allowances and benefits of public servants and the consolidation of salaries of public servants. Other laws are also available at ILO's NATLEX.

18

ILO Conventions

Ratified ILO Conventions19

Subject and/or right Convention Ratification date

Fundamental Conventions

Freedom of association and collective bargaining

C087 - Freedom of Association and Protection of the Right to Organise, 1948 1965

C098 - Right to Organise and Collective Bargaining Convention, 1949 1959

Elimination of all forms of forced labour

C029 - Forced Labour Convention, 1930 1957

C105 - Abolition of Forced Labour Convention, 1957 1958

Effective abolition of child labour

C138 - Minimum Age Convention, 1973 2011

C182 - Worst Forms of Child Labour Convention, 1999 2000

Elimination of discri-mination in employment

C100 - Equal Remuneration Convention, 1951 1968

C111 - Discrimination (Employment and Occupation) Convention, 1958 1961

Governance Conventions

Labour inspection C081 - Labour Inspection Convention, 1947 1959

C129 - Labour Inspection (Agriculture) Convention, 1969 Not ratified

Employment policy C122 - Employment Policy Convention, 1964 Not ratified

Tripartism C144 - Tripartite Consultation (International Labour Standards) Convention, 1976 2011

Up-to-date Conventions

Working time C014 - Weekly Rest (Industry) Convention, 1921 1960

C106 - Weekly Rest (Commerce and Offices) Convention, 1957 1958

Wages C094 - Labour Clauses (Public Contracts) Convention, 1949 1961

Occupational Safety and Health

C115 - Radiation Protection Convention, 1960 1961

C120 - Hygiene (Commerce and Offices) Convention, 1964 1966 C148 - Working Environment (Air, Noise and Vibration) Convention, 1977 1986 C184 - Safety and Health in Agriculture Convention, 2001 2011

Seafarers C147 - Merchant Shipping (Minimum Standards) Convention, 1976 2005

Labour administration C150 - Labour Administration Convention, 1978 1986

Industrial relations C151 - Labour Relations (Public Service) Convention, 1978 1986

Specific categories of workers

C149 - Nursing Personnel Convention, 1977 1986

Fundamental Conventions are the eight most important ILO conventions that cover four fundamental principles and rights at work. Equivalent to basic human rights at work.

Governance Conventions are four conventions that the ILO has designated as important to building national institutions and capacities that serve to promote employment. In other words, conventions that promotes a well-regulated and well-functioning labour market.

In addition, there are 71 conventions, which ILO considers “up-to-date" and actively promotes.

Trade Union Rights Violations

The International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC) recorded three cases in 2013: First, in February, fifteen workers at an oil and gas service provider were sacked for allegedly attempting to join the General Transport and Petroleum and Chemical Workers Union (GTPCWU) in order to gain bargaining power to negotiate with the company for better service conditions. Secondly, in August, members of the General Transport, Petroleum and Chemical Workers Union (GTPCWU) were harassed and mistreated by foreign oil service companies. It was argued that companies did not want their workers to unionize and tried to prevent them from joining a trade union using intimidation and even dismissal. In addition, some companies have refused to sign a verification form to enable the workers in that company to join a trade union. Thirdly, in August, the Financial, Business and Services Employees Union (FBSEU) submitted the rules and constitution of its Standing Negotiating Committee to the Parliamentary Service Board. The Parliamentary Service Board refused, however, to register the rules

and constitution arguing that workers of the Parliamentary Service did not have the right to join a union. The FBSEU petitioned the National Labour Commission, which then asked both parties to sign the rules within 21 days. The Parliamentary Service Board failed to comply with the order and hence the Commission filed an enforcement process in the High Court. The matter is before the courts. Some instances of subtle employer interference in union activities have occurred. Moreover, there have been numerous unsanctioned strikes recently. Some employers continued to fire employees for union activity.

20

Some employers in the Export Processing Zones (EPZ) have persistently resisted the unionization of their employees, despite the protection provided by the 2003 Labour Act. An EPZ fruit processing company that employs over one thousand workers, has consistently refused to recognize its workers’ union the Food and Allied Workers Union (FAWU).

21

Widespread violations were also reported of human rights in mining areas.

Working Conditions

Wages and earnings Monthly average and legal minimum wages

Source Current

Cedi (new) Current

US$

Average wages (2005/6)

Global Wage Database22

95 83

Minimum wage (2014)

Wage Indicator23

120 40

Minimum wage for 19-year old worker/apprentice (2013)

Doing Business24

60 28

Ratio of minimum wage to value added per worker (2013)

0.12

Growth of real minimum wage (2000-2011)

Global Wage Database25

90 %

The calculation of the minimum wage per month is based on the official maximum five working days per week, i.e. an average 20 working days per month. The ratio of the minimum wage for a trainee or first-time employee to the average value added per worker.

The Revised Daily Minimum Wage for the year 2014 was fixed at GHS 6 (US$2) per day. The new wages came into effect from May 1, 2014. It was increased by 14.5%. The minimum wage is still only around GHS 120 (US$40) per month, which is not enough to support basic living conditions in Ghana. Other reports inform that the minimum wage for an unskilled worker is US$28 per month.

26

The national minimum wage applies to all sectors, including the informal sector. It has not been enforced in the latter sector, though. By law the maximum working week is 45 hours, but collective bargaining has established a 40-hour week for most unionized workers. There have been strikes of the minimum wage law in the formal economy across all sectors.

27 In

practice, an average has a working week of 54 hours and they work nearly six days a week.

28

Ghana reformed in 2009 the public pay structures into the Single Spine Pay Policy (SSPP). The SSPP set the salary structure for public employees in Ghana, seeking to make sure that public employees are given a standardised salary for similar jobs. Around 1.4% of the labour force is working in public administration and 2.9% in education. Not all public employees have transferred into the SSPP.

