633rd Meeting, 42nd Session, Committee on Migrant Workers (CMW)

Good morning, distinguished members of the committee.
Distinguished members of the delegation of the Republic of Ghana.
Ladies and gentlemen, I call to order 633rd meeting of the Committee on the Protection of Protection of the rights of all migrant workers and members of their families.
Committee will proceed with Agenda Item seven, consideration of reports submitted by state parties under Article 73 of the Convention.
Today we will proceed in a public dialogue with the consideration of the second periodic report of the Republic of Ghana.
On behalf of the members of the committee, allow me first to warmly welcome His Excellency, Abdul Rashid Pew, Minister for Labor, Jobs and employment, and the head of delegation of the Republic of Ghana to this constructive dialogue.
Allow me also to welcome His Excellcy, Mr.
Emmanuel Kwame Azidul Anhui, ambassador and permanent representative of the Republic of Ghana to the United Nations and other international organizations in Geneva.
And the entire members of delegation of Republic of Ghana, which comprise of several experts from Capitol as well as here.
I would like to take this opportunity to express our sincere appreciation to the government of Ghana for positively responding to the request of the committee and for accepting to be reviewed in situ with a high level delegation with experts as well.
This is an excellent manifestation of the support of the state party to the treaty body system as a whole and to the committee on the protection of the rights of all migrant workers and members of their families in particular, where we consider Ghana as a very important state party, Anglefhore nation in West Africa, which are rich history and experience, which can contribute to promote the rights of all migrant workers in their own country as well as internationally.
In this context, I now have the honor to give the floor to His Excellency, Abdul Rashid Balpoo, head of delegation of the Republic of Ghana, welcoming him to this constructive dialogue, which is an attempt to examine the report of Ghana in a discussion in a constructive manner to improve stakeholders of this convention.
Mr.
Pelpoo will introduce the report.
And Excellency, you have the floor and you may wish to introduce other members of the delegation as well.
Thank you very much.
Distinguished Chairman, honorable members of the committee, our Excellency, distinguished delegates.
Ladies and gentlemen, let me first of all, start by introducing my colleagues who are here.
And once you are closer to the mic, I will request that you do your introduction yourself, starting from the Chief Director.
Good morning.
My name is Amidukgu Adré, Chief Director of the Ministry of Labor, Jobs and Employment.
I'm coming from the Office of the Attorney General and Ministry of Justice.
Thank you.
Good morning.
My name is Emmanuel Comiso Entry.
Ambassador and permanent representative of Ghana to the UN and other international organizations here in Geneva.
My name is of Labor Jobs and Employment.
Good morning.
My name is Dawa Ibrahim Brahman.
I'm the acting Chief Labor Officer, Labor Department of Ghana.
Good morning.
My name is At Ajaman.
I head the Child Labor Unit of the Labor Department under the Ministry of Labor Jobs and Employment.
Thank you.
Central Bank of Ghana Yeah.
Thank you very much.
It is a is a singular honor and privilege for the Republic of Ghana to appear before this distinguished committee for the consideration of Ghana's second periodic report under the United Nations Convention on the protection of the rights of all migrant workers and members of their families.
Permit me, honorable members, on behalf of the government and the people of the Republic of Ghana, to express our sincere appreciation to the committee for this opportunity to engage in a constructive dialogue on the rise of migrant workers.
Ghana values the treaty body process as an important mechanism for accountability, reflection, mutual learning, and continuous improvement.
Distinguished chairperson, As a country of origin, a country of transit, a country of destination, Ghana remains firmly committed to promoting safe, orderly, and regular migration while protecting the rights and dignity of migrant workers and members of their families.
Since the consideration of our initial report in 2014, Ghana has undertaken significant reforms to strengthen migration governance.
Key milestones include the implementation of the national migration and the National Labor migration policies, which provide strategic frameworks for managing migration in a manner that promotes development while strengthening human rights.
Ghana has also strengthened institutional coordination among key stakeholders, enhanced labor migration governance and mechanisms, expanded bilateral engagements with destination countries, and intensified efforts to combat trafficking in persons, migrant smuggling, and labor exploitation.
In addition, Mr.
Chairman, we continue to promote ethical recruitment processes, improve access to information for prospective migrant workers, strengthen public employment services, and enhance access to justice through our national institutions.
Our efforts are guided by regional and international commitments, including ECOWAS protocols on free movement of persons, the African Union Migration Policy Framework for Africa and Global Compact for safe, orderly, and regular migration.
Distinguished members of the panel.
While progress has been made, Ghana recognizes that there are important challenges that remain to be addressed.
There are irregular migration.
Irregular migrations continue to expose migrants to exploitation and abuse.
We also face challenges relating to migration, data management, enforcement capacity, evolving migration trends, and ensure adequate protection for migrants in vulnerable situations.
Adré these challenges require requires sustained national debt, national efforts.
Stronger international cooperation and continued partnership among countries of origin, transit, and destination.
It is for this reason that Ghana approaches this review with openness and a genuine commitment to continuous improvement.
We view the process not merely as a reporting obligations, but as an opportunity to learn from the committee's expertise, share experiences, and further strengthen our migration governance systems.
Distinguished chairperson, Ghana remains committed to working collaboratively with a committee member states, the United Nations agencies, development partners, civil society organizations, relevant institutions, and migrant communities to advance migration governance that is humane, that is rights based and development oriented.
We look forward to a faith fruitful discussion to benefiting from the committee's observation and recommendations as we conclude the Committee Sitton.
Thank you very much.
On behalf of the committee, I thank His Excellency, Abdul Rashid Papua, Minister of Labor, Jobs, employment, and head of the delegation, the Republic Ghana for his introductory remarks.
Procedure for consideration of the report will be as follows.
Questions will be asked first by country rapporteurs to be followed by other members of the committee.
Delegation will then provide their responses to the country rapporteurs and other committee members.
And if time allows, additional questions will be asked, followed by responses.
We, of course, have to be mindful of the time management, and therefore, I would encourage the delegation, the experts to provide precise and direct responses to experts questions.
I now call upon the rapporteurs to start the questions, to initiate the dialogue under various articles of the convention.
Miss Sabrinaga and Mr.
Khan Unwa are rapers.
May I first call upon miss Sabrinaga to take the floor.
Thank you.
Thank you, Chair.
Good morning, everyone.
At the outset, I would like to warmly welcome the distinguished delegation of the Republic of Ghana, led by the Honorable Minister of Labor, job and employment, Abdul Rashid Palpu and welcome also to Your Excellency Ambassador and permanent representative of the Republic of Ghana in Geneva, Mr.
Emmanuel Asad Atuy and express the committee's appreciation for the submission of the State party's second periodic report under Article 73 of the convention.
The committee recognized Ghana as one of Africa's longstanding democratic success stories and acknowledged its commitment to the rule of law, constitutional governance, and political stability.
Over the years, Ghana has established itself as a regional leader and an active contributor to peace, cooperation, and integration within West Africa and across the African continent.
The committee Note with appreciation that Ghana attained lower middle income country status in 2010, and has achieved significant progress in reducing poverty and advancing human development, as you mentioned, your honorable now at your discord.
The country's vibrant culture, youthful population, and entrepreneurial aspire to continue to provide a strong foundation for economic and social progress.
The committee further recognized Ghana's rich cultural and linguistic diversity, reflected in more than 40 local languages and over 90 dialects, as well as its nationally recognized languages, including Akan, Dagban, Dagari, Danue, Ewi, Ga, Ganja, Kasaim, and Anzawi.
This diversity constitutes an important asset in promoting social cohesion, inclusion, and intercultural dialogue for the benefit of migrants.
The committee also commends the state party's efforts to strengthen domestic resources, mobilization, and improve public revenue generation in support of national development priorities and poverty reduction strategies.
At the same time, the committee notes the challenges facing the Ghanian economy, including its continued dependence on commodity exports such as gold, oil and gas, vulnerability to external shocks, growing public debt, inflationary pressure, and the adverse effects of climate change.
The committee further notes the state parties recognition of the need to enhance transparency, accountability, good governance, and institutional effectiveness as key pillars of sustainable development.
The committee welcomes Ghana's vision of building a prosperous nation towards sustainable economic growth, social inclusion, environmental protection, and effective governance.
In particular, the committee notes the efforts undertaken to strengthen democratic institutions, promote decent work, opportunities, support private sector development and industrial transformation, and address social and regional inequalities.
I also recognize Ghana's active and influential role within the African Union and its longstanding commitment to the ideals of Pan Africanism and regional integration.
I welcome recent initiative aimed at facilitating the mobility of African citizens and notes with appreciation with appreciation, the announcement that beginning on 25 May 2026 at the African Union Day, Ghana will implement a visa free policy for all African nationals through an electronic visa system.
This initiative reflects Ghana's continued commitment to promoting freedom of movement, regional integration, and people to people exchanges across the continent.
