Category: Literacy

Design and Technology Institute (DTI) says it is committed to preparing young people for entrepreneurship, design innovation, and precision welding and fabrication careers. 

Miss Constance Swaniker, the Founder and President of DTI, said the institute would be expanding the training offers to include Agriculture and Agri-business and would scale up its unique Precision Quality training to Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs), artisans, and master crafts persons.

Madam Swaniker was speaking at the DTI Stakeholder Meeting on the theme: ‘Redefining Academia and Industry Collaboration as a Driver in Building Robust TVET System.’

She said DTI was relocating from its current one-acre campus to Berekuso opposite Ashesi University.

The Founder said the expansion had been made possible by a 3 million euro funding from the African Union Development Agency, Skills Initiative for Africa, and the German Bank KfW.

She said the DTI model required consideration as Ghana and Africa grapple with strategies to ensure full a
nd sustainable employment for the teeming youth.

‘The DTI since its inception conceived and implemented the Community Liaison Officers initiative which allows the Institute to partner with one or more members of the community to enable them to reach marginalized youth with the DTI opportunities,’ she added. 

She said in less than five years of full operation, DTI had demonstrated the powerful impact of focused holistic training towards skilling young people and making them ready for the world of work.

Miss Swaniker said already, all learners in the first two years of operation of DTI were already in full-time employment or were continuing their studies and assessments from multiple agencies.

She said in 2020, DTI, in collaboration with the Mastercard Foundation, embarked on a 3-year project to create 40,000 job opportunities for young people with a focus on females and the vulnerable, a target which had been achieved according to assessments by an independent Labour Economist at the University of Ghana.

These job opportunities were created by giving formal training to young people in the dual TVET-cum-production school at DTI, training SMEs and master-craftspersons.

It also trained academic and business scale advisors and effected systems change through collaboration with state actors to shape national policy in precision quality and standardisation.

‘DTI believes that the traditional TVET approaches to training are overly theoretical and do not equip young people for workplace realities,’ she said.

She said their unique ‘production school’ programmes provide learners with regular and adequate hands-on, on-the-job training as part of the curriculum.

Miss Swaniker said students, regardless of their field of study, learn by doing and could engage in real-world projects.

She said DTI was founded in 2016 on the Accents and Arts (A and A) factory floor to provide the youth with work-readiness skills and to bridge the gap between industry and academia.

This occurred because of the huge and unsustainable de
mand on A and A to provide internship opportunities for young people, most of whom went on to get well-paid jobs after the training.

Dr Christopher Mensah, Pro-Vice Chancellor of Ho Technical University, said with close collaboration with the University and industry the graduates would be trained and ready for the world of work.

He said Industries were not seriously committed to investing in the training of students to feed their establishments.

He said as a University, they include Precision Quality into their curriculum to equip all students and prepare them for the future.

Source: Ghana News Agency

The Upper East Regional Early Childhood Development Committee has called for strategic investment in early childhood education to ensure proper growth and development of children to accelerate the attainment of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

The Committee said infrastructure and interventions to promote early childhood education and development in many rural communities in the region were lacking and urged the Government and parents to invest in children.

It identified the lack of schools in some communities, inadequate classrooms, furniture, water and sanitation facilities, teachers, and security leading to theft as some of the challenges facing childhood development there.

The Committee, made up of stakeholders from the Departments of Gender, Children and Social Protection, Ghana Education Service, Ghana Health Service and traditional leaders among others identified these at the 2024 first quarter review meeting of the Committee in Bolgatanga.

It was organised by the Department of Children wi
th funding support from the Children Believe, a Non- Governmental Organisation.

Mrs Georgina Aberese-Ako, the Acting Regional Director, Department of Children, said early childhood education remained a major challenge in the region, adding that reports from the first quarter of the year still pointed out to inadequate investment to empower children.

She noted that apart from some communities not having schools and denying children access to education, others who had also struggled over limited classrooms, thereby creating overcrowding, especially at the kindergarten and lower primary levels.

‘In one of the communities in Builsa South that we visited, one classroom is accommodating four classes, that is KG one and two and primary one and two with one teacher, who is not even trained in early childhood education and it is a big problem,’ she said.

The situation of children not in school was worse in communities where the schools were not benefiting from the Ghana School Feeding programme, Mrs Aberese-Ako sa
id.

She added that one of the major challenges affecting early childhood education in some communities was the lack of community participation in protecting school property, leading to theft and damages.

Ms Yvonne Wonchua, the Gender Desk Officer, Upper East Regional Coordinating Council, noted that the achievement of the SDGs, particularly Goal Four, which put emphasis on access to education for all, required strong investment in childhood development from all stakeholders.

She urged the stakeholders to work together to address the challenges facing the development of children.

