Technical skills programme for oil industry on drawing board

THE Council for Technical and Vocational Education and Training (COTVET) is collaborating with the Ministry of Energy to develop an engineering technical skills programme for the oil sector.
The training programme is expected to be implemented in technical schools and polytechnics, as well as in the informal engineering sector, particularly in the Western Region, where oil-related industries are located.
The Executive Director of COTVET, Mr Dan Baffour-Awuah, disclosed this at the graduation ceremony of entrepreneurship skills trainees at the Vocational Training for Females (VTF) in Accra.
In all, 40 trainees graduated in entrepreneurial skills training, while 76 others received working equipment such as hair dryers, sewing machines and overlock machines. Certificates were presented to the trainees.
Mr Baffour-Awuah said the council was taking steps to adopt a strategy towards achieving sustainable development of technical engineering skills for the oil sector, which would form the basis for the development of technical skills to support the engineering sector.
He stated that COTVET had discussed the potential skills needs, skills gap, modalities for the training and the mapping out for the institutions in terms of resources and equipment to ensure the smooth running of the programme.
He noted that the programme was timely as beneficiaries would take advantage of the emergence of the skills development fund to access funding to support their activities.
In a speech read on her behalf, the Minister of Women and Children’s Affair, Ms Akua Sena Dansua, said her ministry’s major goal was to enhance employment opportunities and the social status of females for sustainable livelihoods.
“Socio-economic empowerment of women is being vigorously pursued by MOWAC because of our conviction that if a woman is educated and gainfully employed, her self-esteem and confidence are boosted,” she said.
Ms Dansua said that would enable women to function effectively and also participate in decision-making at all levels.
She commended the VTF for facilitating vocational training for women over the years and also taking the necessary steps to support trainees with equipment to begin their businesses.
The acting Director of the VTF, Ms Linda Agyei, said the institution started 17 years ago to enhance employment, social and the political status of women for a sustainable livelihood.
She advised the trainees to use the equipment presented to them for the intended purpose.