The committee further welcomed the efforts undertaken by the state party through the adoption of a number of important legislative policy and institutional measures, including the National Labor migration policy, the labor regulation, domestic workers, the National plan of action for the elimination of human trafficking in Ghana, the National plan of action for the elimination of the worst form of child labor in Ghana.
The Ghana accelerated action plan against child labor, also, the establishment of the national coordination mechanism on migration in 2023.
These initiatives demonstrate the state party commitment to strengthening migration governance and enhancing the protection of migrant workers and members of their families.
While acknowledging this important achievement, the committee looks forward to engage in a constructive dialogue with the distinguished delegation in order to better understand the practical implementation of the convention, the challenges that remain the mis envisaged to further strengthen the protection of the right of migrant worker and the members of their families.
I will begin for the first time on one question concerning the general frameworks of implementation.
The committee notes that the second period report was due in 2019.
Could the delegation elaborate on the factors that contributed to the delay in the submission of the report and share with us in the lessons, learn to ensure more regulated reporting in the future.
The second concerned the coordination mechanism on migration.
The committee welcomes the establishment of the national coordination mechanism on migration, which serves as an inter ministerial steering committee and coordinate the work of seven thematic working groups covering the various dimensions of migration governance.
The committee considered this initiative an important step towards promoting a whole of government approach to migration management and strengthening policy coherence among the institutions involved.
In order to better understand the effectiveness and impact of this mechanism, could the distinguished delegation provide further information on the mandate, composition, and functioning of seven thematic working groups? In particular, the committee would appreciate information on the specific areas covered by each group, the institution represented, the frequency of meeting, the main outcomes achieved to date, and the mechanism in place to ensure coordination between the different groups.
The committee would also welcome clarification on how the recommendation and findings generated by these thematic working groups are translated into public policies, legislation, and programs relating to migration.
Furthermore, could the delegation explain how these groups contribute to the implementation of the convention and whether they systematically integrate human rights consideration, including gender responsive and child sensitive approaches into their work? The committee would also be interested to know whether civil society organizations, migrant associations, trade unions, employers organizations, academia and development partners participate in the work of these thematic groups and how the views and experiences of migrant worker and members of their families are taken into account in the decisions and the decision making process.
Finally, for this cluster, could the delegation indicate whether the national coordination mechanism on migration is equipped with monitoring and evaluating tools to access the effectiveness of seven thematic working group and miser their contribution to address current migration challenges faced by Ghana.
For the second cluster, it's concerned the labor migration, regional integration, and international cooperation.
The committee welcomes Ghana continued commitment to strengthening labor migration governance at the bilateral, regional and international levels.
It notes with appreciation the efforts undertaken by the Ministry of Labor, jobs and employment to promote fair recruitment practices, protect migrant workers, and improve labor migration governance system through cooperation with governmental institutions and international partners.
The committee further welcomes Ghana's active implementation of ECS protocol on free movement of persons, which guarantees citizens of ECS member state the right to enter, re, and establish and establish themselves within the territory of member state.
It also notes with appreciation that Ghana hosts the Secretariat of African Continental free trade area, thereby contributing to regional integration, labor mobility, and economic opportunities across the continent.
The committee notes that labor migration remain remains a critical source of income and development for many households in West Africa with annual remittance flows exceeding more than $40 billion.
In this regard, the committee welcomes the recent validation in ARA 2013-15 May 2025 of the ECS labor migration strategy and action plan developed in partnership with the African Union Commission, the International Organization for migration and the International Labor Organization.
The committee notes that this important regional framework seeks to promote safe and regular migration, protect the right of migrant workers, maximize the development benefits of migration, strengthen regional migration governance, and promote gender equality and social inclusion.
In light of Ghana's leadership role in the process of the commitment undertaken through the labor migration strategy and action plan, could the distinguished delegation elaborate on the measures envisaged by the state party to implement this regional commitment at the national level? In particular, the committee would appreciate information on the concrete actions planned to align national labor migration policies with the objective of the ECS labor migration strategy and action plan.
Mass taken to promote safe, orderly and regular labor migration pathways.
Initiative aimed at strengthening the protection of migrant worker rights, including women, migrant workers, and worker in vulnerable situations, steps taken to enhance fair and ethical recruitment practices, miss to strengthen labor market information system and migration data collection, The effort to integrate labor migration into national development planning, the actions undertaken to promote gender responsive and child sensitive migration governance, and the monitoring and coordination mechanism established to ensure the effective implementation of the commitment adopted during the ARA meeting.
The committee would also welcome information on how Ghana attempts to cooperate with ECOWAS member state and other regional partners to ensure the effective implementation of this important regional framework and to maximize its benefits for migrant worker and members of their families.
Concerning the legislative frameworks, the committee notes that the reports provide information on several legislative and policy developments.
However, the committee remains concerned that migration related legislation appears fragmented across different legal instruments.
Could the delegation explain the obstacles that have prevented the establishment of comprehensive right based migration law fully incorporating all provisions of the conventions? Does the government envisage adopting a migration framework that explicitly integrate the right of migrant worker a member of their families? Concerning the national migration policies.
The report presents several migration related policies.
However, limited information is provided regarding implementation, mechanism and miserable outcomes.
While the committee welcome the adoption of the national migration policy and the national labor migration policy, it would appreciate receiving further information on their implementation in practice.
In particular, could the distinguished delegation elaborate on the budgetary resources allocated to the implementation of these policies, the monitoring and evaluation mechanism established to assess their effectiveness, and the indicators used to measure progress and impact.
The committee would also welcome information on the concrete results achieved to date, as well as the challenges encountered and the objective that remain outstanding in order to ensure the fully realization of the policy's intended goals.
I think I have to finish now my first round of clusters of questions and remarks and maybe we can discuss other issues for the next round.
I submit, Chair.
Thank you.
Thank you, Madam Sabrinaga for your comments and questions.
Now I give the floor to the other rapporteur, Professor Shan Ungdos.
Good morning, one and all.
Thank you, Chair.
I would also like to extend a warm welcome to the high level Ghaan delegation who has honored our committee with their presence for today's constructive dialogue.
I believe that through this collaboration, we will also be contributing to the valuable work Ghana is doing to protect the rights of migrant workers and their family members.
Well, actually, Ghana has formally committed itself to the International Convention on the Protection of the rights of all migrant workers and members of their families by ratifying the treaty in 2000.
It has also adopted a number of laws and policies related to migration governance to comply with the provisions of the convention.
Well, compliance is, however, generally considered partial rather than complete areas.
We have areas where Ghana has shown compliance, for instance, after the ratification, establishing of legal protections through the 1992 or before the ratification.
Of course, 1992 constitution that apply to both students and non students, including principles of equality and non discrimination.
And Ghana has adopted migration legislation such as the Immigration Service Act 2016 and other administrative reforms.
We all welcome these steps and Ghana has also developed policies aimed at protecting migrant workers, facilitating return migration, and engaging the Ghanaian diaspora.
Well, there are some areas where compliance remains weak, especially in the field in the scope of implementation.
Many convention provisions have not been fully incorporated into domestic legislation.
Enforcement of migrant worker protections remains inconsistent according to International Labor Organization.
Migrant workers often face barriers in accessing justice, including lack of information, legal costs, bureaucratic delays, and weak enforcement mechanisms.
Human trafficking, irregular migration, and exploitation of migrant workers continue to be significant concerns.
Coordination among migration related institutions has historically been fragmented and data collection on migration remains limited.
Ghana's evolving migration landscape involves a growing flow of workers, particularly women in domestic work to the Gulf and Middle East.
While Ghana has established legal and institutional frameworks aligned with international labor standards, migrant workers often struggle to use these mechanisms due to limited awareness of rights, high costs, bureaucratic delays, weak enforcement, and fear of retaliation or deportation.
These obstacles are most acute for women who face additional gender specific risks such as restricted mobility, social stigma, and heightened vulnerability to tries.
Well, our committee committee on migrant workers on the protection of rights of all migrant workers.
Members of their families reviewed Ghana's implementation and issued recommendations in the past also and we will be also able to work out some new recommendations after this constructive dialogue, especially protection of migrant workers abroad, consular services, for instance.
Regulation of recruitment agencies, anti trafficking measures, access to remedies and justice, data collection and migrant governance reforms.
Well, the fact that the committee continues to issue detailed recommendations indicates that Ghana is viewed as making progress but still facing substantial compliance challenges.
Well, in an overall assessment, we could say that Ghana complies with the convention at the level of treaty ratification, reporting obligations, somehow delayed and many formal legal commitments.
However, full compliance has not yet been achieved because significant gaps remain in implementation, enforcement, institutional capacity, and the practical protection of migrant workers rights.
Actually, those are all points that have to be raised during our constructive dialogue, also by the members of the committee also.
We are going to pose some questions on these issues.
My colleague, Sabina Gahar has already explained some issues details in a detailed manner.
And during our discussions in the committee, we will be especially talk about protection of migrant workers abroad and your answers are so precious for this for the protection of migrant workers by consular services of the Republic of Ghana and regulation of recruitment agencies.
