 |
| Accra, Ghana |
The
Deputy Minister for Youth and Sports, Dr. Omane Boamah, has observed that graduates under
the National Youth Employment Programme (NYEP) Information Communication
Technology (ICT) training module have no excuse as to why they should still
remain unemployed after being equipped with the requisite skills and start-up
tools.
Dr.
Boamah noted that with the effective collaboration with the management of Rlg
Institute of Technology, which formed part of the government's policy to help
in equipping the youth in modern technological skills to enable them fully take
advantage of the opportunity to develop themselves.
The Deputy
Minister for Youth and Employment, who made the observation at the graduation
ceremony of 710 youth in Ho, under the NYEP ICT training module in the Volta
Region, also cautioned the beneficiary youth not to sell the working tools
provided them after training, in order to get quick money, because it would
undermine the objective of the programme.
According to the
Deputy Minister, it was important for the beneficiaries of the ICT training programme
to work hard to put the skills acquired to use, and asked the trainees to take
their jobs more seriously, as well as to exhibit a high level of business
attitudes that would ensure that they work more effectively.
The
Head of the Rlg Institute of Technology, Mr. Isaac Appiah, said the training of
the 710 youth in ICT was a clear sign of public private partnership in the
country, which, he pointed out, would go a long way to equip the unemployed
youth with the requisite skills that would help establish their own businesses,
since their area of work was an emerging area that would make them productive.
Mr. Appiah
pointed out that the 710 trainees brought to a total 24,000 youth trained under
the ICT module in the 3rd contract between Rlg Communications and the NYEP, and
disclosed that within six months of training in ICT, the beneficiaries were
taken through introduction to computers, mobile phone soft and hardware,
general electronics and entrepreneurship.
The Head of the
Rlg Institute of Technology said the training did not only provide jobs for the
beneficiaries, but also made it possible for them to face the challenging world
driven by technology, innovation and knowledge.
He added that the
process was not only to help the graduates set up their own businesses, but as
well be in a position to equip others with the relevant skills that would make
them self-reliant.
Mr.
Appiah disclosed: "Currently, we have 46 training centers dotted across
the country, and we hope to double this number to ensure that many more youth
benefit from the programme, irrespective of the location, background or
financial status."
The Volta
Regional Minister, Mr. Henry Ford Kamel, whose speech was read for him by the
Ho Municipal Chief Executive, Mr. Isaac Kodobisah, commended the management of
Rlg for the commitment shown towards the programme in helping to train the
youth in ICT, and urged the beneficiaries to take the skills acquired seriously
to transform their lives.
The Paramount
Chief of the Ziavi traditional area, Togbega Koku Ayim IV, who chaired the
ceremony, noted that the youth were the future leaders and the move to equip
them with employable skills was in the right direction, because many of them
would turn to be employers rather than employees, which, he stressed, was
crucial in the nation's development agenda.
The
Chronicles Ghana