Minister for Health, Honourable Mintah Akandoh, has revealed that the government is engaging countries interested in importing Ghanaian health workers to implement a short-term intensive course to elevate the average health personnel to become experts.

Engaging the media, the Health Minister revealed that the collaboration has become necessary due to high demand for health experts by other international countries in need of Ghanaian health workers.

According to Honourable Mintah Akandoh, the exportation of health workers, what he refers to as the “managed migration” approach, forms part of the two measures being put in place by the Ghanaian government to reduce the number of unemployed health personnel in the country.

He remarked: "Ghana government is going to engage other countries to export health workers. About 13 countries have responded, and we are now agreeing on our MoUs. But there is a challenge; the challenge is that if you look at the requests from the various countries and even our own (African) countries, the request is higher when it comes to specialists than general nurses.”

“We cannot decide to give them all our specialists. What we are doing at the moment is that we are engaging them, looking at how we can bring lots of specialists. Instead of taking you probably about 2 years to become a specialist, we are engaging the institutions to come up with a crash programme, not more than six (6) months. It does not mean that we are going to compromise on the quality.

“It is going to be very intensive. For example, if you were going to do two contact hours a day, you are going to do four or five. We use that approach to solve a particular problem so if we run it for about two to three times and we think the problem has been solved, we return to the former system,” he further explained.

According to the Minister for Health, the country has not less than 70,000 health professionals sitting at home, unemployed. One of the two approaches to reduce the number of unemployed health workers involves the government increasing its recruitment.

"In the 2026 budget, we are looking at the government giving us some clearance to be able to recruit more, and they will spread it across the pharmacists and nurses so that every cadre will be able to get that kind of equitable distribution of recruitment,” Honourable Mintah Akandoh said.

Young Ghanaians will soon have the opportunity to work abroad under structured, fixed-term arrangements following the launch of the Ghana Labour Export Programme.

President John Dramani Mahama announced the pending launch while addressing residents in the Ahafo Region on Saturday, May 31, as part of his Thank You Tour.

The president indicated that his government is in advanced talks with several countries experiencing labour shortages.

“We will soon launch the Ghana Labour Export Programme. There are labour shortages in many countries across the world. We are negotiating with several of those countries to export some of our professionals to work on fixed-term contracts abroad,” President Mahama stated.

Domestic job pressures will ease as skilled Ghanaian professionals are engaged in temporary employment roles overseas in various sectors such as agriculture, healthcare, logistics, and hospitality.

Electricians, welders, mechanics, nurses, chefs, caterers, drivers, warehouse supervisors, and machine operators, are among the workers to benefit from the programme.

“Young qualified people will be selected fairly from all the 16 regions of our country, including Ahafo,” the president also announced, highlighting equal opportunity for all.

Foreign Affairs Minister Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa months ago announced the government of Germany's willingness to sign a labour mobility agreement with Ghana to allow thousands of youth to be employed abroad under a special bilateral agreement.

In a statement on Facebook, the minister noted that the agreement, which is currently under discussion, will guarantee "safe, rewarding and dignified employment."

"We expect actual implementation soon," Mr Ablakwa added while remarking on the government's belief in meaningful and impactful diplomacy.

The Foreign Minister engaged German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul, Mr. Joachim Stamp, the Special Representative of the Federal Government for Migration Agreements, and top officials of the German Interior Ministry on the margins of the UN Peacekeeping Ministerial ongoing in Berlin.

In March this year, the Ministry of Labour, Jobs & Employment, in partnership with the Youth Employment Agency (YEA) and GIZ Ghana, launched the Work Abroad Programme to address youth unemployment by facilitating access to jobs in various sectors beyond Ghana’s borders.

The Work Abroad Programme is structured to equip Ghanaian youth with the essential skills, guidance, and support needed to secure overseas employment. Officials at the event highlighted its potential to empower participants with international exposure, enhancing their professional growth while contributing to national development.

“This initiative is about creating opportunities, building brighter futures, and ensuring that our young people can thrive both locally and internationally,” YEA CEO Malik Basintale stated.

The launch featured engaging discussions on the programme’s implementation strategy, expected benefits, and long-term sustainability. Collaboration with GIZ Ghana is expected to strengthen the initiative by leveraging global networks and expertise in workforce development.

In May, Foreign Affairs Minister Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa announced the government of Germany's willingness to sign a labour mobility agreement with Ghana to allow thousands of youth to be employed abroad under a special bilateral agreement.

In a statement on Facebook, the minister noted that the agreement, which is currently under discussion, will guarantee "safe, rewarding and dignified employment."

"We expect actual implementation soon," Mr Ablakwa added while remarking on the government's belief in meaningful and impactful diplomacy.

The Foreign Minister engaged German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul, Mr. Joachim Stamp, the Special Representative of the Federal Government for Migration Agreements, and top officials of the German Interior Ministry on the margins of the UN Peacekeeping Ministerial ongoing in Berlin.

The Foreign Minister has noted that massive job openings in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) will soon be announced for the Ghanaian youth when both countries finalize the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) negotiations.

There are discussions ongoing for labour export for Ghanaian youth to the UAE and technical support for a new national airline.

In April, Minister for Employment and Labor Relations Dr. Rashid Pelpuo made mention of work ongoing between his outfit and the Foreign Ministry to craft a strategy to export skilled Ghanaian labour to countries requiring workers to curb the rising unemployment.

"Beyond the domestic set, what we can do to tackle unemployment is to look at how we can export Ghanaian labour to places that require our labour force," he said in an interview on Joy FM.

He added: "What I am working on is to get the foreign minister to sign bilateral relations with all the countries needing Ghanaian labour, and I will sign agreements with companies that want to export the labour."