In December 2010, Ghana joined the league of oil-producers, determined to make oil a blessing and not a curse. Christiane Badgley visits Takoradi, a.k.a. Oil City to see how things are going so far.
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Published June 20, 2011
Ghanaians assumed new employment opportunities would arise after oil was discovered off shore several years ago, but thousands are still waiting for jobs to materialize.
A local company recently held a graduation ceremony for 913 people trained in welding, pipefitting, electrical work and specialized construction. The graduates were participants in a new program intended to create a qualified labor pool for Ghana’s new oil industry. But officials say only 1,000 jobs will be created by 2020 and some of those jobs may not be given to Ghanaians.
The Ghana Oil and Gas Service Providers Association estimates that the development of a robust downstream sector can create up to 100,000 jobs. But this won’t happen without aggressive policy and action from the government.
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Christiane Badgley's article about Ghana's oil industry, originally published by iWatch, has been highlighted by various news and advocacy organizations.
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Christiane Badgley is an independent producer and editor of social issue documentary films. She began her career in the San Francisco Bay Area where she was a frequent collaborator of acclaimed...
