Lead campaign for diversification of ECOWAS economy, FG tells OTUWA

The Federal Government on Wednesday in Abuja urged the Organisation of Trade Union of West Africa (OTUWA) to lead the campaign for the diversification of the economy of the ECOWAS sub-region. The Minister of Labour and Employment, Dr Chris Ngige, made the call when he declared open a three-day workshop of OTUWA. Ngige said the diversification of the economy of the ECOWAS sub-region was imperative because of the adverse effects of the global economic downturn. He said the mono-economic bases of West African countries were largely responsible for their current economic woes.
Ngige called on the union to help the governments in the region develop the requisite skills for the full maximization of the utility of their cash crops. He said this would enhance local processing of the raw forms into finished products. He urged the workshop to be the starting point of this line of thought by getting the people to move from the area of white collar jobs to blue collar jobs in agriculture and mining. Ngige urged OTUWA to be “the catalysts in entrenching decent work environment in line with the ILO Convention which all are signatory to.”