Those are important points in our conventions and anti trafficking measures.
One other point that always disturbed me from the very beginning that Ghana loses very valuable working force to other countries, brain drain, I mean, well trained, well educated, well skilled, highly skilled members of the Ghanian population leave the country to work somewhere else.
This is an important problem.
I would like you to answer your measures against this important issue and especially, again, just to repeat, those domestic workers in several countries in the in the Middle East or elsewhere, how they can be protected better? What kinds of measures do you take just to protect those persons that are facing heightened vulnerability to abuse.
And also retaliation, fear of under the fear of retaliation or deportation, they are not able to protect their own rights and they need state support of the Republic of Ghana.
Well, thank you so much again for coming with a big delegation, distinguished members, Excellencies, and distinguished members of the Ghanian delegation, I hope that we are going to have a very constructive and productive dialogue this week.
Dan, we will be as the committee, happy to make our contribution for your further measures, steps for the protection of migrant workers and members of their families.
Thank you, Chair.
Thanks so much.
Thank you, Stonewal for your comments and questions.
Now I open the floor for other members for questions and comments.
Madam Jasmina move.
Good morning.
I would like also to use the opportunity to thank delegation, first of all, to make gender balance because it's not usually practice to see such behavior and FAS, it's very important you sent us message and we also sent to you message, and it's good that you really respect the gender balance in the delegation.
As Rapporteur Sabina mentioned, FAS is also very important to get outputs from your side related to delay in submission a second periodic report because lesson learned are very important and you are as one of owners of the convention and therefore implementation of convention is in hands of all of us, not only committee members, but also state parties.
As the head of delegation mentioned, Ghana as a state of original transit and destination, really have made significant efforts to have a comprehensive approach to creation of national immigration policy.
We signed some bilateral agreements, but there also was expressed needs to continue cooperation with other states and so on.
In that, for us, it's very important to see second part of task implementation.
Adoption of national policy, it's very relevant and shows readiness of state to take proper action.
But at the same time, without having implementation of a policy, there is not possible to achieve results.
In that context, please, can you provide us with information which actions have been taken with aim to implement this policy and which mechanisms have been established.
I What actions have been taken to harmonize national legislation with convention? Is it some particular piece of legislation which regulates migrant rights or you have made interventions in the different laws based on issues as health, social, and so on.
It is important for the committee to get picture.
How does that look intervention in the national legislation? It has been adopted the anti discrimination policy and under that policy has been adopted law or laws and what is practice when we are speaking about prevention of discrimination? How is it ensured gender equality? I mentioned the importance to have gender balance in delegation, but When we are speaking on gender equality as a whole package, is there a particular piece of legislation which does regulate this issue or it is integrated the aspect in all laws and measures, and what measures have been taken to ensure better protection of women, particularly women migrants, including those who came to Ghana state of destination and also for Ghanian women abroad.
Which measures have been taken to ensure protection of migrants, particularly unaccopanied children? In that context, please, can you explain measures related to reunification of families? There has been mentioned in the report, adoption of action plan against trafficking.
Please, can you provide us with the results of implementation, this action plan? Which are mechanisms established to ensure implementation? As I said, is it the same with legislation? Adoption is the first step, but second step is implementation.
Therefore, it's very important to see activities and effectiveness of institutions established for implementation, action plan against trafficking.
Also has been mentioned adoption action plan against children work.
Can you also give explanation about mechanisms for implementation this action plan and the results which has been achieved? It is very important to have coordination body.
You establish a coordination committee as in some way cross cutting body to ensure better different branches.
What is experience from work of this coordination committee? Because different mechanisms have been established in different states and for us for committee, it is also relevant to take lessons from processes.
And how does access to justice for migrants colleague from general prosecutor offices here and it is very important to get, if I'm migrant, how does Luke my right to have access to justice, particularly if I'm undocumented migrant or in regular situation? And finally, I will raise last question related to support to Guyanese abroad with diplomatic support.
How does look that measure of diplomatic offices, is it sufficient, particularly is established in those states where it's the most pleasant Guyanese population.
Thank you once again and I hope we will continue constructive dialogue today and tomorrow.
Thank you, Yasmina for your comments and questions.
I now give the floor to Madame Marian ***** President.
Thank you, Chair.
Good morning.
I would like to welcome the delegation of Ghana.
Who is here with us this morning for discussion and dialogue on the implementation of the Convention, on the rights of all migrant workers and members of their families.
I would also like to thank the State Party for participating in this exercise, one that the committee has been looking forward to for quite some time.
What's most important for me is that the dialogue is taking place, even if it should have happened a long time ago.
I had a question for the delegation of Ghana.
It's a question about a migration agreement that Ghana signed onto with the United States in 2025.
I read this agreement and it seeks to facilitate the return of West African nationals who have been expelled from the United States.
For us, committee members, it's a type of agreement that raises many questions, perhaps subject of great criticism.
For example, that this agreement is no more no less that a policy that exposes migrant workers to inhumane treatment to collective expulsion, arbitrary detention.
Sometimes, as you know these practices are prohibited by a convention, which leads me to ask the following questions to the delegation of Ghana.
I hope that you can provide us with some information about signing on to this agreement and how migration is managed under this agreement.
The first question is, since the agreement was signed, and it really hasn't been established for a long time, but how many people has Ghana received as part of the implementation of this agreement? And when West African nationals are welcomed by Ghana under this agreement, how is their stay managed in your country's territory? Are they systematically sent to their country of origin? If that is so Is it done in close collaboration with the authorities of the countries from where these migrant workers are nationals? Or are they not systematically sent back to their country and perhaps they are allowed to settle in Ghana.
If that is so, then is there a policy that facilitates their integration into Ganan society? Could you tell us if already as part of the implementation of this agreement, you have seen any obstacles or difficulties either domestically or with the countries whose nationals have come into Ghana? And among those that you have already received, what country are they nationals of? Could you tell us a little bit what their profile is? How many men, women, children, and when they are received, under what conditions do you receive them? What kind of treatment is afforded them? What services are provided? I also wanted to know to what extent does such an agreement positively contribute to migration management in Ghana.
And what are the foreseeable effects from this agreement for the South African region? Thank you.
Miriam, for her questions and comments.
Now I give the floor to Mr.
Fabian Tombuana.
Thank you, Chair.
To begin, I would like to convey my warmest welcome to the delegation of U Ghana, led by His Excellency, the Minister of Labor and Employment.
I have taken note of the information provided in the report of the State Party on combating corruption.
My question is quite straightforward.
Could the delegation please provide more detailed information about disciplinary mechanisms that have been implemented or set up internally and also more detailed information about the protection of FOIA whistleblowers in Ghana and mechanisms of collaboration with bodies combating corruption? I would also like to know how effective these measures are.
So could the delegation please share with us some statistics illustrating this.
I'm thinking about the number of people that have been prosecuted on migration related acts of corruption or legal proceedings that have concluded with a ruling against corrupt individuals.
Thank you.
Thank you, Fabien.
I now give the floor to Mr.
Omaria Momoi.
Thank you, Chair.
I too would like to extend a warm greeting to the delegation of the Republic of Ghana, who has come all the way here to the Pali Wilson to partake in an interactive dialogue with our committee.
Ghana is a country of destination of migration in the West African region.
Many families emigrate to the Gold Coast.
Families with children born in Ghana, then grew up speaking English, though they may come from a French speaking country.
And I say that so that I could find a way into a very old topic because I want to ensure that measures are taken to avoid this happening again.
I'm speaking about the massive reformment after Busier.
If I'm mispronouncing the name, I apologize.
So these children I'm speaking of coming from their country of origin, I'm thinking of the French speaking countries, then go to Gano, study there.
I want to ask this just to make sure because you know that our convention prohibits refoment.
I just want to make sure that domestically, through legislation or somehow else, a solution has been found to this issue.
What is then the current statute of these children who are born in Ghana? Are they Ghanaian? Or are they still seen as foreigners? You're also a country of origin for migration, especially going to some countries in the Northern Hemisphere like the United States, perhaps also the UK and Great Britain.
Where there is an active Guinean diaspora in the intellectual sphere and the trade sphere.
I want to know if any provisions have been taken to have this diaspora be of use to Ghana's development, not just by transferring funds and investment, but I'm thinking intellectually as well.
You have professors of note teaching in top rank universities.
Is it possible then to have this skill sharing, skill transfer, knowledge transfer that even though they may be far away, they can contribute to Ghana by sharing the intellectual gains that they have benefited from? My third question is on the Guinean Human Rights Commission.
I knew from that in the first decade of the 2000s, there was a very active commission with several African national human rights institution.
I'm not that familiar with this anymore.
It's been a while since I looked into it, but I wanted to know that it is still so quite active.
The Guinean Commission of Human Rights.
Are they still as active as they once were? What is their current status? Their Gandri status.
Thank you.
Thank you, Maria.
I give the floor to Mr.
Tagisadi Assad Tagisai.
