Government says it has provided free apprenticeship training to over 17,527 Ghanaians
Government through the Ministry of Education and the Commission for Technical and Vocational Education and Training (CTVET) has since 2017 provided free training to over 17,527 apprentices and master craft persons across the country.
The Director-General of the Commission for TVET, Dr. Fred Kyei Asamoah, who announced this, said, the move was part of the government’s support to the youth to be empowered to contribute towards the development of the nation’s economy.
He explained that the support to the youth was also part of the steps to transform TVET in Ghana and part of the government’s transformational agenda aimed at formalizing the informal sector and providing them with world-class skills to make them globally competitive.
Crucial role
Dr Asamoah announced this at a press briefing in Accra on Friday.
The press briefing was aimed at bringing to the attention of the nation some of the achievements of the government in the TVET sector and developments in the sector which played a very crucial role in the nation’s development.
He was emphatic that, given the needed support and acceptance, the TVET sector stood the chance of turning around the nation’s economy within the shortest possible time.
Dr. Asamoah was particularly excited because out of the 17,527 beneficiaries of the training, 73 per cent of them were women.
This, he described as a huge success for the project since it had the potential of increasing the income levels of females, considered a vulnerable group in our society.
The Project is a government of Ghana initiative being implemented by the Commission for Technical and Vocational Education and Training (CTVET), with funding from the German Development Bank (KFW) and Ghana Government to improve the skills, competitiveness and productivity of the Ghanaian informal business sector.
Project objectives
The Project Objectives are; improve access to TVET; strengthen TVET stakeholders; and establish a consistent incentive system for training providers.
The trade areas targeted by the project so far are automotive, cosmetology, garment making, electronics, welding, plumbing, electrical installation, block laying & tiling, furniture making, and catering and hospitality.
He also stated that additional 50,000 learners would be given free apprenticeship training by the end of 2021 through the Job and Skills and the Ghana TVET voucher Project.
Interaction with beneficiaries
In an interaction with some of the beneficiaries across the country, they indicated that they got to hear about the project through their respective trade associations and they applied to be part of it.
The beneficiaries conveyed their gratefulness to the government for initiating the training and prayed the government to extend the project to cover all apprentices and master craft persons in the country since “this was the surest way to provide our artisans with relevant skills for the world of work.”
Source: GNA