‘TVET is tool for national growth, development’
The Kpong Department of Community Development Vocational Technical Institute in the Lower Manya Krobo Municipality held its 10th graduation ceremony last Saturday on the theme: “Technical and Vocational Skills: The Tool for National Growth”.
The school started as a private school in 1992 and was then known as Kpong Women Training Institute, training women in soap and dressmaking. The school was absorbed by the government in April 2002, resulting in the change of name to Kpong Community Development Vocational Technical Institute.
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The school currently runs programmes in both vocational and technical trades such as cookery, fashion and design, general electrical, plumbing, auto vehicle mechanic, information technology, building and construction, carpentry and cosmetology. It intends to add welding at the beginning of the next academic year.
The students in the school are registered for both National Board for Professional and Technician Examinations (NABPTEX) and NVTI Examinations, that qualify them for tertiary education, after completing their courses at the institute.
The acting Director of the Department of Community Development, Ms Celia Awozum, who was the guest speaker, said Technical, Vocational Education and Training (TVET) was a tool for national growth and development.
She said many countries, including Malaysia, Germany, Switzerland, China and South Korea, had developed rapidly through skills development, hence Ghana was pursuing a similar objective.
TVET education
Ms Awozum recalled the launch of a campaign recently dubbed: “My TVET, My Skills, My Future”, which is being executed by the Council for Vocational Education and Training (COTVET), stressing that the campaign was to highlight the importance of the TVET sector in Ghana and to increase enrolment in technical and vocational institutions.
She noted that the department of community development was leading the process of job creation through skills training, explaining that currently, about 400 people were benefiting from training under the Alternative Livelihood Programme.
She commended the management of the institute for introducing new programmes into the school’s curriculum, creating ready jobs for those who passed out of the institute in the past years.
The Principal of the school, Mrs Felicia Mamaa Botchway, in her report said the school now had a population of 360 students and commended individuals whose support had contributed to the growth and development of the school.
She spoke about the school’s inadequate infrastructure, pointing out that the most worrying situation was that the boarding facility could not accommodate more than 100 students, and appealed to the government to help the school address the issue.
An aspiring MP of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) for the Lower Manya Krobo Constituency, Ms Evelyn Lasi, advised the graduates and the continuing students to strive for academic excellence and also explore the job market to create their own jobs.
Sixty graduates passed out of the institute this year. Deserving students were rewarded for excellence.