Thank you, Mr.
Chair.
First of all, I also want to welcome distinguished delegation from Ghana.
We are very glad that they are ready to have a good dialogue with the commission with the aim to improve the situation with migrant workers and members of their families.
I have some question which is maybe connected with the previous questions with Mr.
Omar.
He ask about the activity of diaspora.
I want to ask about government of Ghana, what they do with the people from Ghana who works abroad.
For example, it will be useful provide us the information how many offices of consular services there exist abroad of Ghana.
In which countries, approximately how many Ghanian immigrant workers and members families work and leave and how many persons work at the consul offices in this country to have the I how many people works for how many workers.
For example, also, it will be useful if you can provide us with information for how many Ghanian consular services provide the right to vote, to participate in the elections of officials of Ghana.
It will be very interesting to have results for last elections.
For example, the number of people who vote abroad.
Thank you.
Thank you, Tagsad Mr.
Francisco Caron Mia.
Good.
Thank you very much, indeed, Chairman.
Like colleagues who have spoken before me this morning, I would like to extend a very warm welcome to the delegation of Ghana.
To this dialogue, which is extremely useful as we discuss implementation of our convention.
This is further proof that the number and the level of delegates from the Ministry of Labor, from Ghana, the fact that there are so many of you here is really a clear sign that our convention and our committee is very alive, it's very active, and this is One more reason for us to discuss the situation in Ghana today.
Now, I just have one question and I think it's something that is key when it comes to talking about development and implementation of any kind of migratory policy, whether that be regular or addressing irregular migration.
Of course, we are concerned about the situation of irregular migrant workers and their family members.
But I really want to talk about the issue of statistics.
How do you manage statistics? To what extent are the authorities in Ghana able to have some complete comprehensive statistics to get a picture of the numbers of irregular and regular migrant workers coming to the country, as well as those who've left as well? This is key information when it comes to drafting consistent, coherent policies.
Yes.
And effective policies.
Thank you very much, Chair.
Thank you, Francisco.
I have Mr.
Sharif and miss Mili.
I give the floor to Mr.
Mohammed Sharif.
Thank you very much Chairman.
I should like to echo the words of welcome extended by my colleagues to the delegation of Ghana and greet all members of the delegation and thank you for being here.
I very much look forward to the conversation that we're going to have Touching on what my sister, miss ***** said earlier, I know that very many migrants are returning either voluntarily or in a forced manner to your country.
I think last week there was an initial group of Ghanians evacuated from South Africa due to xenophobic tensions.
Others are going to arrive, I think, on their way and you've received deportees from other European countries, North Africa and elsewhere.
The IOM had also developed a program that was addressing around 4,000 people last year alone and the figures are quite sizable.
So If you could please tell us what the main thrust of your policy is to help support and reintegrate, reintegrate because can you reintegrate people into a country that isn't their own.
But on the economic front, also Ghanians returning home, what happens to the resources of those who are deported? Those being deported from South Africa, I think they had residence permits, they had rights, they had social rights, they may had done investments in South Africa.
What happens to the resources of those who are deported who have worked for a long time elsewhere? Are there bilateral agreements which guarantee the exportability of their social rights? Are there also things in place to ensure the transfer of the personal effects of those individuals and what provisions are in place to help them reintegrate into the economy and the social fabric of Ghana? As was also highlighted by miss *****, under the agreement that you've signed with the US, you are receiving those who were declared non GAT individuals on US soil.
Last year, if my figures are correct, in 2025, you received 42 such individuals all from West Africa.
Originally.
As I say, 28th of May last, you received a new group, just last week.
What happens to those individuals who have you agreed and accepted to receive and I say receive rather than host necessarily? Because if I've understood it properly, They don't know that they have freedom of movement in West Africa, how does it work in practice on the ground? Thank you very much.
Thank you, Sharif.
I now give you the Merle Costans Legpa Adnon.
Thank you very much, Chairman.
I should also like to extend a warm welcome to the delegation and congratulate them for the efforts that they are undertaking.
My concern is as follows, when it comes to governance of foreign labor, I'd like to know how many labor permits have been issued in the framework of regular migration over the past five years to migrant workers.
I'd also like the delegation to provide us with statistics regarding labor inspections with a view to improving labor conditions for migrant workers.
Thank you very much.
Thank you, Merl.
Before concluding, I have just a few questions which I will want to raise, which are actually follow up to some of the questions that has been already made.
We fully recognize that Ghana has very highly educated, very good professionals, naturally, it's difficult.
It is their right to travel, their right to seek employment abroad, which is something part of their rights regime that you have to respect.
That's something you cannot prevent.
But my question is now since there is expert from Central Bank, I'm going to raise this question directly with her, but government can provide those professionals who are living abroad who are highly perhaps paid, well employed to keep their link with the country by providing certain facilities, certain financial incentives to invest in Ghana and other customs facilities so that they contribute back to Ghana So it's a reverse brain drain, actually.
I don't believe in this brain drain stuff.
I think you cannot prevent people travel when they are qualified.
They seek employment and you can't prevent that.
You should not prevent also.
But are there schemes like that where, if you invest in dollars, you get a higher rate than what you get in the US, you know, something like that.
So are there regimes that encourage them to contribute back without trampling on their rights? That's the question I want the Central Bank lady to perhaps let us know.
Other issue is that, uh Well, what I have read this about in your agriculture and Cocaa sector, there is employment from intra African straits, mostly on verbal basis and it's not well regulated.
As a result, those migrant workers from your neighboring countries who are working in your agriculture sector may not be enjoying rights they should be enjoying.
And may be treated in a manner that is not dignified.
What action the government is taking to the extent possible regularize and make them feel they are part of the Ghanian society and then they get equal rights and things like that.
If you can explain how those informal employment in Kokava and agricult sector in rural areas are handled in line with this convention.
Thank you.
Now, we will, um We have the excellency, we will break for about half an hour, and you have a room there attach room 1016 where you can meet with your delegation and organize responses.
And these questions you can answer after you come back or you have time tomorrow.
So we can answer some questions today and we can have a second round of questions and some questions you may have to reach out to your capital, and then we can listen to that tomorrow.
So that's the understanding.
So we suspend the meeting for the time being and we will meet here at 11:45.
Thank you.
Thank you.
I I Dear colleagues, Excellency, I f to you and to your delegation to continue our constructive dialogue on the subject and on the basis of the comments and the questions raised.
You have the floor? Thank you very much.
In the brief interaction we had in the short break, we look at some of the areas that have been posed before us, starting from consular services and central bank and remittances, and then labor issues.
So the specific areas will be dealt with by um the key individuals who will respond to them.
I'll start with our ambassador here who's going to respond to the consular activities.
Thank you very much, Honorable Minister.
I would wish to respond to the question on consular activities and the extension of consular services to Ghanians in the diaspora.
First of all, I would state that in all Ghana embassies abroad, we have consular sections.
Now, we have 62 embassies and high commissions around the world, and we have 59 honorary consulates and consulates general, making a total of 121 around the world.
All these offices have an average of five officials working in the consular section and extending consular services to Ghanians in the diaspora.
I would also add that all diplomatic staff Those who are not necessarily officials of the consular section are trained before they are sent abroad to be able to extend consular services to Gmians abroad.
The include prison visits, MFM issues concerning violation of the rights of Ganians anywhere in the world.
They are able to engage the host authorities and the host security agencies to ensure that the rights of Ganians in the diaspora are not trampled upon.
And I also want to that in all our missions, there have been dedicated desks for the diaspora.
So there is an officer clearly designated as a diaspora relations officer.
Who's and this applies to all our embassies and high commissions.
And this officer's responsibility is to ensure that there's constant engagement between the embassy or high commissioner and members of the diaspora.
Nessarily talking about members of the Ganian community.
We ensure that all Ghanians in every part of the world set up associations where we are able to establish that kind of link so that we are able to offer the necessary consular services to them.
There was also an issue about how we tap into the skills of G Ghanians abroad.
I will say that we keep a database in all these missions to be able to identify the various skills that our competitors abroad have so that the skills that are scarce in Ghana, we are able to encourage them and find a way to recruit some of them to go and work in Ghana.
In fact, in our Ghana High Commission in London, where we have a bigger concentration of Garnes, there is an office of the Public Service Commission of Ghana, specifically in the embassy, whose sole responsibility is to identify skills, Ghanians who have that ski skills and even recruit them to go and work in Ghana.
There's also a diaspora engagement policy that we have, and I'll call on my colleague Louis to speak to that.
Thank you.
So Ghana has developed a diaspora engagement policy that guides how we mainstream the contribution of the Ganan diaspora international development.
This policy document helps to help the government to bring together the contribution of the Ghaian diaspora.
Since 2013, government developed this policy, and this is used to reach out to the Ganan diaspora.
It is out of this policy that we have diaspora desk officers in all our missions.
So regularly, what we do is that almost every year we reach out to the diaspora.
So in the healthcare sector.
