GIS IMPROVES CAPACITY (PAGE 19, MAY 15, 2010)

A PROJECT to improve the capacity of the Ghana Immigration Service (GIS) to deal with the problem of migration in the country has been launched in Accra.
Dubbed: " Improve migration management by strengthening the Ghana Immigration Service (GIS)", it is a collaborative effort between the GIS and the Danish Government.
The project, which is solely sponsored by the Danish Government, is to help build the capacity of the GIS in carrying out its mandate as the official government agency directly in charge of migration.
It is to also support strategic planning at the GIS and its capacity to lead harmonisation and alignment in the area of migration.
The Director of Immigration, Ms Elizabeth Adjei, said it was important to recognise that migration had become a development issue and as the operational arm of the management of migration, it was a privilege for the service to manage the country's entry and exit data base through the project.
She said GIS had an important role to play at the policy making level by contributing immensely to the migration discourse in the country.
She noted that the country's political stability and emerging oil industry would change the dynamics of migration to and from the country, and that the GIS required a robust and calculated response to deal with the implications of the country’s new development strategy and underpinnings.
Ms Adjei said the project would enhance the GIS’s organisational capacity of migration management with focus on procedure and the implementation of strategic plan of establishing a professional and sufficient service delivery based on policy, law and integrity.
She said above all, the programme would be centred around enhancing and deepening the knowledge and skills on migration through the GIS Training School.
Giving an overview of the project, the Project Manager, Mrs Adi Baaba Asare, said the project would provide training (both locally and overseas) for the GIS staff to build their capacity in migration management and also sensitise officers to issues such as anti corruption, gender mainstreaming, environmental issues and refugee management.
She said the programme would also be included in the GIS training curricula to ensure the provision of not just the lecture-based model currently in practice but to include a more participatory approach.
She noted that the initiative would enable the GIS to effectively manage migration issues to address the emerging challenges in migration and to offer professional services that met international standards.
Launching the project, the Deputy Minister for Interior, Mr Kwesi Apea-Kubi, said although the GIS was relatively young in the ministry, it was the fastest growing in the sector.
He said inclusion of the project in the GIS training academy at Assin Fosu was laudable since it was the only training school of the service.
He, therefore, called on all GIS staff to take advantage of the project to enhance their knowledge in the area of migration.