In a unique move to build the digital capacities of job seekers, the Ghanaian-German Centre for Jobs, Migration and Reintegration (GGC), in collaboration with the Ministry of Employment and Labour Relations has launched another flagship programme - ICT Skills Training for Students and Job Seekers - to equip job seekers and students with job-ready transferrable ICT skills, for the purpose of enhancing their employability prospects and to foster the creation of employment opportunities for the youth in the digital economy.

The training is targeted at job seeking graduates, tertiary students and Senior High School students who have a passion for ICT. Sessions will be held in five cities: Accra, Koforidua, Ho, Takoradi and Cape Coast from July to October 2020. The training, which will be offered for free, will however require interested participants to pre-register online as each session will only accommodate 35 people. Participants will have the option of choosing to participate in any of the cities.

The training package includes a minimum of 12 hours of hand-on training in Microsoft Word, Excel, Power Point, Social media, and general Internet use. Participants will receive training manuals and Certificates of participation after training. They are however required to have completed tertiary or secondary school, must have an interest in ICT, must reside in the cities they choose and have a reliable laptop computer.

Senior National Programme Coordinator for Programme Migration and Development at the GGC, David Tette, reiterated the growing importance of ICT. He said, “ICT underpins nearly every aspect of work and life. It is difficult to find a job that does not require a basic level of ICT skills; and with new technologies emerging every day, we need lifelong opportunities to learn new ICT skills that will allow us to succeed in an era of ongoing ICT transformation. We are glad to be doing this as part of our mandate of upskilling job seekers to continue to build up their skills in the area od ICT in order to remain relevant."

Anchored on its three pillars of Career Guidance, Employment Promotion and Reintegration Support services, the GGC offers employment promotion services to job seekers in Ghana and counsels its clients on socio-economic opportunities in Ghana. The Centre targets local population and returning migrants alike. Its services include individual counselling, profiling, soft skills trainings, career guidance advice, psycho-social support, referral into vocational and entrepreneurship trainings and start-up support (trainings, equipment, and business registration) among others. Since its inception in December 2017, the Centre has counselled more than 12,000 individuals, offered more than 13,000 employment promotion measures, and facilitated more than 1,000 persons into employment or supported in setting up a business.