29 Ensuing failing

Government ability to finance costs and salaries of the national health and education systems means that many institutions have either closed down or only

provide services to the public against private cash payments by the individual. Workers are entitled to at least 15 working days of leave with full pay in a calendar year of continuous service or after having worked at least 200 days in a particular year. However, such provisions do not apply to task workers or domestic workers in private homes, nor elsewhere in the informal sector. It is also observed that the law does not prescribe overtime rates and does not prohibit excessive compulsory overtime. Only workers in the formal sector, which employed 14% of the labor force, are covered by the legislation of Occupational Safety and Health (OSH) regulations.

30

A national survey revealed working hours for different occupations: Low skilled sectors such as agriculture and elementary occupation tended to work less than 40 hours per week, whereas higher skilled occupations such legislators/managers or clerks tended to work more than 40 hours per week. Close to 58% of security personal, 53% Plant & machine operators, and 38% of service/sales workers worked more than 60 hours a week. To the contrary, 18% of the employed worked less than 20 hours in their main job. A little more than one out of two (55%) of those employed had no written contract.

31

The proportions of no written contract were highest in the sectors of Trade and Commerce (81%), Agriculture (77%), Transport, Communications & Storage (77%) and Manufacturing (70%) whereas it was lowest for Utilities (25%) and Finance & Real Estate (22.6%). Relative high median wages are depicted for the workers on permanent contracts.

32

A Ghana TUC analysis of the living standards survey revealed an average monthly wages at GHS 119. The average wage varied between industries, with the lowest for agriculture at GHS 88 per month and the highest for Financial Services at GHS 332 per month. On average, women earned GHS 108 per month and men earned GHS 132, equivalent of women earning 30% less than men. Safety inspectors were few and poorly trained, and they lacked the resources to effectively respond to violations. Inspectors did not impose sanctions or otherwise respond to violations during the year 2013.

Workforce

The total population in Ghana is 25.4 million out if which the labour force is 11 million persons. In the total employment rate, two out of three (67%) are involved directly in market-related activities. The employment gender gap is relatively narrow, but slightly favouring men. There are estimations that approximately 300,000 young people enter the job market annually. Only 2%, or about 5,000 persons, find employment in the formal sector.

34

Ghana has considerably fewer working poor than the rest of Sub-Saharan Africa, with 29% working poor living for under US$1.25 a day and 52% for US$2 a day. Although the data is from 2006, it is still a large share of the population, especially considering Ghana’s otherwise well developed economy and stability.

Working Poor35

Age 15+

Share of workers

in total employment

Region 1.25 US$

a day 2 US$ a day

Ghana (2006) 29 % 52 %

Sub-Saharan Africa (2006)

48 % 70 %

Sub-Saharan Africa (2012)

40 % 64 %

Working poor measures employed people living for less than US$1.25 and US$2 a day, as proportion of total employment in that group.

Relative to the Sub-Saharan Africa average, Ghana has a much higher middle class. In 2010, 27% of Ghanaian lived for US$2-4 a day and 20% for US$4-20 a day, compared to Sub-Saharan Africa where 14% lived for US$2-4 a day and 10% for US$4-20 a day.

36

The Government has a National Employment Policy (2012-2016) aims to tackle lack of structural transformation of the Ghanaian economy. Initiatives seek to make production processes and public investment programs more employment intensive as direct ways of generating employment in the country. In addition, the oil and gas industry is gradually facing shortages of skilled workers. The government adopted a strategy that is aimed to achieve at least 90% local content and local participation in all oil and gas activities by 2020.

37

Unemployment and underemployment

Unemployment, youth unemployment, and underemployment (2013)

38

Un-

employment

Youth Unemployment

(15-24 age)

Under-employment

(2005/06)

Total 4.6 % 8.7 % 5.1 %

Male 4.3 % 7.4 % 4.6 %

Female 4.8 % 10 % 5.6 %

Underemployment is the proportion of those who work less than 35 hours a week and want to work more. The estimates are slightly higher for those who work 40 hours or less.

The most recent data estimations on unemployment and underemployment stand at 4.6% and 5.1%, respectively. In terms of the unemployment rate, the trend has been stable since 2005. The unemployment is mostly in the urban areas while underemployment is predominantly in rural areas.

39 The inactivity rate,

Employment rates33

(2012), Age and Sex distribution

Sex Age Employment

rate

Male & female

Total 15+ 67 %

Youth 15-24 36 %

Adult 25+ 82 %

Male Total 15+ 69 %

Youth 15-24 36 %

Adult 25+ 86 %

Female Total 15+ 65 %

Youth 15-24 36 %

Adult 25+ 78 %

67

36

82

69

36

86

65

36

78

0 20 40 60 80 100

15+

15-24

25+

Female Male Male & female

which is a measure of the proportion of a country’s working-age population that is not engaged actively in the labour market, either by working or looking for work, is high and measured at 31% of the labour force. There are no major gender differences in unemployment or underemployment.

ILO's estimations of the youth unemployment were reached at 8.7%, with a slightly higher rate among females. However, other figures from the African Development Bank are somewhat different suggesting a youth unemployment at 26% (young people aged 15-24).

40 These figured could diverge due to the

definition of youth unemployment and concentrated in different zones.

Interpretation of the open unemployment and employment rates as indicators of a well-functioning labour market is problematic in developing countries. When unemployment is not an option where a person can survive, work of some sort has to be found, often casual and informal work. Unemployment should therefore be understood in relation to the strength of social safety nets, the prevalence of informal employment and how much of informal employment is underemployment due to few formal employment possibilities.

