Group photo – Participants on the third day of the 3-day consultative workshop
The Fisheries Committee for the West Central Gulf of Guinea (FCWC) participated in the consultative workshop for planning the implementation of the Trade Union Policy for Decent Work in the Fishing Sector of Ghana (Workers Policy), organized by the International Labour Organization (ILO) on 29 April- 3rd May 2024 at the Best Western Atlantic in Takoradi, Ghana.
The residential workshop was organized under the aegis of the 8.7 Accelerator Lab project in Ghana, to develop a comprehensive implementation plan for delivering on components of the 11 policy objectives of the Workers Policy, and further promote decent work for fishers in Ghana. The objectives include the elimination of forced labour, modern slavery and human trafficking; ratification of C188; improvements in labour inspection and labour recruitment; and the elimination of child labour.
Participants at the meeting comprised representatives from Ghana Industrial Trawlers Association (GITA), Ghana Tuna Association (GTA), National Union of Teamsters and General Workers (NUSPAW), Canoe and Fishing Gear Owners Association of Ghana (CaFGOAG), Network for Community Planning and Development (NECPAD), Labour Department of the Ministry of Employment and Labour Relations (MELR), Ghana National Canoe Fishermen Council (GNCFC), National Union of Seamen, Ports and Allied Workers (NUSPAW), Trade Union Congress Ghana (TUC Ghana), the Fisheries Commission, and Ghana Maritime Authority (GMA).
Participants were taken through exercises in group sessions on developing resource mobilisation plans for the fisheries sectors at national, regional, district and community levels; completing a Monitoring, Evaluation, Accountability and Learning (MEAL) framework; and assimilating first-hand feedback from engagement with key actors during a fishing harbour field trip, into policy action plan development.
FCWC has been participating in a series of ILO activities in Ghana to understand and document the Tripartite approach to promoting decent work to support the approach in other Member States in the region. The workshop is the latest ILO activity the FCWC has participated in under its MOU with the ILO which formalised their collaboration to promote decent work in fisheries in the FCWC region.
