GNAD calls on gov’t to address employment challenges of deaf youth
Juventus Duorinaah the Executive Director of GNAD
The Ghana National Association of the Deaf (GNAD) has called on government to adopt initiatives that would promote the full integration of the deaf onto the labour market.
According to GNAD, unemployment among the deaf youth was high in the country.
This was contained in a statement copied to The Spectator on Friday to commemorate the International Day of Sign Languages (IDSL).
The day which is commemorated every year on September 23 was celebrated under the theme “a world where deaf people everywhere can sign anywhere.”
According to the statement, work does not only create an opportunity to earn an income, but also enables persons with disability to participate fully in the mainstream society.
“The past few decades have seen growing interest about right to work of young people including strategies to get youth with disabilities onto the labour market and reduce their vulnerability. These initiations have resulted in substantial interventions using various strategies aimed at increasing youth disabled people’s participation in the labour market,” it said.
According to the statement, a significant number of Ghana’s 470,737 population identified as having varied degree of hearing loss were still unable to enter the labour market and maintain sustained employment.
It mentioned that low level of educational attainment and low employable skills had disadvantaged the deaf on the labour market.
“We call on the Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Protection (MGCSP) and Ministry of Employment and Labour Relations (MELR) to expedite action towards the adoption of equity employment policy,” it said.
It said the policy was developed by the Ghana Federation of Disability Organisation to which GNAD was a founding member and that such policy was crucial to facilitating positive discrimination aimed at getting more deaf youth on the labour market.
The statement said, majority of them had been excluded in terms of government support for youth entrepreneurship and called on government to provide support to young entrepreneurs who are deaf and hard of hearing.
By Jemima Esinam Kuatsinu
