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VVU News |
| The Department of Business Administration Organises Corporate Day | |||||
The corporate day as indicated by Dr. (Mrs.) Josephine Ganu, Head of the Businesss Administration Department was to ; Re - emphasize or proclaim the impact of business education on our socioeconomic development. Discuss how public policies have impacted the business graduate/student. Examine whether the business Department's curriculum meets the demands/needs of corporate Ghana. To evaluate the performance of the Business Administration Department for the past years. The programme was made of two lecture sessions and a time with alumni. The chairman for the first session Mr. Kofi Asamoah, the Secretary General of the Trade Union Congress (TUC) recounted the challenges of the trade union as job insecurity, income insecurity, pension and social protection in the form of medicare among others. He intimated that employment creation is the single most challenging factor facing the country. He further asserted that about 230,000 people enter the job market every year but with public sector employment dwindling, the fortunes of the TUC is becoming bleak. Speaking on the topic "The Two Year Net Freeze in the Public Sector Employment: Prospects and Challenges for the Business Student", Mr. William Baah Boateng lecturer/labour economist, Department of Economics, University of Ghana, Legon affirmed that the concern of most if not every tertiary student, particularly those about to join the already choked labour market is that the Ghanaian labour market is characterised by high incidence of joblessness, hidden unemployment and underemployment In spite of the apparent low unemployment rate the reality is that it is not easy to secure jobs, particularly seeking an employer for jobs over the years, there has been a shift in the role of the public sector as employer to facilitator. The private formal sector considered as the engine of growth does not have the required lubricants to power the engine due to high cost of credit, unhealthy competition from cheap imports and many structural bottlenecks which continue to hamper private sector growth. Consequently, many people in the working age group who find unemployment unbearable seek refuge in the informal economy termed as a "dumping ground" of waste from the formal sector. He mentioned that it is against this background that the two-year net employment freeze in the public sector becomes a concern to the youth in general and students in particular. "Net hiring freeze in public sector" according to Mr William Baah - Boateng refers to public sector recruitment that is meant only to replace exiting public service employees. It also means that the number of public sector workers which currently stands at about 600,000 should not be exceeded within the time frame. This according to him does not include automatic absorption of trainees in education and health. This he noted to be part of the IMF recommendation to government as a tool of reducing public sector wage bill; and ultimately secure a $300 million from IDA and the World Bank in support of the 2009 Budget. The loan agreement also enjoins government to complete an employment audit and eliminate "ghost" workers from government pay roll. He further intimated that with a budget deficit of 14.9% it is not out of place to look for ways to cut wasteful expenditure without hurting growth. Cutting down public sector wage bill may be an option, but may not necessarily be achieved by suspending fresh recruitment. There seems to be a dichotomy between the seemingly large public sector wage bill and low public sector wage. The cause of large public sector wage bill may not necessarily be the "true" size of the sector but rather large amount of "wastes" which require better options rather than suspending fresh recruitment. The employment challenge becomes more intense in the wake of difficulty faced by private sector including the informal sector. He emphasised that the freezing of public sector hiring ahead of the needed triggers to boost private sector growth for the creation of much needed jobs is not a viable option in as much as macroeconomic stability is good for the growth of the private sector, it cannot be pursued at the expense of employment. Assuaging the fate of the business student he stated Clearly that securing employment in the public sector besides education and health at least over the next year or two may be a challenging episode. He identified that the options available to new graduates entering the labour market as the private formal sector and the informal sector or in the worse case scenario is for them to become unemployed. With the last option not obviously palatable or easy to swallow and for that matter not an option to consider. He further intimated that given the slow growth or stagnated private formal sector, self-employment is the way out and within the constraints, young graduates must be innovative by developing the entrepreneurial spirit/skills in them to improve their livelihood. Through that, the young graduate will create jobs for him/herself and others. In addition young graduates should not be too selective in their choice of "desirable" jobs. Some jobs could be used as stepping stone for better times in future. The second session of the programme was chaired by Dr. D. R. Asafo the Vice President for General Administration, Valley View University. Speaking on the topic "The Role of Business Education in Contemporary Socio - Economic Development of