Pognaba Felicia Agampoka, the Queenmother of Bongo-Feo, said apart from the lack of schools in some communities, which was making it difficult for some children to access education, some parents did not also pay attention to the education of their children.

She said intensified education was needed to ensure parents understood the importance of education, especially at the basic level, to build a strong foundation.

Mr John Nyaab
a, the Upper East Regional Early Childhood Development Coordinator, Ghana Education Service, said the Directorate was aware of some of the issues raised ond was collaborating with stakeholders to address them and called for support.

Source: Ghana News Agency

The Upper East Regional Early Childhood Development Committee has called for strategic investment in early childhood education to ensure proper growth and development of children to accelerate the attainment of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

The Committee said infrastructure and interventions to promote early childhood education and development in many rural communities in the region were lacking and urged the Government and parents to invest in children.

It identified the lack of schools in some communities, inadequate classrooms, furniture, water and sanitation facilities, teachers, and security leading to theft as some of the challenges facing childhood development there.

The Committee, made up of stakeholders from the Departments of Gender, Children and Social Protection, Ghana Education Service, Ghana Health Service and traditional leaders among others identified these at the 2024 first quarter review meeting of the Committee in Bolgatanga.

It was organised by the Department of Children wi
th funding support from the Children Believe, a Non- Governmental Organisation.

Mrs Georgina Aberese-Ako, the Acting Regional Director, Department of Children, said early childhood education remained a major challenge in the region, adding that reports from the first quarter of the year still pointed out to inadequate investment to empower children.

She noted that apart from some communities not having schools and denying children access to education, others who had also struggled over limited classrooms, thereby creating overcrowding, especially at the kindergarten and lower primary levels.

‘In one of the communities in Builsa South that we visited, one classroom is accommodating four classes, that is KG one and two and primary one and two with one teacher, who is not even trained in early childhood education and it is a big problem,’ she said.

The situation of children not in school was worse in communities where the schools were not benefiting from the Ghana School Feeding programme, Mrs Aberese-Ako sa
id.

She added that one of the major challenges affecting early childhood education in some communities was the lack of community participation in protecting school property, leading to theft and damages.

Ms Yvonne Wonchua, the Gender Desk Officer, Upper East Regional Coordinating Council, noted that the achievement of the SDGs, particularly Goal Four, which put emphasis on access to education for all, required strong investment in childhood development from all stakeholders.

She urged the stakeholders to work together to address the challenges facing the development of children.

Pognaba Felicia Agampoka, the Queenmother of Bongo-Feo, said apart from the lack of schools in some communities, which was making it difficult for some children to access education, some parents did not also pay attention to the education of their children.

She said intensified education was needed to ensure parents understood the importance of education, especially at the basic level, to build a strong foundation.

Mr John Nyaab
a, the Upper East Regional Early Childhood Development Coordinator, Ghana Education Service, said the Directorate was aware of some of the issues raised ond was collaborating with stakeholders to address them and called for support.

Source: Ghana News Agency

The All Nations University (ANU) in Koforidua has held a ground-breaking ceremony to commence the construction of a one-storey health science block scheduled to be completed by September this year.

The groundbreaking ceremony marks the beginning of an important chapter in the university’s growth and commitment to providing cutting-edge facilities for quality education in the health sciences.

The block would be named after Dr James Orleans-Lindsay, the Chairman of the Emergency Medicine Technology (EMT) programme of the institution.

The building will contain 10 lecture halls, two skills laboratories for EMT practice, four heads of department offices, 10 faculty offices, washrooms, and other facilities.

Dr Orleans-Lindsay said science was the bedrock of all developments and that the building, when completed, would improve the learning experience of students aspiring to become doctors and promote further education.

Professor Samuel Donkor, the President of the University, said Ghana required well-trained pa
ramedics and emergency medical service providers who could promptly attend to medical emergencies at the scenes of disasters.

That would ensure victims got immediate care before being transported to the hospital for further treatment.

The All Nations University had a Biomedical and Allied Health Sciences faculty that provided programmes such as the Bachelor of Science (BSc) in General Nursing and the BSc in Emergency Medicine Technology.

Professor Albert Gyimah, the Chancellor, ANU, expressed his commitment to supporting the University in its efforts to promote the school.

The University also provided a broad spectrum of undergraduate and graduate programmes in areas like oil and gas engineering, electronic and communications engineering, business administration, and biblical studies, he said.

He said the graduate programmes offered an array of options, including MBA Accounting, Human Resources Management, Finance, Hospital Management, Information Technology, MPhil Business Administration, MPhil Theology
and MSc Cyber Security.

Source: Ghana News Agency

The All Nations University (ANU) in Koforidua has held a ground-breaking ceremony to commence the construction of a one-storey health science block scheduled to be completed by September this year.

