By Sorie Ibrahim Fofanah
Minister of Labour and Employment, Mohamed Rahman Swaray has said that over three hundred Sierra Leoneans are stranded in Niger in bid to go overseas, despite the government’s ‘efforts’ to dissuade illegal migration.
Swaray made this statement at the fourth anniversary of the Institute of Human Resources, Sierra Leone at the Freetown City Hall conference room.
He maintained that they have enacted the Migration Act 2023, and that they have been doing public education with regards to illegal migration, but that “still people don’t want to use the straight path.”
He went on to say they have signed ‘several’ bilateral agreements with countries like Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, among others which he said are safe for migrant workers. The Labour Minister advised people not to ‘risk’ their lives using the Mediterranean Sea to get to Europe.
He called on people to use the government’s migration route, which he added might not be wrong for migrant workers.
Giving updates on his stewardship to Institute of Human Resources (IHP) in Sierra Leone, Swaray highlighted there would be a voluntary service policy, saying that Sierra Leone has not had a volunteering policy since independence to date.
Swaray stated that his ministry would support the implementation of the First National Volunteering Policy.
He noted that the current labour laws in the country are antiquated, but that they are working on reviewing ‘some’ of the said laws. He stressed the need to have new laws that he said would address current and emerging challenges in the labour sector.
He further stated that they have tabled “couple” of laws in Parliament for them to be enacted, highlighting the Employment Act 2023, the Labour Migration Law, Work Permit Act, the Operational Health and Safety Act, Workers Compensation, among others.
As one of their functions at the IHP, they check the activities of the Ministry of Labour such as employment, Edleen Elba, an executive member of IHP in Sierra Leone noted.
Speaking on the importance of the IHP, Elba said ‘’ we need more people to join the Institute of Human Resources, Sierra Leone,’’ she added. Collectively, she continued that they need to have a seat at the table to be able to discuss employment issues.
On their membership, the executive member stated that they are ‘currently’ thirty in number, which she stated is a ‘very’ small number and encouraged ‘more’ people to join them.
She went on to say their membership is not limited to ‘only’ people having Human Resources degrees or diplomas, noting that business people are “encouraged” to join them.
In her statement, the Vice President, Institute of Peoples Management in Zimbabwe, Monica Tembo called on Human Resource practitioners in Sierra Leone to register with the IHP in Sierra Leone, which she added would serve as a regulatory body for HR professionals in Sierra Leone.
Copyright © 2024 Politico (04/03/24)