They come together and then return to Ghana and contribute to health care delivery.
In the educational sector, we have Ghanian professors in various universities abroad who retained to contribute and to teach in our universities with skills that are somehow lacking in Ghana.
This policy in general is to help bring the Ghaan diaspora together.
That's why we also have other initiatives by the government.
Every year you hear of Dirty December, you hear of a year of return.
We have the Josef Project.
All these policies are designed to help the Ganan diaspora retain and contribute to national development.
Thank you.
It's crucial to respond to why the report delayed.
So let me get back to that before I invite the Bank of Ghana to respond.
So the solicitor and Attorney General.
Thank you very much.
The submission of Garner's reports to the committee was not intentional.
It was due to a combination of incisional administrative and technical challenges associated with the preparation process.
The preparation of the report required extensive inter ministerial and multi stakeholder consultations involving several state institutions responsible for migration governance, labour, immigration, foreign affairs, social protection, Justice administration, and human rights matters.
The process of gathering, harmonizing and validating data from this institution proved time consuming and a bit difficult.
Additionally, channalties relating to limited technical and financial resources, computing national priorities and changes in institutional arrangements contributed to delays in coordinating the reporting process.
The compilation of reliable and updated migration data, particularly concerning migrant workers and members of their families also proved to pose difficulties due to fragmented data collection system across institutions.
Nowwsting the delay.
Ghana remains fully committed to its reporting obligations under the convention and to constructive engagement with this committee.
Measures are therefore being taken to strengthen interagency coordination and institutional capacity in order to facilitate more timely reporting in the future.
Thank you.
Thank you.
Then remittances from Bank of Canada.
Responding to your direct question for the central bank, just to continue from where my colleague left off.
Ghana has a comprehensive diaspora policy, and as part of the diaspora policy, the Ministry of Finance and the Central Bank, they are collaborating to put together a national remittance strategy.
And as part of that strategy, the central bank, we have a very robust system of tracking remittances, and we keep reviewing it so that to your question, so that we ensure that we are not just taking money from them, but we want to also give back to whatever they are giving to us.
So I'll say the four main regions that we get remittances from are the United States, the United Kingdom, Italy and Germany.
And just to keep you at ease, we have started a campaign.
In April, we held an initiative called Remit to Invest when we were at the IMF.
We brought together the Ghaan diaspora in the DMV area.
The purpose is just like you said, we don't want to impose anything on them.
We want the Ghanian diaspora to come and tell us what solutions do you want us to give you as banks in Ghana.
That will be lucrative.
So when you send your dollar home, you don't have a problem with it depreciating.
So the governor and the Central Bank team were there.
We had about 4 hours engagement with the Ghaan diaspora in the DMV.
And that's not just the end.
We are going on to have similar thing in London.
Even though the Ghana government is currently in London, hosting a town hall and investment summit, the central bank will be going back in September to have the same remit to invest.
We on one side, the diaspora on the other side, and the banks in Ghana will be there as well.
You know, it's always nice when you involve people in what you create for them.
Rather than just sitting in Ghana and imposing the product on them, we want all of us to sit down as a roundtable.
They tell us we listen as a regulator, the commercial banks create a product for them.
So that is on the remit to invest side.
So this collaboration is ongoing and also the objective in addition to this one, the central bank, we already, we are revising a lot of our processes as far as remittance is concerned.
And we actually have a virtual asset at ongoing now, and the remit to invest, it's not just going to be on account level.
We are looking at doing something differently when it comes to the diaspora bonds.
And how do we onboard this diaspora seamlessly you can be in the US and you open an account to the Ghana card and all that we have now, you don't need to be seated in Ghana to open an account as a diaspora.
We are looking at other instruments in the property side.
What is Z will encourage them to come home and not them alone.
We are targeting the first and second generation diaspora.
We are not just using manual interventions.
We are involving fin tech platforms, robust fintech platforms that will make access seamlessly to the Ghanian diaspora.
And then further on, apart from the account opening and all that, currently, we have the Dirty Christmas, like you mentioned, is an initiative to build trust.
When you come home and you get bonded, you build that trust and you know when you're sending your money over.
It's going to be done, it's going to be used for something useful for you.
Just to give you a high level expression of what remit to invest means, it just means remittance beyond consumption.
We are encouraging Ghanians abroad to send money home for investment purposes and not just for consumption.
We are interested in them coming home after pension, and I think Egypt and other countries are doing it, and that is what we are targeting as a central bank.
Take the question that has to do with the national coordination mechanism on migration.
And so the NCM, as rightly noted by the committee, is an interim of government whole of society approach or platform that was established in 2023.
It actually was with the support of the UN Network on migration and funding from the European Union to set it up.
Its core mandate is to strengthen the coherence in migration governance, also coordinate implementation Global Compact for migration, and also improve evidence based migration policy and planning and also to harmonize the multi sectorial response across government.
The structure and membership of this NCM is we have the core or very relevant ministries like the Interior, which is the Lead Ministry of Labor Jobs and Employment, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ministry of Finance, Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Protection, Ministry of Information, Ministry of Health, The Ministry of Local Government, Ministry of Environment, and Ministry of Parliamentary Affairs.
We have key agencies, Ghana Immigration Service, Ghana Scal Service, the Labor Department, the Bank of Ghana, the National Development Planning Commission, Ghana Police Service, the Anti Human Trafficking Unit to be specific, Str.
We have Ghana Refugee Board We have National Disaster Management Organization, we have Port Health under the Garner Health Service, we have Attorney General's Department, we also have the Public Services Commission.
And for development partners who are part of the NCM, we have IOM, ILO GIST, and ICMPD and the NCM also consists of seven thematic groups that was well noted by the committee and they are diaspora Engagement, labor migration, data management, also border management, protection and human rights, remittances, and we have the last one on cross cutting issues.
All these groups have designated lead and also co leading institutions to ensure accountability and coordination.
For the operational arrangements, the NCM generally meets twice monthly, and the technical or the thematic working groups meet at least twice in two months.
It is generally coordinated by the Ministry of Interior, the migration Unit.
So after all the thematic groups have met, we meet as one national coordination mechanism, and that is where we have the CSO, the DOPs also coming in, and also the social apartheid coming in as well.
So this shows that it is a whole of society and whole of government approach because everyone is included and no one is left behind.
On monitoring and evaluation and data systems, the Garnter Scout service leads migration data governance on the data thematic working group.
And we also have the National Development Planning Commission that ensures the alignment into or mainstreaming into national development.
And also, we incorporate the GCM implementation plan that was developed at the inception of the establishment of the national coordination mechanism include the results framework and also indicators, and the thematic groups also reports to provide operational monitoring cycles.
I think that will be all from my side on MCM.
Thank you.
Which? Yeah.
Honorable Minister, we also have to talk about how these regional considerations are taken on board when it comes to developing our legislations.
I think the EquiS protocols and then the other international labor organization are internationally the thing is, it makes me feel that International Labor Organization conventions have been taken on board in developing our labor migration policy and then the national migration policy.
Those ones have also been taken care of in our Labor Act and then the labor regulations, which provide the governance framework for labor migration administration within the country.
I Ghana, we have the Ghana Immigration Service, taking care of immigration persons who come into the country, and then the Labor Department of the Ministry of Labor, Jobs and employment also manages the immigration part of it.
So if you come to our legislation processes, these things are incorporated into our laws to govern how we do labor migration governance.
On the issue of child labor and other things, my colleague would take up there.
Thank you very much, Honorable Minister.
I just want to touch on the implementation of Garner's National Plan of action, which Garner accelerated Action Plan on child labor and the implementation of Garner's National Plan on Action on human trafficking.
Garner as a state, as the committee notes, has also rectified Ilo Conventions 138 on minimum age Convention and Ilo Convention 182 on the worst forms of Child Labor.
What is beautiful about rctifying what is beautiful about rctifying Racifying the convention is that we have domesticated these conventions in our national policies and laws.
Currently, Ghana has developed what we call the hazardous activity framework that looks at permissible work and permissible, that covers all children in Ghana, whether they are migrant workers or not.
And so the hazardous activity framework is just to tell us as a country that they are permissible work for children to do.
Whenever children on the move of children who are migrant workers come into Ghana to work, these policies and law which we have now attached as a schedule to the Labor Bill to make it biting Moreover, give it a legal status such that perpetrators who use children, whether they are American children in Uganda or not, are dealt with according to the law as stipulated in the Labor Act, which is currently before parliament for approval.
I also want to state that the implementation of the National plan of action on human trafficking and child labor The Child Labor Garner seated action plan looks at the worst forms of child labor.
Obviously, human trafficking is the worst form of child labor.
Aside, that Garner has a human trafficking Secretariat that looks specifically into human trafficking in general and also child trafficking as well.
The implementation of both policy documents or design is looking at two clear things.
We want to see how we are able to bring multi stakeholder participation and developments of these documents to the implementation cuts across in ministries and other sectors that have the mandate to protect children.