Ghana", Professor Kwame Ameyaw Domfeh a senior lecturer at the University of Ghana Business School indicated that Socio-Economic Development involves qualitative changes in the social and economic well-being of a people and that it is measured with indicators such as GDP, life expectancy, literacy and levels of employment. Changes in less tangible factors are also considered, such as personal dignity, freedom of association, personal safety and freedom from fear of physical harm, and the extent of participation in civil society. To situate the discussion in a well defined context Professor Domfeh identified Ghana's development agenda as being spurred by the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), Ghana Poverty Reduction Strategy Papers (GPRSP), Sector-Specific Policy documents, Government,s Annual Budget and Financial Statements. These documents he indicated provide a focus and agenda for the socio - economic development of the country. He stressed that businesses can become responsible stewards of the environment and natural resources while they also satisfy the shareholders. He indicated that businesses are at the core of the environmental debate and are central both to the problem and to the solution. Business Schools, therefore, have the responsibility to create environmental awareness among their students. To Strengthen Small Businesses what large and medium-sized businesses cannot do by themselves is generating enough jobs to absorb current levels of unemployment and, additionally, the job demand from new generations. That large and medium-sized enterprise cannot by themselves resolve the challenges development poses, in terms of the generation of incomes and jobs. Small and micro businesses need to be called on to continue covering a critical space in the process of generating wealth and distributing it more effectively. And, for this to happen, knowledge of modern business engineering is needed, together with effective factors that the majority of the poor could not access by themselves, but could access with help from old and new production organizers aided by our Business Schools. Addressing these tremendous challenges means initiating a business revolution that improves the performance and incomes of small and micro businesses. There is no source better-suited to partake in and, perhaps, to lead this business revolution than the Business Schools. In a global marketplace where people are often the key to competitive differentiation, the implications for training are clear. Management schools should actively reinforce and facilitate learning processes that relate to industry and the market. Professor Domfeh noted that; Business schools are obligated to carry out research for advancing operational and organisational efficiency and effectiveness. They should integrate research into their strategic plans in order to contribute to the achievement of national goals. As part of their contribution to national development, they should provide an active forum for testing new ideas for commercialization. They should create a forum for the government, researchers, and business entities to discuss trends and strategies in the business sector, especially in managing micro and macro economic issues. Business schools should understand both the local and global market situations and needs and help with better targeted products and services. They can assist in identifying the real market needs, which will assist local industries to run not only effectively, but also efficiently. He asserted that Ghana has an agenda for its socio-economic development: an agenda that fits into the MDGs. Business Schools have a role to play in the socio-economic development of Ghana. This includes: Training ethically responsibility graduates who appreciate the concept of sustainable development; Strengthening small businesses to absorb the unemployed; Initiating a business revolution that improves the performance and incomes of small and micro businesses; Reinforcing and initiating learning processes that relate to industry and the market; Integrating research into their strategic plans in order to contribute to the achievement of national goals; Creating forum for government, researchers, and business entities to discuss trends and strategies in the business sector; and Finally, understanding both local and global market situations and needs and help with better targeted products and services. The third and final session was a time with alumni and it was chaired by Pastor Peter Boateng a lecturer at the Department of Business Administration, Valley View University. The topic for the session was "Sharing Experiences: Challenges and Prospects after School as Alumni of Valley View University". Two alumni Mr. Michael Baah and Mr. Kwabena Huffman recounted their experiences whiles they were students at Valley View University and how that has propelled them to their present state as far as the working world is concerned and urged students to get involved in the activities of the school because Valley View university has a distinct culture as regards the institutions of higher learning. They urged the students to take up jobs whiles in school even if they don't receive any salary or allowance. The essence is for them to get the required practical working experience to further enrich their curriculum vitae. The programme ended with an interaction between students, faculty, staff and resource persons as well as invited guest. Source: Department of Business Administration |
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