The Ghana Statistical Service recently released its Ghana Annual Household Income and Expenditure Survey: Quarter 4 2022 Labour Statistics Report, which sheds light on the state of unemployment and poverty in the country. The report shows that at least a quarter of a million persons were unemployed and living in food-insecure households throughout 2022, with the estimated number of unemployed and food insecure persons in the labour force ranging from 250,000 in the third quarter to 330,000 in the second.
The statistics are alarming, with over half a million persons in the labour force being unemployed and multidimensionally poor in every quarter of 2022. The unemployment rate in the fourth quarter was 11.5 percent, the lowest recorded across all quarters in 2022. However, fourth quarter unemployment rates were higher for females (12.5%) compared to males (10.3%), and higher in urban areas (14.3%) compared to rural (7.8%), patterns consistent with what was observed for the previous three quarters.
The report also highlights the prevalence of vulnerable employment, with two in every three employed persons 15 years and older in the fourth quarter being in vulnerable employment (i.e., self-employed without employees or contributing family workers), the highest recorded across all quarters. All regions except for Greater Accra had more than half of the employed persons in vulnerable employment, with the highest rate of vulnerable employment in the North East (92.1%), Savannah (90.6%), and Northern (84.2%) regions.
The report also shows that over 2.1 million persons aged 15 to 35 years were not in education, employment, or training (NEET) across all quarters, with one in every five persons (20.2%) aged 15 to 35 years being NEET in the fourth quarter. Greater Accra recorded the highest NEET rate (26.5%) in the fourth quarter, followed by the Ashanti (22.9%) and Upper East (22.9%) regions. All 16 regions recorded double-digit figures for youth NEET in all quarters, with the lowest recorded in Oti in the fourth quarter (11.2%).
The Annual Household Income and Expenditure Survey (AHIES) is the first nationally representative high-frequency household panel survey in Ghana, and its findings highlight the urgent need for policies and programs that address unemployment, poverty, and vulnerable employment. The report underscores the importance of investing in education, training, and skills development to equip young people with the tools they need to succeed in today's rapidly changing job market. It is time for Ghana to take bold action to create a more inclusive and prosperous society for all its citizens.
(This article sourced from citinewsroom.com and curated by Monica Bellew | Mydailyreports24)
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