Employment-Intensive Investment

Technical assistance for capacity-building support to the Ghana Social Opportunities project (GSOP)

The Ghana Social Opportunities Project (GSOP) funded by the International Development Agency (IDA), is located in the social protection sector with the aim to improve targeting in social protection spending; increase access to cash transfers nationwide; expand employment and cash-earning opportunities for the rural poor during the agricultural off-season; and improve economic and social infrastructure.

The International Labour Organisation (ILO) was asked to provide assistance to the project through the formulation of a labour intensive works policy and through capacity building of project stakeholders involved in the LIPW Component. A partnership agreement was signed between GoG and ILO in 1st April 2011. ILO’s TA activities commenced in September 2011, 12 months after commencement of the GSOP.

The main aim of the Capacity Building (CB) component of GSOP is to create capacity at the national and local levels and implement the project in forty-nine (49) selected districts, thereby strengthening the Government’s decentralization programme to enable the strategy to be scaled-up nationwide. This was to be achieved through the following objectives: Strengthening Koforidua Training Centre’s (KTC) capacity to cater for the demand for training within the Project (GSOP); and Formulating a National Policy for Labour- Intensive Public Works (LIPW).