By M.A. Egge
The President of the Republic of Somaliland, His Excellency Abdirahman Mohamed Abdillahi Irro officially opened the 4th National Conference on Employers and Job Creation organized by the Ministry of Labor, Family and Social Affairs.
It was attended by stakeholders and line institutions, both public and private.
The President delivered a very valuable and multifaceted speech on the occasion, discussing the great burden of the challenges that the nation is facing given the prevalent unemployment rate.
He opened the conference immediately after returning from a hectic tour to the western parts of the country where he had gone to initiate various landmark and monumental infrastructural projects.
The President further observed that “even the small number of people who are currently employed have their income not able to cover their needs hence the job security is not guaranteed”.
The Head of Stated noted that the generation of the youth is about 70% and that the problem of unemployment only compounds on vices and threatens public security and safety.
Saying that it not only endangers the lives of young people by encouraging emigration/migration, he pointed out that rampant unemployment promotes drug addictions and indulging in vices.
He underscored, “These issues are a reality that this conference must be part of solving today.”
He stated that his administration is bent on finding the solutions in addressing the unemployment issue.
He mentioned non-skillful education curricula as part of the catalysts to unemployment.
The President said that the education system should incorporate polytechnic skills into the curricula such that students may be armed with skills that are needed in the job market.
He lamented that foreigners are sought after to cover for the discrepancy of the country’s specialized technical skills.
The President of the Republic of Somaliland also spoke about the obligation of the nation and the people to ensure equal employment opportunities for boys and girls in Somaliland, and said:
“We cannot talk about progress if we do not find a solution to the inequality of employment between our boys and girls. Women and men in the Republic of Somaliland are numerically close to each other, and justifiably, the government will implement a system that creates equal employment opportunities for girls and boys. We expect the same from businesses and non-governmental organizations.”
He directed the Ministry of Labor to review the country’s wage system to ensure that there is no wage gap between women and men with the same job and qualifications.
He said, “Government and private institutions, especially businesses, are obliged not to discriminate against people seeking employment based on their specific location and needs, if they can do the job and have equal job opportunities with other citizens, we will pay special attention to this as a government.”