By Sainabou Sambou
The Minister of Trade, Industry, Regional Integration and Employment, Hon Baboucarr O. Joof, on Saturday, 20thJanuary 2024, presided over the inauguration ceremony of the National Employment Technical Committee (NETC), held at the Sir Dawda Kairaba International Conference Centre in Bijilo
Minister Joof said the main objective of establishing the National Employment Technical Committee and Cabinet Sub-Committee on Employment, is to ensure high-level political buy-in, policy mainstreaming and resource mobilisation for an effective implementation of the policy, given its cross-cutting nature.
He explained that the committees will be coordinating, mobilising 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.
“The Gambia like many Least Developed Countries, particularly in Sub-Saharan Africa, continues to face significant developmental challenges. The continuous deterioration of the employment situation in the country compelled Government in 2008 to design the first National Employment Policy and Action Plan (2008-2012), and the priority action plans of the policy were developed into a project called (GAMJOBS) with the support of development partners,” he stated.
The Minister made reference to the African Development Bank report, which indicated that 10 million to 12 million youth enter the workforce in Africa each year, while only 3 million formal jobs are created annually – signifying that up to nine million are being potentially unemployed at some point.
He further highlighted the Labour Force Surveys of 2012 and 2018, both of which showed indicting unemployment and underemployment numbers compounded by the devastating impact of COVID 19. This he said prompted Government’ to formulate a more robust, responsive and ambitious National Employment Policy and Action plan to address the situation. The policy, he said targets creation of 150,000 jobs before the end of the policy’s life cycle.
Ambassador Abdoulie M. Touray, Chairman of the National Employment Technical Committee, posited that the private sector is the main engine of job creation. Thus, he opined, fostering strong partnerships with businesses is essential for devising and implementing successful employment strategies.
The NETC, he assured, will prioritise building robust relationships with private sector stakeholders to ensure that their perspectives and expertise are fully integrated into their work.
“ I am confident that, by working together and applying a collaborative, innovative, and action-oriented approach, the NETC can make a significant contribution to addressing the challenge of unemployment in The Gambia,” Ambassador Touray concluded.
