A coalition of unemployed tertiary graduates with disabilities has given the government a one-month ultimatum to present a clear and workable employment plan or face nationwide protests.

In a statement issued, the Coalition of Unemployed Tertiary Graduates with Disabilities said its members were “deeply disappointed, frustrated and angry” over what it described as years of neglect by the state.

In the statement, the group said hundreds of qualified graduates with disabilities had remained unemployed for more than six years, despite completing tertiary education at great personal and financial cost.

“For over six years now, hundreds of us qualified, skilled, and certified by various tertiary institutions across the country have been left to languish in poverty at home,” the statement said.

“We have fulfilled our part of the social contract by acquiring higher education, often at great personal and financial sacrifices, yet the State has turned its back on us.”

The group said the situation amounted to a violation of their fundamental human rights and dignity. Citing data from the 2021 Population and Housing Census and recent labour figures, the coalition noted that persons with disabilities make up about eight per cent of Ghana’s population, representing more than 2.1 million people.

According to the group, while the national unemployment rate stands at about 13 per cent, unemployment among persons with disabilities in the formal sector is almost double that figure.

It added that only around 27 per cent of persons with disabilities of working age are employed, compared to more than 56 per cent of people without disabilities.

“The vast majority of PWDs are pushed into the informal sector or forced into street begging, despite holding degrees in Education, Law, Administration, and Information Technology,” the statement said.

The coalition reminded the government of its obligations under international and local laws, including the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities and the Persons with Disability Act, 2006 (Act 715).

It also referred to International Labour Organization guidelines, which encourage countries to adopt employment quota systems for persons with disabilities.

The group pointed to recent assurances by President John Dramani Mahama, who announced plans to introduce a five per cent employment quota for persons with disabilities in both public and private sector recruitment.

“We are not asking for charity; we are demanding our right to work. We have been educated for the shelf for too long,” the coalition said.

Among its key demands, the group called for an immediate roadmap to recruit the backlog of unemployed graduates with disabilities into the public sector, full enforcement of employment quotas across all government agencies, and incentives for private companies that employ persons with disabilities.

It also demanded an end to recruitment practices that, in its words, favour able-bodied applicants over qualified persons with disabilities.

The coalition warned that failure by the government to respond within one month would lead to mass protests across the country.

“Failure to act will leave us with no choice but to hit the streets in our numbers. We will mobilise our members from all sixteen regions, with our wheelchairs, our white canes, and our crutches, to occupy the seats of power until our voices are heard,” the statement said.

Convener of the group, Gilbert Boateng Agyare, said the challenges faced by persons with disabilities were not beyond the capacity of government to resolve.

“We are convinced that this challenge is not insurmountable if the political will is there,” he said, adding that repeated efforts to engage relevant ministries in Accra had produced no results.

The coalition appealed to the media and the general public to support its call, saying inclusive employment policies were essential for national development.

“As a country that prides itself as a beacon of democracy in Africa, our attitude towards persons with disabilities must change. Africa has agreed. Africa has signed. Now Ghana must implement,” the statement said.