So one of the clear things for the implementation of the National plan of action, how do we look at funding arrangements? How are we looking at operational plans that specifically puts in place concrete policies, concrete activities that address the issues.
This in place, we have a lot of programs, we have a lot of policies that target specifically children in child labor, and there's also a monitoring in place.
We have the Garner child monitoring system, child labor monitoring system that tracks children at risk of child labor and children in child labor.
The beauty of it is that we are seeking how we are going to harmonize all these monitoring systems, including private sector monitoring systems in place.
One of the critical things, there was an issue about migrant workers in agriculture, migrant workers in other fishing and other sectors.
And so this monitoring system looks at children at risk of child labor, including migrant workers, and so on.
So we are able to track these children.
We are able to refer them to the needed appropriate remediation services such that monitored evaluation of this process becomes top notch.
We are able to give children the needed services as and when they require.
And so I believe that with this implementation process in place, and one of the key things of our national plan of action is that we have monitoring evaluation matrices that actually monitors the implementation of the plan.
So we bi annual implementation plans that looks at how we are able to look at the MPs, the trafficking one is five years and the one on child labor is four years.
And within these bi annual plans, we are able to monitor and track implementations.
We bring key stakeholders who have roles in the implementation of the MPA around the table to discuss challenges and then addresses as and when they come.
I believe that with this top note institutional arrangements in place and governance arrangements in place, governor as a country has actually put in place to ensure that children in child labor and human trafficking are given.
I want to conclude by saying that Ghana has now moved from tier two watchlist in terms of human trafficking to non tier two, and that is a successful Garner.
We believe that a continuous implementation of national action plans on human trafficking and child labor actually puts the country in a position to be able to monitor and give children the needed services, including migrant workers, the support they require.
Thank you.
Thank you so much.
Would you mind for him to speaker, please? Okay.
First of all, take the first one being the agreement with the United States on the deportation of West African nationals, which were received in Ghana.
They wanted to know what were the issues, whether there was any agreement and what we did with the deportees.
Did we detain them and all that.
Then you also respond to the issues of the Srage and whether it is active.
Thank you.
Thank you very much.
Thank you very much, Honorable Minister.
In respect of the third country national transfer from United States to Ghana, I want to give some general observations.
The government of Ghana remains firmly committed to its obligations under the International Convention on the Protection of the rights of all migrant workers and members of their families.
The 1951 Refugee Convention, the 1969 OAU Refugee Convention, the Ekowas Protocol on Free movement of persons, residents and establishments, and the Constitution of Ghana.
Ghana has historically maintained an open and protection oriented migration policy and continues to host refugees, asylum seekers, migrant workers, and other foreign nationals from across the West African sub region and beyond.
The government knows the allegations contained in the submission by the civil society organization that had been filed.
While some of the matters referred in therein are currently the subject of proceedings before the High Court and the Supreme Court of Ghana, the government of Ghana wishes to provide the following information.
The government notes with concern regarding immigration detention.
Immigration detention in Ghana is governed principally by the Immigration Act 2000 Act 573, the Immigration Regulation 2001, LI 1691, the Refugee Law 1992, PNDC Law 305d, and the Constitution of the Republic of Ghana.
Detention is not automatic.
Immigration officers may only exercise powers conferred by the law, and such actions remain subject to constitutional safeguards, including judicial review.
Where operationally feasible, Immigration detainees are held separately from criminal detainees.
The government continues to explore alternatives to detention and to strengthen administrative procedures aimed at minimizing the duration of immigration related custody.
The government acknowledges cooperation with various international partners on migration and management matters.
Any engagement with foreign states is undertaken in accordance with Ghanian law, including constitutional arrangements.
An agreements.
The government knows that the proceedings currently pending before the Supreme Court raise questions concerning the legal characterization of communications exchanged between Ghana and the United States of America.
As these matters remain before the courts, it will be inappropriate for the executive to comment on issues awaiting judicial determination.
The government of Ghana remains committed to complying fully with any orders issued by the Supreme Court of Ghana.
Thank you.
Good.
Thank you.
Justice.
Yes, please.
Thank you very much.
By migrant workers and their families.
Thank you.
Yeah.
For Ghanian migrant workers and their families is guaranteed under the 1992 Constitution and reinforced by international human rights instruments, such as the ICCPR and the African Charter.
In principle, migrant workers are entitled to seek redress for violations of their rights through courts and relevant state institutions.
In practice, access to justice operates through several channels.
Migrant workers and their families may bring claims before the Ghanian courts, particularly in relation to recruitment malpractices, breach of contract, or violations occurring within Ghana's jurisdiction.
Human rights complaints may also be filed with the Commission on Human Rights and Administrative Justice, which investigates abuses and recommends remedies, and such remedies are enforced by the courts.
Also through the Legal Aid Commission, which provides representation for indigenous persons and vulnerable persons in Ghana, including migrant workers.
However, we will concede that the effectiveness of these remedies is constrained with some issues.
A major challenge is the cross border nature of migrant work.
Where most exploitation occurs outside Ghana's jurisdiction, limiting the ability of domestic courts to enforce remedies against foreign employers.
Even when legal redress is obtained in Ghana against recruitment agencies or intermediaries, enforcement gaps often remain.
Additional barriers include high legal costs, limited awareness of rights among some migrant workers, weak coordination among some migration governance institutions, and delay in case resolutions.
Families of migrant workers also face difficulties in accessessing justice due to lack of information at times, financial constraints, and limited capacity to pursue claims intentionally.
Consular support through garner missions abroad and regulatory oversight of recruitment agencies provides some protection to these migrant workers.
But these mechanisms remain largely reactive and limited to enforcement power.
In conclusion, Ghana has a strong legal and institutional framework, guarantee access to justice and an effective remedy.
Migrant workers and their families experience a significant implementation gap, strengthen cross border enforcement mechanisms, improving regulation of recruitment chains, and expanding legal aid and counselor support are key to making access to justice more effective in practice for all migrant workers in Ghana.
Thank you.
Thank you very much.
There was also an issue about the Ghanian workers who have been expelled from South Africa and the action by the Ghana government to transport them back to Ghana.
We have taken notes that the people the Ganans who had been expelled were legitimately staying in South Africa to work.
They had their documents and the foreign minister has come out to say that the 300, for example, that had been brought were scrutinized and they were found to have legitimate documents.
There was no reason why they should have been expelled the way they did by the hooligans who started beating them.
We are in line to bring 900 more if the South African government permits them because they are now not being given the permission to leave.
We hear them now saying that, well, G Ghana should have taken this time, shouldn't have removed their citizens so quickly.
But the response is that we couldn't allow our citizens to beaten up simply for legitimately staying in another country and unfortunately another African country.
So that is being handled as well.
As they arrive, Each of them was given a means of communication.
Each of them was given means of setting up the businesses they came with, some amount of monies have been advanced to them to be able to set up the businesses, and those who don't have accommodation have been provided with some minimal support to start with.
So enough commitment has been made towards them.
Also, about workers who whether We have statistics of workers who have been ill treated or not comfortable where they are working because of policy actions or because of any action that would have unsettled them.
We do not have such statistics in Ghana.
Now, they may be there, but it's difficult to find out what we actually have rather Ghanians who have been treated unfairly by foreigners who have set up businesses in Ghana.
And so there is a lot of cordial response by Ghanians to workers who come to work in Ghana.
And as we go on, I believe that if there are any future statistics to be delivered, we definitely will do so.
Louis, if there are issues that we mentioned that have not been discussed, can you bring them up for us to respond.
No.
Okay.
Thank you.
Yes, Layer.
Labor inspection.
Yeah, there was an issue on labor inspection which you responded to.
Can you go ahead, lawyer? Thank you.
Honorable.
For labor inspections, like it is an ecical activity under the Labor Department within the Ministry of Labor Justice and employment.
And we were able to conduct labor inspections about 2002 and 34 labor inspections were conducted.
And this actually span within only 2025 labor inspections conducted.
And this involved males and females.
And then when you look at also the number of workers or Ganians who have left the shores of Ghana to work in other countries to turn up a number of 9,000 608, which comprises 7,426 females, and then 2182 males.
Then the issue of the various countries where these people have gone to work includes UK, UA, Qatar, Barbados, among others.
And these are Ghanians who have traveled outside to work within this period under review.
I also want to touch on the issue of discrimination, and apparently all the laws, including the Labor Act and it joint legislations of France on discrimination in Ghana.
Whether you are I Ghanian or not, you all have access to justice.
You have access to all conditions of service that your colleagues in the same establishment are enjoying.
And when you look at the other policies, the National Employment Policy 2015, it also made provision for all people to be treated equally.
And the Labor Act itself and the Constitution.
And when you look at the Children's Act as well at 560, it also finds forced labor and child labor might the same with the Labor Act itself, and we talk about the Affirmative Action Act 2024 Act 1121, which allows gender parity involvement.
And when you look at this particular act, it has been able to segregate how to achieve gender parity in Ghana.