41

Sectoral employment

Agriculture is by far the largest employment sector in Ghana, employing around 42% of the labour force, and contributing with around 21% to GDP. The country has a more developed agricultural sector in comparison with many other Sub-Saharan African countries. The latter regional average has an agricultural employment over 70%, and with a GDP contribution around 25%. Ghana has a dual labour market split between a pre-industrialised agricultural sector and a modern sector. The sector also has a slightly higher employment of men than females, which is unusual for the

agricultural sector in Sub-Saharan Africa. Females find employment in several other sectors, but predominantly in Trade, Restaurants and Hotels as well as Manufacturing. Financial services employs about 0.7% of the workforce, but the country recently experienced an influx of large banks from Nigeria and elsewhere. Notwithstanding the sector still employs about 72,000 workers, according to the 2010 Population and Housing Census.

44

Employment (2010)42

& GDP share (2013)43

Sector & Sex distribution – (Graph without Agriculture)

Sector Male

employment Female

employment GDP share per sector

Mining and quarrying 92,353 21,852 7,9

Manufacturing 449,826 670,296 6,3

Electricity, gas and water 27,690 13,141 1,4

Construction 308,527 8,998 12,6

Trade, restaurants and hotels

687,439 1,836,662 10,7

Transport and communication

348,788 18,506 14,7

Finance, real estate and business services

137,880 77,704 9,4

Public administration, education & health

447,624 304,005 6,6

Other services 253,581 357,071 9,0

Agriculture 2,303,140 2,008,595 21,3

9,0%

6,6%

9,4%

14,3%

10,7%

12,6%

1,4%

6,3%

7,9%

0% 4% 8% 12% 16% 20% 24%

0 415.000 830.000 1.245.000 1.660.000 2.075.000 2.490.000

Male Female GDP share by Sector 2010

The strong economic growth has been concentrated on exploitation of natural resources, including cocoa, timber, solid mineral resources and lately crude oil. The construction sector has also played major role in the growth and provided jobs for a large segment of jobseekers, but the quality of employment has been poor. Also the industry sector has stumbled, but has recently increased which opens up for job opportunities. It is noteworthy that the service sector expanded significantly in 2004, rising from 31% of GDP to 49% in 2006 and the share has stayed on this range afterwards. Agriculture has decreased from 41% of GDP in 2004 to 22% in 2013. Industry is growing again since 2010 and has reached 27% of GDP in 2012.

Sector Share of value added (% of GDP)45

Migration

Migration46

Net migration (2008-2012)

Ghana - 100,000

Net migration to average population per year (2008-2012)

Ghana - 1 : 1,213

inhabitants

Sub-Saharan Africa

- 1 : 2,835 inhabitants

Personal transfers i.e. remittances received, % of GDP (2012)

Ghana 0.3 %

Sub-Saharan Africa

2.4 %

Net migration is the net total of migrants during the period, that is, the total number of immigrants less the annual number of emigrants, including both citizens and noncitizens.

Ghana’s migration profile is evolving and the number of migrants crossing the borders is increasing. The discovery of oil in the Gulf of Guinea will further increase volatility in migration and introduce new challenges. The Ghana Immigration Services is operating with a Strategic Plan 2011-2015. Based on the 2014 Ebola epidemic risks can affect the migration flow the coming years. Ghana has a relatively higher net migration outflow than the Sub-Saharan Arica's average. However, remittances share is not an important part of the GDP, reaching around 0.3%, while it is 2.4% of GDP in the Sub-Saharan Africa. Most Ghanaian emigrants go to West African nations, but a growing proportion is migrating outside the region. Emigration has been increasing faster than immigration, but Ghana remains an important immigration country as well, especially from other countries of the Economic Community of West African

States (ECOWAS).47

Ghana’s emigrations rate of tertiary educated to OECD countries is 44% of tertiary educated population age 25 and above, which suggests a relatively high ‘brain drain’. Ghana’s citizenship legislation was revised to make it possible for Ghanaians who have acquired other nationalities to retain their Ghanaian citizenship under a dual citizenship arrangement. This has made it possible to continue to benefit from the privileges offered for Ghanaians. Over 2,400 Ghanaian emigrants have taken advantage of this legislation since it’s entry into force 2003.

48

Like most other African and developing countries, Ghana experiences shortages of workers with certain skills, due to emigration of high-skilled labour. In the health care and the education sector this is particular common. Some of the immigrants and emigrants enter or leave the country through unauthorized routes. Ghana’s borders are not effectively patrolled. Some workers from neighbor countries are entering the country as short-term emigrants, but often stay beyond the mandatory 90 days.

49

A survey of nurses and midwives in 2011 indicated that the factors that influence migration decisions include low levels of pay, poor working conditions, difficult working environments, inadequate opportunities for career development and promotion, low motivation, overstretched and stressed staff and low value given to care work.

50

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

Agriculture Industry Services

Informal Economy

Employment in the informal economy

Share of persons employed in the informal sector

Ghana (2006)51

86 %

Share of persons employed in the non-agricultural informal sector

Ghana (2006)52

79 %

Sub-Saharan Africa (2001)

53

78 %

The informal economy is the largest employer in Ghana, with estimates from 2006 at 86% of the total labour force, and 79% of the non-agricultural labour force. When urban areas are not able to create the number of formal jobs needed to meet the increased supply of labour, the informal economy is growing. The informal 'sector' is mainly in manufacturing, repair services, and other services. The informal economy employs around 57% of women.

54

The informal economy is the part of an economy that is not taxed or monitored by any form of government. Studies have showed that the forms of working conditions are worse in the informal economy in comparison with the formal sector.

55

It has been noted that foreign investment has shifted from production to banking and finance, which has created few jobs. To the contrary, the informal economy has created an estimated ten times more jobs than the formal economy since the 1980s, and contribute 20% to 40% of GDP, respectively.

