Joe Ghartey (middle) flanked by Iain Walker (left) and Adam Afriyie
Railway workers in the country have commended the current government for introducing various initiatives to revive the railway sector.
“We, the workers of the Ghana Railway Company Limited (GRCL), see the latest developments in the sector as our last chance and therefore we will do all in our power to ensure the revival of the railway sector,” they indicated.
According to the railway workers, in the last few months, hope has been restored to workers, and attributed it to the commitment of government and enthusiasm of the Minister for Railway Development, Joe Ghartey.
“The efforts so far exhibited by the Railway Minister to get the sector back on track are highly commendable, and it is our prayer that he will not lose sight of the plight of the Railway workers,” they added.
The General Secretary of the Ghana Railway Workers Union, Godwill Ntarmah, who revealed this, indicated that workers over the years had faced serious challenges due to inadequate salaries and investment, among others.
“However, the last few months have witnessed some form of hope being restored to the railway sector,” he pointed out.
He disclosed this while speaking at a mini-durbar organized by workers of railways in honour of the British High Commissioner to Ghana Iain Walker who, together with Joe Ghartey and Ghanaian-born British Member of Parliament (MP), Adam Afriyie, visited the workers at Sekondi on Friday.
He called on the president to continue to give all the necessary support to the Railway Minister to help him to actualize all his plans for the sector.
Minister
The Minister for Railways Development, Joe Ghartey, reiterated that railway development would transform Ghana’s economy since it would improve business activities in other sectors of the country’s economy.
“We are going to transform this sector. The railway will form the backbone of Ghana’s economic transformation,” he added.
He pointed out that the current Akufo-Addo administration took the best decision to create the Ministry of Railway Development.
The Minister assured the workers that various measures were being put in place to ensure the improvement of the living standards of railway workers.
He also revealed that some initiatives were currently ongoing to help revive the Ghana Railway Company to operate effectively and employ more workers.
The Minister also announced government’s intention to extend the rail lines from Kojokrom to Tarkwa and Paga to help strengthen Ghana’s trade relations with the neighbouring countries.
He emphasized that the government was poised to inject some capital into the railway sector to ensure accelerated development.
British High Commissioner
The British High Commissioner to Ghana, Iain Walker, noted that he was in Ghana not just to preach the British message but to ensure that where Ghana needed investments, whether in the railway sector, exploitation of mineral resources or education, Britain and its businesses would readily assist.
“Ghana is not only rich in terms of mineral resources, oil and gas, but also in terms of its people. You have an educated workforce and Britain is ready to assist the country to achieve its aim of becoming an economy beyond aid,” he added.
From Emmanuel Opoku, Sekondi