First Lady advocates skills training for economic growth
The First Lady, Mrs Lordina Mahama, has said there is the need to inspire the youth to realise their immense creative potential.
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In that regard, she said vocational and technical institutions should be encouraged to equip young people with the requisite skills for them to earn a living.
The First Lady was speaking at a ceremony to present equipment and food items to the Pentecost Vocational Training Centre at Gbawe in Accra last Friday.
Donations
The presentation formed part of the Lordina Foundation's objective to promote entrepreneurship and skills training among the youth in the country.
The items included hand sewing machines, hair dryers, industrial over-lock machines, and laptops.
A similar donation was made to 280 people, including artisans, hairdressers, tailors, barbers and others, in the Brong Ahafo Region two week ago.
The First Lady said vocational and technical education must aim at being the best alternative to traditional universities, adding that “technical and vocational training are extremely important to the economy of the country’’.
She, therefore, lauded the move by the government to convert polytechnics into technical universities to provide relevant technical skills and quality academic opportunities to the youth.
“This will go a long way to restore faith in technical qualifications,” she stated.
Modern trends
On technology, the First Lady to encouraged the students to adapt to modern trends in development as industries were undergoing continuous changes due to technological advancement.
Mrs Mahama expressed gratitude to the Chinese government which sponsored the donation to the institute.
The Principal of the institute, Mrs Rosaline Quarcopome, commended the First Lady for the gesture.
She called on the First Lady to provide the school with a bus to ease its transportation challenges.
Mrs Quarcopome also asked for help towards the completion of the institute’s hostel.
In a speech read on his behalf, the Chairman of the Pentecost Church, Apostle Dr Opoku Onyinah, called for more attention to the plight of vocational and technical institutes.
The Municipal Chief Executive of Ga South, Mr Jerry Akwei Thompson, said although the institute belonged to the Church of Pentecost, the government would continue to partner the church to ensure that the institute helped in the training of more of the less-privileged.