56

In a survey rating workers on an ‘informality scale’ from 1-5, with 1 being workers not entitled to social benefits, who do not contribute to social security and with no contract. It shows that 19% in the most informal category and 50% in the most formal. The survey also showed that the informality index correlates age, with more young people in informal employment. The survey was conducted in urban areas, likely among the slightly better of segment of

the labour force, as the median wage was about US$200 among the surveyed. It is somewhat higher than average wage of US$151, which the 5th Ghana Living Standard Survey showed.

57

In Ghana TUC’s analysis of the Ghana Living Standard Survey of 2005/06, 55% of employed workers had no written contract. The proportions of no written contract were highest in the sectors of Trade and Commerce (81%), Agriculture (77%), Transport, Communications & Storage (77%), and Manufacturing (70%), whereas it was lowest for Utilities (25%) and Finance & Real Estate (22.6%). Another Enterprise Survey from 2007 showed that 59% of firms reported less than 100% of sales for tax purposes, slightly less than the Sub-Saharan average at 62%.

58

Several unions are actively working to extend their services to the informal sector and organizing workers in that 'sector'. These include the Construction and Building Materials Workers Union, which has signed a Collective Bargaining Agreement to cover both formal and informal construction workers; and the General Agricultural Workers’ Union organizes informal workers in the rural sector. There are also similar activities in the Ghana Private Road Transport Union, the Local Government Workers’ Union, the Industrial and Commercial Workers Union, the Maritime and Dock Workers Union, and the Timber and Wood Workers Union.

59 It is estimated that 58,000 workers

from the informal economy are members of affiliated labour unions.

60

There are nine associated organisations from the informal economy. The Ghana TUC initiated the Council for Informal Workers Association (CIWA), which was established to make the informal sector part of the TUC structures. CIWA is currently in a process of formalizing the institutional framework. In addition, the Ghana TUC has initiated conversations with the government to open the CIWA applying for a bargaining certificate to the Health Insurance Agents Association. The Ghana Employers Association has assisted small and informal businesses with the establishment of associations, and helped broker agreements between them and local government on issues such as tax levels.

61

5 = Very formal

4 3

2

1 = Very informal

Employment status on

informality-index

Child Labour

Working children62 Proportion of all children aged 5-14 Region Year Type Proportion

Ghana

2012 Currently active

25.7 %

Urban 13.5 %

Rural 31.3 %

Sub-Saharan Africa63

2008

Children in employment

28 %

Child labourers 25.4 %

Hazardous work 12.7 %

Children in employment includes all children who conduct some kind of work, whereas child labourers is a narrower term without mild forms of work. Hazardous work is the worst from of child labour as defined in ILO C182.

Out of 6.3 million children aged 5-14 years in Ghana, one out of four (26%) are economically active on the labour market. Child labour is more predominant in the rural sector. The child labour is often found in cocoa production, cattle herding, and fishing. Economic hardship in rural areas has made it more common for children to migrate to urban areas to seek

employment.64

Recently there has been some progress in curbing the child labour on cocoa farms with the Harkin-Engel Protocol and enrolled children in school, but many still continue working on cocoa farms. Child labour is slightly lower in comparison with the Sub-Saharan average. Methodological differences might account for some of the differences, though. A survey from 2006 show that child labour is more than three times as common among the poorest quintile of households (48%) compared to the richest (14%). A newer survey from 2011 of densely populated areas in the Accra region, indicates that 35% of children are child labourers and 24% of children work outside their own household.

65

The Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Protection is currently developing a National Child Protection Policy that aims to create a comprehensive framework for protection of children.

Gender

The Women's Manifesto for Ghana is a political statement that was produced by organized women and issued in 2004, demanding rights and equality. Since the Manifesto's creation, the Ghanaian government has passed the Domestic Violence Act, the Human Trafficking Act and the Disability Act; and has banned female genital mutilation. Although there have been improvements for women in Ghana, many women continue to experience discrimination in access to employment. For example, women in urban centers and those with skills and training encountered little overt bias, but resistance persisted to women entering nontraditional fields. Women, especially in rural areas, remained subject to burdensome labor conditions. It includes the performance of physically difficult manual labor such as farming, transporting goods, and manual household chores.

66

Although more Ghanaian women are getting paid jobs now, they are forced to combine their work at home as homemakers and their jobs outside the home.

67

There are restricted resources and entitlements on

land tenure system, which is currently governed by customary law. A 2013 Enterprise Survey from the World Bank reported that 31% of firms had female participation in ownership, which is lower than the Sub-Saharan Africa's average at 34%. There has actually been a decrease in Ghana since the last report from 2007 estimated 44% and 32%, respectively.

68

Females in management and ownership, 201369

0%

5%

10%

15%

20%

25%

30%

35%

40%

Firms with female top manager Firms with female participationin ownership

Ghana Sub-Saharan Africa Lower middle income

Youth

Youth unemployment trend in Ghana, 2000-201370

The youth population is rapidity growing. Available data indicates that youth population growth rate is three times higher than the growth rate of the general population. Up to 300,000 workers are introduced to the pool of jobseekers every year and only around 2% find job in the formal sector or enter in the informal economy. A combination of a growing young population, low productivity, removal of subsidies and lowering of import tariffs on agricultural products, led to increased rural-urban migration of the youth. These socio-

economic challenges have trigged unemployment especially among the youth, which is leaving a lot of youth hopeless and frustrated. The youth unemployment rate is 9%, which has declined drastically from its peak as 16% in 2002. The economic growth in the region of around 5% is considered as insufficient in generating the required numbers of jobs for the large youth segment that join the labour market annually.

71

The government published the National Youth Policy in 2010 which recognizes the many differences among young people, and promotes equal opportunity for all youth. In general, plans on these issues have been formulated and implemented with little or no participation of the youth. Moreover, there has been very limited awareness of national programs directed towards youth. Regarding the National Youth Employment Program there has been some knowledge among youth, but they have important barriers to entry that scheme, such as bureaucracy, invisible costs and lack of transparency in the selection processes. In general, young people are disappointed with the support offered by the government.