And by 2026, at least we expect 30% of representative of women, I mean in key decision making rules, and by 2028, at least 35% representation, and by 2034, full gender parity targeting 50 50 in Ghana.
And looking at it, everybody have access to education as well and with respect to migrant workers children as well.
They have access to all social intervention and national health insurance scheme, which all children access is free of charge, and also women in labor also access the facility free of charge without paying, which is at a cost of government.
And we also have a LIP W empowerment program, which also protect the household vulnerable households financially.
And then we also have issues of Work Mail Compensation Act, which is a monetary compensation instrument provide for workers who sustained injury out of and in the course of discharging their official duties with their employers.
So it is basically financially not in kind.
And the employers also pay for their medical bills when they sustain injury out of and in the course of working with their employers.
Thank you, Mr.
Honorable chairman.
Then a quick one, Honorable Chair, if I may add naturalization, there was a question about whether the refugees who are in Ghana has given birth in Ger, migrant workers who have given birth in G, whether the children are Ghanian children or they remain there they are foreign.
In fact, apparently within our laws, giving birth a loan is not an automatic citizenship.
There are procedures that want to follow within our Citizenship Act, One, become a Ghanian if one of your parents is a Ghanian and they gave birth to you in Ghana, can you become a Ghanian.
But if your parents are not Ghanian, but you want to be a Ghanian, then you have to go through a process of naturalization.
And if you have come to school doesn't make you a Ghanian.
Even if you can speak our local languages fluently anyhow, it doesn't qualify you a Ghanian.
So there are processes that you have to go through, and then you are there with legal processes before you are classified as a Ghanian.
Thank you.
Any issues that we have left out, please go ahead and talk about them.
So thank you very much, Honorable Minister, Mr.
Chairman.
So I would like to address the issue of the comprehensive statistics on irregular and irregular migrant workers in Ghana.
So Ghana has a significant number of migrant workers with over 400,000 migrant workers, largely from the ICS Army countries.
But however, we do not have MI data on the irregular irregular migrant workers.
This is due to limited inconsistencies in the concepts, definitions, and the methodologies for generating such data.
Although we do not have that breakdown, I mean, in terms of the migrant workers in Ghana, we have largely from our neighbors.
So we have I mean Togo representing about 100,000 of the migrant workers, we have Nigeria representing about 80,000 and we also have As representing about 72,000 of the migrants works we have in Ghana who are drawn from the EquiS I sub region.
However, the Ghana Healthcare Service is also working to harmonize these concepts and definitions to ensure that we have a very representative and comprehensive data on migrant workers in Ghana, in terms of the sectors they are in.
So as the committee noted, we have majority of them in the agriculture sector, whilst we also have others in the services sector.
So for the agriculture sector, we have about 39% of migrant workers within that sector and 20% of migrant workers in the sector.
In terms of the categorization, about half of the migrant workers are self employed without employees.
Whilst we have about 7.2% who are self employed with employees, and also about 33% of them who are employed by the former sector, that is both public and private sectors.
So this is a brief data on regular immigrant workers we have in G.
Thank you.
Great.
So let's deal with corruption, then we come to you or is related.
Okay, please go ahead.
Go ahead.
Press ones hard.
Okay.
The difficulty involving actually categorizing migrant workers as regular or irregular in our context stems from the fact that the OCS protocol allows the free movement of persons to establish and all those things.
So the Ghanian context is also very easy to integrate.
It makes it very difficult to easily classify people as irregular or regular.
That is where we have the difficulty of categorization.
Because we are under the EkowS arrangements, we are bound by the establishment of the EkowS and the rules and regulations that ensures that people can move around anywhere within the EkowS region.
So we have a lot of people coming in and working.
We can't call them irregular.
And so he just talked about 400,000 workers, but that's a low estimate of the number of people who are in Ghana from other countries working.
Yeah, so let's talk about the issues about corruption from the Attorney General.
Thank you very much, Honorable Minister.
The question was on detailed information about disciplinary measures and protection of whistleblower.
And collaboration between state agencies.
Thank you very much.
The Ghana Immigration Service offices are required to adhere to strict professional standards and ethical guidelines that prohibits bribery, abuse of office, and any form of exploitation of migrants.
Allegations of corruption or misconduct by officers are reported through internal disc channels within the service.
The Ghana Immigration Service Code of Conduct outlines the reporting mechanisms, measures, and procedures for seeking redress on issues of misconduct by officers of the GIS of the Ghana Immigration Service.
The code of conduct reinforces the values of respect of the fundamental human rights and freedoms of all persons as enshrined under Chapter five of the 1992 Constitution of the Republic of Ghana.
The Immigration Professional Standards and Ethics Units, which is under the Ghana Immigration Service, conduct investigations into alleged misconduct of officers and proposes the appropriate action to be taken.
When the investigation suggests complicity on the part of an officer, the officer is referred to a disciplinary committee to be tried in accordance with the Immigration Service Regulations 2016 LI 2245.
The Anti Human Smuggling and Trafficking in Persons Unit ensures that its officers follow established investigative procedures, documentation, protocols, and case management systems in the handling of trafficking and migrant smuggling cases.
These procedures are designed to promote transparency, accountability, and professionalism during enforcement operations and investigations.
The section or the units also collaborate with other national stakeholders responsible for combating corruption and protecting human rights in migration governance.
So where an immigration officer is found wanting or is alleged to have committed a serious crime, that person may be reported to the law enforcement agency and will be prosecuted accordingly.
Now, during enforcement operations, screening procedures and victim identification exercises, officers of the section of the unit or the GIS adopt a victim centered approach when interacting with migrants, suspected victims of trafficking, smuggled migrants and migrant workers are informed of their rights and available reporting mechanisms if they experience abuse, exploitation, or corruption by officials.
The section also works in collaboration with organizations such as the International Organization for Migration and relevant civil society partners to ensure that migrants are provided with information on complaint mechanisms and protection services.
These efforts are intended to strengthen trust between migrants and law enforcement authorities and to encourage victims and witnesses to report misconduct of any officer or any person who commits any offense against a migrant worker.
Now, thank you.
In terms of a whistleblower, who complains or who lodges a complaint with any of the designated institution like the audit Service, the Attorney General's Office, Shia are protected under the law.
And we have them detailed provisions to protect them.
You are not supposed to disclose the identity, and immediately the matter is reported to the relevant institution.
And we also refer it to if it's the Attorney general's office, we refer it to the law enforcement agency like Economic and Organized Crime or the Ghana Police Service or the Bureau of National Investigation, they will investigate the matter.
And if there is any there is any truth in whatever complaint has been lodged, and it involves some monetary resources, monetary aspects, where some monies are retrieved.
The whistleblower is compensated and is given 10% of the amount of money which is involved.
So by law, they are protected and in practice too, whistleblowers are protected in Ghana.
Thank you.
Okay.
Mr.
Chairman, so far, this is what we've been able to make out.
But let me get Labor to give the last intervention.
Okay.
Thank you, Honorable.
There was an issue of whether the migrant workers return voluntarily or they are forced.
Apparently, each migrant worker has a time limit to work within the contract frame that he or she was assigned to in the receiving or in the country of origin.
They are not compelled.
The contracts provide when the migrant worker is supposed to return to his country of origin.
In Ghana, for example, all those who live to work in other countries are within two years to work.
After the expiration of their contract, though is subject to renewal, they have to come back before they go and renew their contract.
So they are not compelled, they are not forced.
It is voluntary.
But where the people overstay then the authorities get them and they are not willing.
That is when maybe the authority may apply some form of force to send them back to their own country.
But in Ghana, it is not so.
So in Ghana, those who have even overstayed, they continue to stay there, even get different job from different employers and wait until the time that even they can become even within five to 71 you stay in Ghana, you are even allowed to apply for your citizenship to be a Ghanian.
So in Ghana, we don't have issue of forcing somebody to return to his country simply because his migrant status as a spy.
Thank you for having you.
Yes.
Please go ahead.
My senior colleague mentioned about the voluntary returns for Ghanians who are also outside Ghana.
We have support from development partners like IOM G Isa to help them to even come back voluntarily.
When they come back, they are reintegration packages to help them to settle seamlessly into their community and into their household levels.
So to support them in terms of supporting their livelihood or economically.
They are also able to find jobs and then transfer their skills back into the community.
Thank you, honorable.
I thank Excellency Belpo and his excellency ambassador and the experts for their responses, and we will continue our constructive dialogue.
And you will, of course, have opportunity to further augment your responses tomorrow.
But in the meantime, now I offer the floor to two rapporteurs, Madam Sabrinaga and Mr.
Shan Unwa to commence the second round of comments with regard to the report of the Republic of Ghana.
I don't know which porter will take the floor.
Sabrina, you have the floor.
Thank you.
Thank you, Chair for giving me the floor once again.
I would like to sincerely thank Honorable Minister and the distinguished delegation of Ghana for the comprehensive information provided through this constructive dialogue for the first day, of course.