The groundbreaking ceremony marks the beginning of an important chapter in the university’s growth and commitment to providing cutting-edge facilities for quality education in the health sciences.

The block would be named after Dr James Orleans-Lindsay, the Chairman of the Emergency Medicine Technology (EMT) programme of the institution.

The building will contain 10 lecture halls, two skills laboratories for EMT practice, four heads of department offices, 10 faculty offices, washrooms, and other facilities.

Dr Orleans-Lindsay said science was the bedrock of all developments and that the building, when completed, would improve the learning experience of students aspiring to become doctors and promote further education.

Professor Samuel Donkor, the President of the University, said Ghana required well-trained pa
ramedics and emergency medical service providers who could promptly attend to medical emergencies at the scenes of disasters.

That would ensure victims got immediate care before being transported to the hospital for further treatment.

The All Nations University had a Biomedical and Allied Health Sciences faculty that provided programmes such as the Bachelor of Science (BSc) in General Nursing and the BSc in Emergency Medicine Technology.

Professor Albert Gyimah, the Chancellor, ANU, expressed his commitment to supporting the University in its efforts to promote the school.

The University also provided a broad spectrum of undergraduate and graduate programmes in areas like oil and gas engineering, electronic and communications engineering, business administration, and biblical studies, he said.

He said the graduate programmes offered an array of options, including MBA Accounting, Human Resources Management, Finance, Hospital Management, Information Technology, MPhil Business Administration, MPhil Theology
and MSc Cyber Security.

Source: Ghana News Agency

A Fellow of the Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy (FAusIMM), Mr Henry Antwi, said to be able to unlock the full potential of Ghana’s resources, policies should focus more on human capital development.

He, thus, called on the Government and the mining industry to boost the infrastructure and resource capacity of universities for effective human resource capacity building.

That would also ensure the building of capacity of graduates to innovate and use the right tools and technology to unlock the full potential of the mining industry in Ghana, he said.

Mr Antwi said this at the University of Mines and Technology (UMaT) in Tarkwa, when the AusIMM Tarkwa Student Forum, held the Seventh Annual conference, on the theme: ‘Industry Training and Job Opportunities; Pathway for Empowering Young Professionals in Mining.’

It brought together mining companies, academia, media and other mining stakeholders, offering the students the opportunity to interact with industry executives and gain a good understan
ding of the theory.

On skills development, he mentioned competition and technology, which were driving change for relentless restructuring, and encouraged mining professionals to adapt and skill up to drive innovations to improve productivity and reduce operation costs.

Mr Antwi, also the Founder of the AusIMM, Tarkwa Student Chapter, spoke about revolutionary knowledge applications in artificial intelligence and technology, the increased penetration of robotics in process-controlled operations, and autonomous mining, emphasizing that global efforts to decarbonize economies called for the urgency for alternative energy sources such as renewable energy.

He challenged academia to develop technologies to increase the discovery of new mineral deposits, especially critical minerals including lithium, copper and cobalt.

Mr Antwi updated the participants on the current state of the local and global mining industry, saying mining played a crucial role in Ghana’s economic development contributing to GDP, export ea
rnings and government revenue.

Mr Samuel Boakye Pobee, the Managing Director of AngloGold Ashanti Iduapriem Mine, said: ‘In this era our softwares are becoming more collaborative.’

‘We need to develop that collaborative attitude in school… l think we need to build that in our students by giving group assignments, let’s stop giving individual assignments.’

Mr Stephen Yamoah Asante, the General Manager of Chirano Mine, explained that: ‘As students you have enormous opportunities to equip yourselves to be successful, so instead of bordering yourselves with questions on what is out there, let’s take advantage now.’

‘Although there are thousands of graduates out there, and vacancies are limited, we still advertise as employers with three years’ experience but end up employing people who have just completed university. The reason is that we identify people who can add value to the work we are doing.’

Miss Ekuba Bezeba Yalley, a lecturer at the Mining Engineering Department, UMaT, stressed that although the min
ing industry was a male dominated area, women studying science and engineering should be encouraged as the country was growing.

‘At UMaT we are looking at bringing more ladies into the mining industry, so we have instituted this gender mainstreaming policy that is fighting to get as many as 40 per cent of our student population to be women.’

The President of the AusIMM Tarkwa Chapter, Mr Daniel Obeng Boadi, noted that the chapter had provided opportunities for professional development for the students through monthly webinars, mine visits, networking with industry professionals and AusIMM Scholarships.

He expressed appreciation to the founder and other stakeholders who had supported them in diverse ways.

Dr Kofi Peter Amponsah-Mensah, the Director of Pamicor Limited, Mine Manager at Golden Star Resources, Wassa Mine, Mr George Asongo and Miss Josephine Wesoama Valejega of the Minerals Commission were present at the conference.

Source: Ghana News Agency