72

0%

5%

10%

15%

20%

Youth unemployment, men

Youth unemployment, female

Share of youth unemployed in youth population (%)

Characteristics of the Working Age Population

The Ghanaians have an average of 7 years of schooling in total, about the same level as Kenya. The number of people who have some sort of secondary education is rather high, and most of those educated have had more than primary education. Considering that Ghana is one of the better functioning African countries, and that Ghana has a high level of education, there are still many without

any schooling. So the otherwise well developed Ghanaian education system does not reach a third of the population, which is also reflected in the educational GINI. Women in general are also less educated than men, and with 10% more having no education. The graph above shows the educational attainment of all Ghanaians above 25 years, therefore gives a glance of the human capital of the labour force.

Enrolment in Primary, Secondary and Tertiary schools (2000-2011)

75

Total and Female, Ghana and Sub-Saharan Africa

Net enrolment is the ratio of children of official school age, who are enrolled in school to the population of the corresponding official school age. Gross enrolment is the ratio of total enrolment, regardless of age, to the population of the corresponding official school age. Gross primary enrolment is therefore sometimes higher than 100 %.

Enrolment is in general higher in Ghana than the Sub-Saharan average. Enrolment in secondary schools has steadily been higher since 2000, though it slightly

decreased after 2009, and enrolment in universities has increased drastically since 2005.

50%

60%

70%

80%

90%

100%

20

00

20

01

20

02

20

03

20

04

20

05

20

06

20

07

20

08

20

09

20

10

20

11

Net primary school enrolment

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

20

00

20

01

20

02

20

03

20

04

200

5

20

06

20

07

20

08

20

09

20

10

20

11

Gross secondary school enrolment

0%

2%

4%

6%

8%

10%

12%

14%

20

00

20

01

200

2

20

03

20

04

20

05

20

06

20

07

20

08

20

09

20

10

20

11

Gross tertiary school enrolment

Ghana ,Totalenrolment

Ghana ,Femaleenrolment

SSA , Totalenrolment

SSA ,Femaleenrolment

Highest level attained and years of schooling in the population73

(2010), Population 25+, Total and Female

Highest Level Attained Total Female

No Schooling 32.2 % 42.8 %

Primary Begun 5.8 % 4.8 %

Completed 8.1 % 6.7 %

Secondary Begun 33.0 % 28.8 %

Completed 17.6 % 14.5 %

Tertiary Begun 1.2 % 0.9 %

Completed 2.0 % 1.5 %

Average year of total schooling 7 years 5.9 years

Educational Gini Coefficient 0.43 0.51

Primary, secondary and tertiary is the internationally defined distinction of education. In Denmark these corresponds to grundskole, gymnasium & university.

The educational Gini Coefficient is similar to the Gini Coefficient, but instead of measuring the distribution of income in a population, it measures the distribution of education measured as years of schooling among the population.74

0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%

Total

Female

No Schooling Primary - Begun Primary - CompletedSecondary - Begun Secondary - Completed Tertiary - BegunTertiary - Completed

Vocational training

Vocational Training76

Pupils in vocational training (2012) Ghana 79,986

Ratio of pupils in vocational student to all pupils in secondary education (Average 2008-2012)

Ghana 3.7 %

Sub-Saharan Africa

7.6 %

Ratio of pupils in vocational training out of 15-24 year olds (Average 2008-2012)

Ghana 1.6 %

Sub-Saharan Africa

2.2 %

Ratio of pupils in vocational student to all pupils in secondary education, 2000-2013 (%)

77

The amount of students in vocational training is slightly lower for Ghanaians than the rest of Sub-Saharan Africa, and this appears to be an area where the Ghanaian education system is lacking behind. There was a significant expansion of more than 50% on vocational pupils from 2006 to 2007, but since it is increasing somewhat slowly. Ghana’s educational system has been identified as inadequately equipped to provide young people with the skills required by the private sector, creating a mismatch of skills among the youth in the labour market. A significant proportion of the youth (14%) have never been to school. Over 66% of the youth

have only primary level education and only 2% have attained vocational level training. In order to address this challenge, the government has embarked on several policy initiatives to increase access to basic education, expand and enhance technical and vocational education, and support employment creation through skills development programmes for unemployed youth.

40 It has been registered that the payment of allowances to Teacher and Nursing Trainees has been abolished by the Government. Data demonstrates that 31% of firms offer formal training. In addition, an analysis shows that among wage earners, those who graduated from better funded Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) providers earn 58% more than those from less well-funded schools. More importantly, among all TVET graduates working in the formal sectors, those who possess well-recognized TVET certificates earn 94% more than those who don’t have any certificates, while the difference is 58% in the informal sectors.

78

There is a huge demand to provide short-term vocational training for the workers in the informal economy to improve their small businesses, more awareness of the rights and conditions of employees and apprentices, better management of accounts, better service to clients, among others. TUC has implemented some vocational training initiates and there are considerations of enhancing collaboration with the National Vocational Training Institute.

