The Council for Technical and Vocational Education and Training, (COTVET), is a national body set up by an Act of Parliament of the Republic of Ghana to co-ordinate and oversees all aspects of technical and vocational education and training in the country.
A component of COTVET is Technical Vocational Education and Training, (TVET), which President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo has seen as a cardinal point in transforming Ghana’s industrial development phase.
In the light of this, central government has resourced the National Youth Authority, (NYA), to superintend over technical education which the Sandema Youth Leadership Training Institute is no exception.
It is against this backdrop that the thirteen Member Board of the National Youth Authority led by the chairperson, Francisca Oteng Mensah, Member of Parliament, (MP), for Kwabre East, have embarked on an inspection tour of projects sites in the Upper East Region.
The Board’s first called was on the Paramount Chief of the Builsa Tradtitional Area Naab Ayeeta Azantinlow II, to pay homage and to seek permission to inspect two projects awarded on contract and are currently ongoing at the Youth Leadership and Skills Training Institute, Sandema SLSTI, under the National Youth Authority NYA.
Naab Azabtinlow II expressed happiness that they were at his palace as a follow up on the projects and charged the Board to see to it that the projects are executed with precision to the later in his area, saying he has been worried over the numerous infrastructural challenge of the institute.
The projects are; a Three hundred 300 seating capacity Dining Hall and a One hundred bed girl’s dormitory. Both projects are at the roofing level.
The school has a total population of about One hundred and 57 and trains students in the artisanal level, which falls under the government’s Technical Vocational Education and Training TVET.
According to the Head Master of the school Edmond De-Graft Sam stated that, this is the first time ever the school has received a massive support, in terms of infrastructure since its inception in 1995.
He was hopeful that, the contractor finishes the project on time to enable the school do admissions in January 2019. The school does not follow the normal academic terms.
He however, appealed for a school Bus to help ease their transportation problems, more teaching staff and the feeding grant of the students to be increased from the current GHC 3 to GHC 4.
Mr. De-Graft Sam explained further that, the school is not under the Computerized Placement System and as such, makes it difficult to get students for admission. He appeals that the school be added to the Government’s Free Senior High School policy.
Regarding the completing the project on schedule, the contractor said but for the torrential rains this year that stopped work due to the unmemorable nature of the road linking to the site between August and September, the projects would have been completed and handed over in January.
The Consultant of the project, Vesper Akanyili Architectural Engineering Services Limited, (AESL), advised the contractor to speed up work on the project in order to meet the stipulated time schedule.
Speaking to Radio Ghana, the Chief Executive Officer of NYA Emmauel Sinyet Asigri indicated that, though the contractor attributed the delay to the rains this year which is a fact, he was happy the due processes of the contractual terms were followed.
On whether the Technical Vocational Education and Training syllabi are not out of date, to match the current trend of the industrial revolution in technical education, Mr. Asigri explained that, a team from the TVET and the Ghana Education Service visited Germany in connection to study the German system of technical education in order to replicate it Ghana to match the current trend of TVET.
If Technical Education is a panacea to the evolution of the country’s industrialization agenda, then every aspect must be well implemented to achieve the desired goal.
Leaving out a step, means the system will only be theorizing the youth in the name of technical.
Therefore an institute like the Youth Leadership and Skills Training that handles students in the various artisanal skills cannot run effectively without a fully equipped workshop.
Story by Emmanuel Akayeti
