THE AFRICAN COURIER. Reporting Africa and its Diaspora! The African Courier is an international magazine published in Germany to report on Africa and the Diaspora African experience. The first issue of the bimonthly magazine appeared on the newsstands on 15 February 1998. The African Courier is a communication forum for European-African political, economic and cultural exchanges, and a voice for Africa in Europe.
The Government of Ghana has announced that some 500 young Ghanaians have been left stranded in Dubai.
The 500 were sent to the largest and most populous city in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) by fake recruitment agencies to take up non-existing jobs.
Information Minister Mustapha Hamid however said government is collaborating with authorities in the UAE to repatriate them.
The Minister further indicated that government is working closely with the security agencies to arrest the owners of the fake recruitment agencies that are exploiting desperate job seekers.
“As we speak 500 young Ghanaians have been left stranded in Dubai and do not know what to do. The security agencies are tracking down these recruitment agencies as well as travel and tour companies who are doing this to these young people. These agencies manage to secure only tourism visas for these young people which expire after three months. They charge them between 8,000 and 15,000 cedis (1,453 – 2,725 euros) to secure them visas.”
Hamid also reiterated that the ban on the export of labour to the UAE is still in force, adding that government will do all it can to enforce the ban.
“Let me emphasize that the ban on the exportation of labour to the Gulf is still in force and the security agencies will not hesitate to apply it..”
There have been several reported cases of abuse and maltreatment of Ghanaians who usually take up jobs as maids and nannies not only in the UAE, but other countries such as Saudi Arabia and Libya.
Over 800 Ghanaians in Saudi Arabia return home
In 2017, about 800 Ghanaian migrants illegally living in Saudi Arabia turned themselves in at Ghana’s mission there to be voluntarily deported.
This followed a three-month amnesty granted illegal residents by the Saudi government to leave or be sanctioned.
Reversing irregular migration
President Nana Akufo-Addo has vowed to reverse the trend of irregular migration by Ghanaians, by building a sound economy with opportunities for all.
In an address at Cambridge University in the United Kingdom, the President stated that it was inappropriate for any Ghanaian to go through the life threatening ordeal of an irregular immigrant.
Sammi Wiafe/citifmonline.com
