West Africa Transport Academy inaugurated to enhance transport sector

A partnership between Scania West Africa Limited, Deutsche Gesellschaft Fur Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ), and Government Technical Training Centre (GTTC), has led to the establishment of the West Africa Transport Academy in Tema.

The Academy which was inaugurated this week, will offer a unique opportunity for mechanics and heavy duty commercial vehicle drivers to be professionally trained.

Speaking at the inauguration, the Minister for Transport, Hon. Kwaku Ofori Asiamah said Ghana stands to benefit as the technical manpower requirements for the heavy duty automobile sector would be upgraded to meet new and emerging needs.”

He said rising road traffic crashes in the country have been attributed to human error and mechanical failures.

“As drivers’ behavior play an important role, adequate refresher training programmes for drivers is necessary to ensure that driving skills are improved and also ensure that mechanics that service our cars are highly qualified to do so,” he added.

The academy would develop training curriculum in line with the sector requirements, he also said.

This will include training in Safe Driving, Specilaised Transports, maintenance and Transport Management.

The Chief Executive Officer (CEO), and President of Scania, Mr Henrik Henriksson in his speech said, “We want to raise the image and reputation of drivers. For me personally, a bus driver is just as respected as the captain of an airplane.  And I would like to call them bus captains because they are responsible for the lives of those in the vehicle.”

He added that the drivers will be professionally trained to drive safely, economically and they would be able to look after vehicles in a professional way.

Explaining why Ghana was selected for this initiative in West Africa, he said Ghana is seen as the hub of West Africa coupled with its stability and strong industry.

By Pamela Ofori-Boteng