0%

2%

4%

6%

8%

2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013

Ghana Sub-Saharan Africa

Social Protection

Public spending on social protection schemes79 (2010)

Public social protection

expenditure, excl. health

Cedi 1.1 billion

US$ 763 million

% of GDP 2.4 %

per capita, US$ 31.4

of government expenditure

4.0 %

Public health care % of GDP 3.0 %

Health social protection coverage

% of population 74 %

Trends in government expenditure in health

% changes per year (2007-2011)

-2.5

Benefits, coverage and contributions to pensions scheme in Ghana

80

(2009)

Social benefits for the active age 0.7 %

Sickness, maternity, employment injury, disability

0.7 %

Active contributors to a pension scheme, 15-64 years

6.7 %

Active contributors to a pension scheme, labour force, 15+ years

9.0 %

The government operates with a National Pensions Act of 2008 and a draft National Social Protection Strategy (NSPS), which is moving towards an integrated social protection system. Currently, NSPS is linked up with the Ghana Shared Growth and Development Agenda (GSGDA) and has achieved to establish a National Common Targeting Mechanism to identify and select beneficiaries for social protection interventions. It also facilitates the establishment of a National Single Registry for Social Protection. Also a new Ministry of Gender, Children & Social Protection was established in the beginning of 2013. The impact of the reforms of the social protection framework is so far modest. By the Pensions Act, the government established a compulsory, contributory three-tier scheme. The mandatory first-tier social insurance scheme is run by the public Social Security and National Insurance Trust (SSNIT), which has a tripartite board. The second-tier mandatory occupational pension scheme gives contributors higher lump sum benefits. The third-tier is the voluntary provident fund and personal pension scheme. Both the second and third-tier scheme is

managed by private trustees. The law provides for work injury insurance and maternity insurance, but unemployment insurance is not .

81

The pension scheme was implemented in 2012.

82 To

raise awareness of the pension system, TUC conducted an information campaign in 2011, and membership in the Informal Economy Fund increased from 60,000 to 90,000 in a few months. However, there are still challenges to get those workers into a the Social Protection Scheme. Pensions for old age, disability, survivors and occupational injury were reformed in 2008, to include self-employed and informal sector workers. The schemes are mandatory for formal sector workers, where 5.5% of earnings are paid by the employee and 13% by the employer. Self-employed and informal sector workers can voluntarily join by paying 18.5% of declared income. Health protection is largely done through the National Health Insurance System (NHIS). It is estimated that the NHIS's coverage has now reached 74% of the population. It is observed, though, that the trend of government expenditure in health has, on average, decreased on 2.5% in the period 2007-2011. Active contributors to a pension scheme in the labour force is 9%, where men or much more present with 13% in comparison with 6% of women. It is slightly higher than the Sub-Saharan Africa's average of 8.4%. The ILO convention 183 on maternity leave protection has not been ratified. Following the labour act of 2003, maternity leave is set at 12 weeks, fully paid by the employer.

83

Ghana's population will gradually have a higher cohort of older persons on 60 years and above. This group was measured at 6% of the population in 2012. The process the modernizing of the country has fostered a challenge of the social status of the elderly and the traditional elder care arrangements. The government adopted a National Ageing Policy in 2010 and eldercare is part of the SSNIT and other schemes. However, the formalizing of public elderly care system is still underdeveloped.

84

General Economic Performance

Key Facts85

(2013 est.)

GDP (US$)

GDP per capita

(PPP) (US$)

GDP growth

(%)

Human Development

Index86

Gini Coefficient (2005/06)

45.6 billion

3,300

7.9

0.558 39.4

173 of 229 countries

135 of 187 countries

62 of 141 countries

A Gini Index of 0 represents perfect equality, while an index of 100 implies perfect inequality. In terms of the ranking, the first country has the highest inequality, while the number 141 has the highest equality.

Doing business87

Control of corruption88

Government effectiveness88

Rule of Law88

70 of 189 countries

0.05 (2007) 0.08 (2007) -0.01 (2007)

-0.09 (2012) -0.07 (2012) -0.03 (2012)

A high ranking of the Doing Business means the regulatory environment is more conducive to the start-up and operation of a local firm. The selected Governance Indicators cover the years 2007 and 2012 and ranging from ‐2.5 to 2.5; i.e. negative tendencies below the zero mean and unit standard deviation, score negative measurements.89

Ghana is often considered an African model country, in both democracy and economic development. Most indicators rank Ghana as one of the better performing countries in Sub-Saharan Africa, e.g. in 2011, Ghana became a middle income country. The country's GDP per capita is considerably higher than the rest of Sub-Saharan Africa and is projected to grow faster. During late 2013, the negative national balance of payments between state expenses and income, fiscal indiscipline exacerbated by financial mismanagement, and ensuing continuing sharp price increases on utilities, petrol products, and taxes. The growth rate in Ghana was reduced to 4% in 2009 by the global financial crisis. It has since rebounded and reached an impressive 14.4% in 2011, the second highest growth rate in the world. It was mainly due to oil production and increased construction, transport. In the poorest regions in the north of Ghana, maize and rice production continued to grow. Oil production was been expected to reach its maximum in 2012, and the growth reach 7.9% in 2013. Private investments tend to be in extractive industries and construction and exports.

90

Ghana started oil extraction in 2010. The unprecedented access to financial resources are a continued source of concern, as the discovery of high yield natural resources have been a source for

corruption and conflict in many other developing nations. Ghana has therefore set up strict revenue-managing rules.

91

Ghana’s annual inflation rate accelerated in 2014 and reached as the highest growth rate since February of 2010. Year-on-year cost of housing, water, electricity, gas and other fuels jumped 38%. Also transport prices rose 21%; clothing and footwear 20% and food cost increased 7%.

92

The Doing Business indicator ranks Ghana rather high at 70 out of 189 countries; dropped down on one step from 2013/14. On the three Governance indicators, Ghana also scores rather well and stable at a medium level for each indicator. In the period 2007-2012, Ghana stepped up on seven ranks on the Human Development Index, and reached as 135 of 187 countries.

GDP per Capita (PPP), trend and forecast93

Inflation, trend and forecast

Gross fixed capital formation (% of GDP)94

0

1000

2000

3000

4000

5000

200

0

200

1

200

2

200

3

200

4

200

5

200

6

200

7

200

8

200

9

201

0

201

1

201

2

201

3

201

4

201

5

201

6

201

7

Cu

rren

t U

SD

Ghana Sub Saharan Africa (excl. South Africa)

0%

5%

10%

15%

20%

25%

30%

35%

200

0

200

1

200

2

200

3

200

4

200

5

200

6

200

7

200

8

200

9

201

0

201

1

201

2

201

3

201

4

201

5

201

6

201

7

Ghana Sub-Saharan Africa

19

23

28 29

22 20

21 20

25 26

29

16 17 16 16 18 19

20 20 20 19 20

10

20

30

2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012

Ghana Sub-Saharan Africa

Trade

Trade and Foreign Direct Investment

95

(2013 est.)

