Productivity Ecosystems for Decent Work Ghana
ILO working to improve productivity and working conditions of the Ghanaian shea industry
Capacity building trainings are running with shea entrepreneurs in and around Tamale
1 November 2023
TAMALE, GHANA (ILO News) – The ILO's Productivity Ecosystems for Decent Work Programme organized a capacity building training for enterprises in the shea industry in the Northern Region of Ghana. The three-day training programme was attended by 10 enterprises that are processing shea nuts into various products such as butter, oil, black and soap. In all, 53 participants (13 male and 40 female) were in attendance.
In his opening remarks, the National Project Officer, Onoma Asiedu gave a background to the project and indicated that the project is designed to address the factors affecting underperformance in the shea industry and ensure a transformational path. According to him, "..in addition to the training, the ILO is providing other complementary support services to improve productivity and working conditions of operators in the sector. These include training in fabrication and installation of machinery for the sector and contracting a National Expert to provide direct support to the sector".
The training was delivered by the project's implementation partner Management Development and Productivity Institute (MDPI). The training included modules on Workplace Cooperation, Quality Management, Human Resource Management, Resource Efficiency, and Occupational Safety and Health. The training approach was participatory and included the use of presentations, group work, breakout sessions, interactive sessions, and open discussions. At the end of each day, the Project Officer reviewed proceedings of the day with the trainers to identify areas for improvement in subsequent interventions and identified ideas for implementation at the factory level.
The ILO Productivity Ecosystems for Decent Work is a multi-country programme initiated by the ILO in 2021, with operations in Ghana, South Africa and Vietnam. It is funded by the governments of Switzerland and Norway, and seeks to promote productivity growth for decent work, combining different approaches that strengthen productivity drivers across policy, sector and enterprise levels.
In his opening remarks, the National Project Officer, Onoma Asiedu gave a background to the project and indicated that the project is designed to address the factors affecting underperformance in the shea industry and ensure a transformational path. According to him, "..in addition to the training, the ILO is providing other complementary support services to improve productivity and working conditions of operators in the sector. These include training in fabrication and installation of machinery for the sector and contracting a National Expert to provide direct support to the sector".
The training was delivered by the project's implementation partner Management Development and Productivity Institute (MDPI). The training included modules on Workplace Cooperation, Quality Management, Human Resource Management, Resource Efficiency, and Occupational Safety and Health. The training approach was participatory and included the use of presentations, group work, breakout sessions, interactive sessions, and open discussions. At the end of each day, the Project Officer reviewed proceedings of the day with the trainers to identify areas for improvement in subsequent interventions and identified ideas for implementation at the factory level.
Prior to the training, a baseline assessment was conducted to identify the decent work deficits and productivity bottlenecks that affect the performance of the industry. Some of the identified decent work deficits included carrying material load on the head by women at the factories, excessive use of fuelwood in boiling, lack of measurement indicators for productivity at the factories, absence of basic policies on workers' safety and health, gender inequality etc. These challenges have, however, been captured as part of ideas for improvement by the enterprises. In line with that, the trainers will follow up to support the enterprises to address these challenges during individual in-factory coaching.We could directly link the contents of the training to the practices at our factory. This training is a wake-up call for the industry, because one day our products may be rejected by the international market because they are not in line with rules and regulations, and governing practices in the sector. If I'd had this training in the past, for sure I would not have failed my first Fair Trade certification audit."
Aisha Fuseini, CEO of Ashiba Enterprise
The ILO Productivity Ecosystems for Decent Work is a multi-country programme initiated by the ILO in 2021, with operations in Ghana, South Africa and Vietnam. It is funded by the governments of Switzerland and Norway, and seeks to promote productivity growth for decent work, combining different approaches that strengthen productivity drivers across policy, sector and enterprise levels.