Ghana strengthens its commitment to advance gender equality and fair recruitment in labour migration

Accra (ILO News) – Government, employers, workers’ organisations, recruitment agencies, civil society and development partners have been trained on fostering stronger gender-responsive recruitment approaches to protect Ghanaian migrant workers. This training was jointly organised by the International Labour Organization (ILO), under the framework of the EU-funded Support to Free Movement of persons and Migration in West Africa Project Phase II (FMM West Africa II), the Fair Recruitment Forward Project, and the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH – Programme Shaping Development-Oriented Migration (MEG), commissioned by the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ).

The two-day Sensitization Workshop held on 29-30 October 2026 follows the training organized for 10 African Diplomatic Missions in the Gulf States and was based on the ILO Guidelines for Gender Equality in Fair Recruitment. It took place at a timely moment as Ghana reviews relevant policies including its National Labour Migration Policy.

The workshop featured a presentation of the findings of a gender analysis of labour migration along the Ghana-Nigeria corridor to Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries and examined how the ILO Guidelines for Gender Equality in Fair Recruitment can be applied in Ghana.

Labour migration creates jobs, builds skills and improves livelihoods, but women and men experience it differently. Women migrant workers, particularly in domestic and informal work, remain more exposed to exploitative recruitment, abuse, discrimination and limited protection. Participants identified potential entry points for strengthening gender equality across the labour migration cycle. They called for stronger protection and grievance mechanisms, including for refugees and asylum seekers, and for better gender-disaggregated data to guide policy.

“This workshop comes at a critical policy moment for Ghana. The discussions and recommendations generated here will help strengthen gender-responsive labour migration governance and promote fair recruitment practices that better protect migrant workers,” said by David Nii Addy, on behalf of the GIZ-MEG Programme Director.

“By placing gender at the centre of labour migration governance, Ghana can strengthen worker protection, promote fair recruitment, and establish itself as a leader in advancing safe, orderly and inclusive labour migration,” said Austin Erameh, Employment and Migration Officer, ILO Abuja, representing the Director of the ILO Country Office, Abuja.

"Fair recruitment and safe migration pathways are essential to protecting workers from exploitation and ensuring that labour migration delivers opportunities, dignity and economic empowerment for all," said Harriet Botchway, Head of Gender and Child Protection Department, Trades Union Congress (TUC) Ghana.

Stakeholders agreed that progress depends on shared responsibility among government, employers, workers’ organisations, recruitment agencies, civil society, diaspora actors, development partners and the media, and that the benefits of migration are fully realised only when pathways are transparent, well-regulated and grounded in respect for workers’ rights and dignity.

The workshop brought together approximately 45 participants from government institutions, employers’ and workers’ organisations, recruitment agencies, development partners and civil society.

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