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The Minority Leader in Parliament Hon Haruna Iddrisu has described as laudable the Finance Ministry’s initiative to establish a national unemployment insurance scheme but showed concern on how it will be achieved without data on the country unemployment rate.

Finance Minister, Ken Ofori-Atta during the Mid-year Budget review announced that the scheme would be targeted at those who have lost their jobs as a result of the coronavirus pandemic.

The scheme aims to provide temporary income support to workers who have been laid off since the virus first hit the country and will also aim to provide training for jobs in new fields of work. 

But the Minority Leader explained on the Joy FM's Super Morning Show that, it will take statistics to differentiate between those who were unemployed prior to the pandemic and those who were affected by the pandemic.

He however advised that the Finance Ministry instead focuses on providing packages for groups of affected industries.

“Those young men and women who work in hotels, don’t have a life today. Those who were working in bars and restaurants don’t have a life today. So we should have been announcing a package just like you did salary for frontline workers,” he said.

The former Employment Minister suggested to the Finance Ministry to rather get details of the affected groups from their respective employers in the hospitality sector as it is the surest alternative to establish an insurance cover scheme based on unreliable statistics.

“If your company was paying you ¢600 and because of Covid-19, the government will give you ¢300 or ¢200, as insurance cover, then I will hail the Ministry”, he stated.