A policy think tank, Solidaire Ghana (SG), aimed at fighting corruption and abuse of rights of the citizenry, was launched in Accra, yesterday.
It was also targeted at helping shape policy formulation and advocate good governance.
Launching the group, Professor Emmanuel Bobobee, fellow of SG, said the anti-corruption group would work in partnership with likeminded organisations to draw the attention of Ghanaians on the state of affairs of the country.
He said: “It is our belief that with the approach of SG, Ghana stands to benefit immensely since this will make all of us come together towards a fairer, equitable and sustainable development.”
According to the fellow, who is also a professor at the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST), Kumasi, COVID-19 had exposed deep-seated inequalities and significant gaps in social protection coverage.
He said that the pandemic had also provoked unparalleled social protection policy response that provided urgent support to many, yet many challenges remained.
Prof. Bobobee stated that trade unions were encouraged by the International Labour Organisation (ILO) to engage governments and employers on the need to provide social protection to workers, and those who were laid off as a result of COVID-19.
He mentioned that the ILO was demanding a universal social protection that would cover everyone living below acceptable standards of living.
Prof. Bobobee asked all governments to explore ways of providing social protection, saying “we in SG believe that with consented political will, we can make social protection a reality.”
He said “There is no excuse for government to use the lack of money as an excuse to avoid discussions on the nature of social protection, which is badly needed by the people. Social protection is a human right and the need for it to be rolled out by our government is more critical now than before.”
Dr Grace Ayensu Dankwa, a member of SG, assured that the think tank would formulate policy and present it to government.
She said SG would be the mouth-piece of Ghanaians and would stand up for every member of the public, especially the most vulnerable.
“We are ready to take up issues pertinent to Ghanaians and Africans at large in our quest to contribute towards the development of the country,” she said.
BY RAISSA SAMBOU
