By Yunus S Saliu
The Ministry of Trade, Industry, Regional Integration and Employment (MOTIE) on Saturday inaugurated the National Employment Technical Committee (NETC).
The idea of establishing the committee is to advise the government on employment-related issues and ensure smooth implementation of the National Employment Policy and Action Plan (NEAP 2022-2026) by stakeholders to ensure high-level political buy-in, policy mainstreaming, and resource mobilization for effective implementation of the policy given its cross-cutting nature.
In 2023, MoTIE formulated and launched the National Employment Policy and Action Plan (NEAP 2022-2026) to address the issues of high unemployment and to improve employment opportunities in the country, especially for young people, women, and vulnerable groups.
Among other things, the policy aims to create 150,000 jobs by the end of its lifespan in 2026.
Speaking at the inauguration ceremony held at the Sir Dawda Kairaba Jawara International Conference Centre in Bijilo, the Minister of Trade, Industry, Regional Integration and Employment, Dr. Ousmaila Babucarr Joof, thanked the NETC members for accepting their nominations to serve as members of the committee which, he described, as a potential game-changer in efforts to accomplish pronouncements in the NEP and AP.
“Indeed, your acceptance demonstrates your commitment to the development of this country as unemployment and underemployment remain key development challenges of our time,” he recognized.
He paid tribute to the chairman of the committee and members, noting that the task ahead is enormous, expressing the strong conviction that teamwork and the caliber of people assembled in the NETC, under the stewardship of Mr. Abdoulie Baks Touray, will undoubtedly, achieve its goal of “subduing the two evils of unemployment and underemployment by delivering the employment ecosystem we truly want, as we are all committed to improving the development trajectory of this country.”
He assured the committee of President Barrow’s full support for “this noble initiative”.
Dr. Joof explained that the task of NETC, among others, is to generate and share ideas and experiences with the Minister intended to agree on solutions to the scary phenomenon of unemployment and underemployment of youth.
He, therefore, implored the committee members to remember that these phenomena are not strangers in sub-Saharan Africa and that the traditional economic policy approaches are not equipped to expel them from the continent.
Minister Joof stated that a recent report on Africa shows that one-third of the 420 million youth aged 15-35, are unemployed and discouraged.
“Another third is vulnerably employed, and only one in six is in wage employment. So, youth face roughly doubled the unemployment rate of adults with significant variations by country,” he added.
Meanwhile, he explained that following the conduct of the Labour Force Survey 2012 and 2018 both of which showed unemployment and underemployment numbers compounded by the devastating impact of COVID-19, the government had no option but to formulate a more robust, responsive, and ambitious National Employment Policy and Action Plan to address the situation.
“This new policy launched by His Excellency President Adama Barrow in November 2022 has a target of creating 150,000 jobs before the end of the policy life cycle,” he noted.
Minister Joof further explained that the committees will be coordinating, mobilizing stakeholders and development partners, and monitoring the policy implementation by providing technical guidance to the Ministry to promote decent employment opportunities in the labour market.
Ambassador Abdoulie Baks Touray, the Chairman of the NETC said the establishment of the committee “is highly appreciated with the endorsement and encouragement of President Adama Barrow and his government”. He likened the committee to, what he called, Project Hope – Helping Others to Prosper Economically through what is referred to as the 3s for sustainable development – Employment, Entrepreneurs and Exports.
He expressed confidence that the NETC can make a significant contribution to addressing the challenge of unemployment in The Gambia. He also expressed gratitude for the opportunity to serve in “this important role” and pledged his commitment to work tirelessly to make a positive impact on the lives of Gambians.