Superintendent Haruna Alhasan, Head of the Bono, Bono East and Brong Ahafo Regional Migration Information Centre (MIC) of the Ghana Immigration Service, said this on Tuesday at a press briefing held in Sunyani.

He said the irregular migration challenge is endemic in the three regions adding that during the Libyan uprising out of the 18,512 number of returnees in the country, 9,617 were from the Bono, Bono East and the Ahafo regions.

The 2017 figures shows  that a total of  1,562 out of a total  4,092 migrant  returnees and 284 out of  a total  number of 735 returnees in 2018 in the country were from the three regions.

Supt. Alhassan  said the  MIC in Sunyani  is  targeting  the Senior  High Schools  (SHS) in the three regions  to sensitize  them  on migration related issues to help curb the challenge in the region.

He said due to the unemployment situation many students  after the completion of their studies  would start searching for jobs and resort to travelling out of the country to seek for greener pastures often through irregular means like going through the desert to Europe.

The students need to be kept abreast and be prepared physiologically to face the realities of the future before they fall into the hands of human smugglers, recruiters, travel agents to exploit them or suffer migrant fatalities.

He urged the media to join hands with the Sunyani Youth Development Association, and Initiative Black and White Ghana/Germany to sensitize the public on the dangers associated with irregular migration.

Mr Atta Akoto, Senior President of Sunyani Youth Development Association, called on government to create an enabling environment and sustainable jobs for the youth to help reduce the irregular migration concern.