Exports Imports Foreign Direct

Investment (US$) FDI Stock

13.4 billion US$

18 5 billion US$

3.3 billion US$

N/A 15 % of GDP 21 % of GDP 3.6 % of GDP

The trade plays an important part of the economy in Ghana. Imports and exports have a slightly negative national balance of payments. The Ghanaian economy has also been negatively affected by the Ebola Pandemic during 2014, as flights to/from Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone have been discontinued, whereas the volume of regional transport, trade and meetings has continued to fall during the period. Cocoa production forms an important part of Ghana’s exports and is one of the largest cocoa exporters in the world. It employs many people in the agricultural sector and it is projected to increase its local processing of cocoa to 40% in the coming years. Gold formed the majority of Ghana’s exports, and the new oils exports are becoming an increasing role for the economy. The international rise in gold prices and increased production in cocoa raised the exports. This was partly counterbalanced by increased imports of non-oil products. More oil products were imported than exported, so global increases in fuel prices had a negative impact on Ghana’s trade. Foreign Direct Investment inflows are also slightly higher than most of Sub-Saharan Africa. Trade and investment from China is growing; anecdotal evidence suggests that the working conditions are worse in Chinese owned workplaces. Trade agreements

Ghana is part of the Economic Community of the West African States (ECOWAS). The treaty from 1993, which was revised in 2005, contains labour provisions with cooperation regarding harmonization of labour law and social security, promotion of women’s, youth and professional organizations, and consultation of the social partners.

96

Ghana is in the 2000 Cotonou Agreement on development cooperation between EU and African, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) countries, which reaffirms commitment to ILO’s Fundamental Conventions and includes provisions on cooperation on various labour

and social issues.97

In January 2014, ECOWAS and the

European Commission reached a breakthrough on the first regional economic partnership agreement (EPA) since 2007. Ghana has interests in this agreement to maintain the market access to the EU while preserving regional unity and coherence with the current regional integration agenda. Since 2000, Ghana has benefitted from the United States’ African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA), which is a Generalised System of Preferences. It allows duty and quota free access for some products. Ghana can be removed from AGOA, if the United States deems that Ghana among other human rights issues do not seek to uphold the ILO Core Labour Standards and have acceptable minimum wages, hours of work and occupational safety and health.

98

Export Processing Zones (EPZ)

Ghana established EPZ in 1995. Today, the country has four EPZ.

99 Recently there has been an improvement

of 'one-stop shop' service of EPZ status on companies, which has attracted more foreign investments. At least 23 new free zone companies were registered just in 2013. The sector has more than 31,000 direct jobs and operates with 225 registered companies.

100 The export

is mainly in the Information & communications technologies, textiles, and food processing.

Ghana's main products share of exports (2012)

101

Ghana's main export markets (2013)102

Gold; 44%

Crude Petroleum;

18%

Cacoa beans; 15%

Cacoa paste; 2,3%

Manganese Ore; 1,3%

Others; 19%

EU; 48%

US; 4%

South Africa;

4% China; 8%

India; 3%

Others; 33%

References

1 Ghana TUC, Organising for Empowerment, Employment Security and Increased Productivity, 2012

2 Ruskin College, Gender & Tus Research Group, Gender and Trade Unions, 2011

3 ILO, Social Dialogue Indicators: Technical Brief, November 2011

4 ILO, Key Indicators of the Labour Market Database

5 U.S. Department of State, Annual Country Report on Human Rights Practices, 2013

6 Ghana TUC, Organising for Empowerment, Employment Security and Increased Productivity, 2012

7 LO/FTF Council

8 Ghana TUC, Organising for Empowerment, Employment Security and Increased Productivity, 2012

9 LO/FTF Council

10 Youinionize.org, ITUC, List of Affiliated, LO/FTF Council

11 http://www.ghanateachers.org

12 International Organisation of Employers, IOE Member, Ghana, GEA

13 ILO, NATLEX, Labour Act, 2003 (Act No. 651) & ILO, Governance, National Labour Law Profile: Ghana, 2011

14 Ghana TUC, Policy Bulletin Vol 7 No 3 October 2011

15 The Chronicle, All SSSS strikes are illegal… declares National Labour Commission, May 31, 2013

16 ITUC, Survey of violations of trade union rights, February 2014

17 ILO, DIALOGUE, National Labour Law Profile: Ghana, 2006

18 ILO, NATLEX

19 ILO, NORMLEX

20 U.S. Department of State, Annual Country Report on Human Rights Practices, 2012

21 ITUC, Survey of violations of trade union rights, February 2014

22 ILO, Global Wage Database 2012/13

23 WageIndicator, AfricaPay.org, Ghana

24 World Bank, Doing Business 2014, Ghana

25 ILO, Global Wage Database 2012/13

26 World Bank, Doing Business 2014, Ghana

27 U.S. Department of State, Annual Country Report on Human Rights Practices, 2013

28 WageIndicators, Wage in Ghana, WageIndicator survey 2012

29 Fair Wages and Salaries Commission

30 U.S. Department of State, Annual Country Report on Human Rights Practices, 2012

31 Ghana Statistical Service, Ghana Living Standards Survey Report of the 5

th round (GLSS 5), September 2008

32 WageIndicators, Wage in Ghana, WageIndicator survey 2012

33 ILO, Key Indicators of the Labour Market Database

34 IPS, Ghana’s Growing Economy Fails to Create Jobs, September 19, 2013

35 ILO, Key Indicators of the Labour Market Database

36 AfDB, The Middle of the Pyramid: Dynamics of the Middle Class in Africa, April 2010

37 ILO, News, Wanted: Local workers for the oil and gas industry, 12 December 2012

38 ILO, Key Indicators of the Labour Market

39 LO/FTF Council, 2013 Labour Market Profile, Ghana

40 AfDB, African Economic Outlook, Ghana Country Note, 2012

41 Kucera D. & Roncolato L. (2008), Informal Employment: Two contested policy issues, International Labour Review, Vol. 147