The committee greatly appreciate the efforts made by the state party to shed light on the misers undertaking to implement the international conversion of the protection of the rights of all migrant worker and members of their families.
I would like to turn now to two other cluster, how I can say, cluster of questions and comments concerning the first one concerned the data collection.
The committee welcomes the effort undertaken by the state party to strengthen migration data collection and improve the availability of information relating to migrant workers and members of their families.
Reliable, comprehensive, and disagrated data are essential, as you know, for development of evidence based migration policies and for assessing the effective implementation of the convention.
However, the committee notes that a number of question raised in the list of issues appear to have been the last one, of course, have been only partially addressed.
In this regard, the committee would appreciate receiving further information on the methodology used for the collection, analysis, and management of migration data.
As well as on the institutional framework supporting these efforts.
In particular, could the delegation explain whether a centralized and integrated national migration database exists and if so, how information information is consolidated from the various institutions involved in migration governance, including embassies and consular missions abroad.
The committee would also welcome clarification on the mechanisms established to ensure coordination and interoperability among the different institutions collecting migration related data and on whether such information is accessible to the public, researchers, civil society organizations, and migrant communities.
Furthermore, could the delegation elaborate on the safeguards in place to ensure the protection, confidentiality, and secure management of migrants personal data in accordance with applicable human rights standards? The committee would also appreciate information on whether estimates are available regarding Ghanian migrant worker working in the informal economy, both within Equis region and beyond and on the methodology used to produce such estimates.
For the second cluster of commands and question, it's concerned the rights of children in the context of migration.
I welcome the efforts undertaken by the state parties to combat child trafficking, child labor, and other forms of exploitation affecting children.
In particular, I note implementation of the National plan of action for elimination of the worst forms of child labor, the Ghana Accelerated action plan against child labor, as well as various child protection programs aimed at preventing exploitation, strengthening community awareness, and improving support services for vulnerable children.
I also note the initiative implemented in cooperation with international organizations, civil societies, and local communities to enhance child protection system and address the root cause of children vulnerability, including poverty, school dropout, and unsafe migration.
Nevertheless, I remain concerned about reports indicating that children continue to be exposed to sexual exploitation, including in the context of travel and tourism.
I know that sexual exploitation remains a significant protection concern, particularly for children living in situations of poverty, social exclusion, labor exploitation, or migration related vulnerability.
Such risk may be further exacerbated by trafficking networks, informal migration channels, and limited access to protection and reporting mechanism.
While acknowledging the progress achieved through implementation of child labor and child protection policies, I would appreciate receiving further information on how this program specifically address the risk faced by children in the context of migration, including child on the move, children left behind by migrant parents and accompanied and separated children and child victims of trafficking and sexual exploitation.
I would also welcome information on the measures taken to prevent and combat the sexual exploitation of children in context of travel and tourism, including awareness raising campaigns, monitoring mechanism, investigation and prosecutions.
Furthermore, could the delegation indicate whether data are collected on case of child sexual exploitation linked to tourism, trafficking or migration, and whether specific protection measures have been adopted in areas particularly exposed to this risk.
In addition, I would appreciate receiving further information on the assistance and remedies available to child victims of trafficking, sexual exploitation and other forms of abuse.
In particular, could the delegation elaborate on the legal aid assistance and child friendly justice mechanism available to ensure that child victims are able to report violation safely, participate in proceedings and obtain effective remedies.
I would welcome information on the compensation rehabilitation and recovery measures available to child victims, including access to psychological support, trauma informed care, medical services, social reintegration programs, and educational support.
Could the delegation indicate whether specialized services are available throughout the country and how access to such services is ensured for children in vulnerable situations, including migrant children, children on the move, and children victims of trafficking and sexual exploitation.
Finally, could the delegation provide information on the resources allocated to victim support programs and explain how child protection services, labor inspectorate, migration authorities, law enforcement agencies, and social welfare institutions coordinate their efforts to ensure a comprehensive, child sensitive, gender responsive and right basic response to children exposed to exploitation, abuse and violence in migration context? I will stop here for my remarks and I submit Chair.
Thank you.
Thank you, Madam Ga.
I now give the floor to Shaul.
Okay.
I will be very brief.
Your Excellencies and distinguished members of the delegation, thank you for all the information you have provided us today.
As a former labor attache, one point that is very important for me personally is the protection of the rights of the diaspora members of your country abroad.
I had been a former labor attaches for many years in different councils in Germany.
So I welcome the steps taken by the Ganian government to protect the Ganian citizens abroad.
Well, the reality is that the risks faced by these citizens in certain countries cannot be easily eliminated.
And that means that you have to take into consideration that especially bilateral agreements and also in the context of the Vienna Conventions.
Well, the protection endeavors of your government should be somehow more for the empowerment of the diaspora members of the empowerment of the diaspora in many countries.
What measures do you take for this goal actually? I think I believe we need a little more detailed information on exactly what is being done in this area.
The second question that I want to raise today is that the measures if there are any measures you have taken to protect the rights of third country nationals deported to Ghana well within the context of an agreement with the United States.
And well, how they can be protected or well, the violation of their human rights are at stake.
I mean, their human rights are at stake and what kinds of steps are taken or do you intend to the number of those persons, this is not a big number, as far as I know, only 60.
Until today, but those third country nationals may be somehow endangered in their own homelands and they are deported from the United States to Ghana and they should be somehow protected.
Well, this is the responsibility of the Ghanian government to protect them actually.
Well, those are the two questions that I want to raise right now and thank you so much.
Thank you, Mr.
Kalib Babaka, you have the floor, sir.
My President.
Thank you, Chair.
I would like to echo the comments of colleagues who spoke before me in welcoming the Delegation of Ghana and thanking them for being here and for participating in this dialogue, which we all hope will be a constructive one.
I had questions, but the Ghaan delegation has answered to some of these questions already.
However, a few questions are still pending an answer.
Regarding the delay in this submission of the report, The delegation explained that The growing number of actors that they needed information from might have been a cause in the delay of the submission.
I would like to know if Ghana has a mechanism, like many countries do now, to gather information and to prepare the reports to be presented to human rights treaty bodies, including ours.
If such a mechanism does not exist, are you contemplating doing so? Because such a mechanism would make it easier to gather information and to draft reports? That was my first question.
My second question is, Ghana has ratified Convention 81 of the ILO on labor inspection.
I would like to know how many labor inspections there have been in Ghana and geographically where have they been distributed? These inspectors, the labor inspectors, is their main priority the implementation of their commission of our convention, and for that reason, do they have a special status, guaranteeing that they are financially independent and operationally independent? In order to ensure that they are impartial.
The third question, well, know the second question.
Ghana ratified Convention 81.
Do you plan ratifying its protocol Protocol 81? That was question number two and number three, Ghana has also ratified two conventions on trade union freedom, 87 on trade union freedom, and 98 on freedom of negotiation.
Do mirate workers living in Ghana have the possibility of creating their own trade union? Can they belong to the trade unions professional groups that exist in Ghana? My fourth question.
Employment is a key topic that is of importance to everyone on the planet.
I heard recently of measures taken by the State of Ghana to facilitate the employment of its fellow nationals.
But given that we are interested in migrant workers, I believe that an employment policy that would draw inspiration of the relevant provisions of international labor law would be useful in ensuring that migrant workers have a place that would take into account their vulnerabilities.
And so this prompts the question, does the state of Ghana plan on ratifying Convention 122 of the ILO? And does it plan on drafting an inclusive policy for migrant workers? They would take into account Convention 122.
Ghana has made great efforts in terms of migration policy.
But I have noticed that the two relevant conventions on migration from the ILO have not been ratified by Ghana, Convention 97 and 143.
Does the state plan on ratifying these two conventions? You did speak about this, but perhaps we could have more information about Ghana has not ratified Convention 155 and its protocol on health and safety at work.
We know that with decentralization of economies throughout the world, Many industries are scattered across the world.
This is true in Ghana as well, which is why safety and health concerns are important.
I would like to know if Ghana plans on ratifying convention 155 on occupational safety and health.
When I say ratification, I don't just mean ratification.
I mean ratification and its implementation through cross cutting policies.
The last question, the ILO adopted two interesting conventions on two key topics domestic work, We know that in the sub region, especially in Western Africa, this is a cross cutting issue.
It is present in every country and it is the source of much exploitation.
Do Ghana plan on ratifying convention on domestic labor of the ILO and to implement it? Just like Convention 190 on harassment in the workplace? Thank you, Chair.
Baba, Saga, can you hold on your question until the next session because time is running out.
I would like to thank you will be the first speaker when we start tomorrow, Mr.
Akshahi.
I want to thank Excellency P and the ambassador and the experts for their responses and we look forward to continue the conversation, constructive dialogue tomorrow at 10:00.
And then you have these questions.
Plus, if you want to expand on whatever the questions previously, you are very welcome.
This afternoon at three committee will continue the consideration of the fourth periodic report of Ecdor.
The meeting is adjourned.