(2008). No. 4 42

Calculations from: Ghana Statistical Service, 2010 Population and Housing Census - summary report of final results, 2012 43

African Economic Outlook, Country Notes, Recent Developments & Prospects, Ghana 44

Ghana Statistical Service, 2010 Population and Housing Census - summary report of final results, 2012 45

World Bank, World DataBank 46

World Bank, World DataBank 47

IOM & EU, Migration in Ghana: A Country Profile 2009 48

EC-UN Joint Migration & Development Initiative, Ghana 49

Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung, Labour Migration in Ghana, October 2012 50

PSI, Pillinger, Quality health care and workers on the move, Ghana National Report, 2011 51

Ghana TUC, Anthony Baah, "Organizing the Informal Economy: Experiences and Lessons from Africa and Asia", 2006 52

Computed from ILO, Key Indicators of the Labour Market Database & Ghana TUC, Anthony Baah, "Organizing the Informal Economy: Experiences and Lessons from Africa and Asia", 2006 53

ILO, Employment Sector, Xaba Horn & Motala, The Informal Sector in Sub-Saharan Africa, 2002

54

Ghana TUC, Anthony Baah, "Organizing the Informal Economy: Experiences and Lessons from Africa and Asia", 2006 55

FES-Ghana, Osei-Boateng & Ampratwum, The Informal Sector in Ghana, 2011 56

ILO, Tsikata, “Domestic work and domestic workers in Ghana: An overview of the legal regime and practice”, Conditions of Work and Employment Series No. 23, 2009 57

WageIndicator, Wages in Ghana, Wage Indicator survey 2012 58

World Bank, Ghana Enterprise Survey - 2007 59

Schurman & Eaton, Report to the Solidarity Center, “Trade Union Organizing in the Informal Economy: A Review of the Literature on Organizing in Africa, Asia, Latin America, North America and Western, Central and Eastern Europe”, 2012 60

LO/FTF Council 61

ILO, Williams, “Participatory approaches for planning and construction-related assistance in settlement upgrading and expansion: The roles of tripartite actors and other stakeholders”, Working Paper, 2007 62

Statistical Service, Ghana Living Standard Survey 6, September 2013 63

ILO, Accelerating action against child labour, International Labour Conference, 99th

Session 2010 64

ITUC, Report for the WTO General Council Review of Trade Policies of Ghana, 2008 65

UNICEF, Childinfo, Multiple Indicator Cluster Surveys, Available reports/datasets 66

U.S. Department of State, Annual Country Report on Human Rights Practices, 2013 67

Friedrich Ebert Stiftung, The Role of Women in Ghana's Economy 68

World Bank, Ghana Enterprise Survey - 2007 69

The World Bank, Bangladesh Enterprises surveys, 2013 70

ILO, Key Indicators of the Labour Market Database 71

Labour Research & Policy Institute, Youth Employment Strategies: A Perspective from the Labour Research & Policy Institute, Working Paper No. 2012/01, 2012 72

ODI, Youth Vulnerabilities and Adaptation, Exploring the Impact of Macro-Level Shocks on Youth: 3F Crisis and Climate Change in Ghana, Mozambique and Vietnam, May 2011 73

Barro, Robert and Jong-Wha Lee, April 2010, "A New Data Set of Educational Attainment in the World, 1950-2010." NBER Working

Paper No. 15902 74

Calculation from based on Thomas, Wang & Fan (2001), with data sets fromBarro-Lee (2010) and Psacharopoulos and Arriagada (1986). 75

World Bank, World DataBank 76

World Bank, World DataBank 77

World Bank, World DataBank 78

Harvard Kennedy School, Innovations in Workforce Training Programs in Ghana: Using Pay for Performance Contracts, M-RCBG Associate Working Paper Series No. 20, March 2013 79

ILO, Social Protection, Statistics and indicators 80

ILO, Social Protection, Statistics and indicators 81

U.S. Department of State, Annual Country Report on Human Rights Practices, 2012 82

http://npra.gov.gh 83

ILO, TRAVAIL, legal database, 2011 84

Labour Research & Policy Institute, Elderly Care Arrangements In Ghana, 2013 85

CIA, The World Factbook and the World Bank, DataBank 86

Human Development Report, Global Report, Statistical Annex, 2011 87

World Bank, Ease of Doing Business Index 88

World Bank, Worldwide Governance Indicators 89

The World Bank, Worldwide Governance Indicators 90

World Bank, Ghana Overview 91

The Economist, Democracy in Ghana: In Rude Health, 28 July 2012 92

http://www.tradingeconomics.com/ghana/inflation-cpi 93

IMF, World Economic Outlook Databases 94

World Bank, World DataBank 95

CIA, The World Factbook and the World Bank, DataBank 96

ECOWAS, Treaty of the ECOWAS 97

Ebert & Posthuma, ILO, IILS, 2011, Labour provisions in trade agreements: current trends and provisions 98

http://www.agoa.gov 99

http://www.gfzb.com.gh 100

GhanaWeb, GFZB shields investors, February 18, 2014 101

MIT, The Observatory of Economic complexity, What does Ghana Export? 102

European Commission, DG TRADE, Bilateral Relations, Statistics