Ghana’s Aviation Minister woos girls into aviation careers

Ghanaian girls between the ages of 6 and 16 have been urged to take up interest in aviation and explore career opportunities in the sector.

They were charged to work hard so as to be ready to take advantage of the current and future opportunities in the aviation industry.

The call was made by Ghana’s Minister of Aviation, Ms Cecilia Abena Dapaah, when she graced this year’s Girls In Aviation Day in Accra over the weekend.

This was at the Kotoka International Airport (KIA) Terminal 2 Extension and under the aegis of the Women in Aviation International (WAI), Ghana Chapter.

The event held on the theme: ‘Connect, Explore and Experience’, is one of the major events organised by the WAI worldwide to whip up enthusiasm and advancement of women, who are striving for challenging and fulfilling careers in the aviation and aerospace industries.

WAI, Ghana Chapter, was formed in 2016 and is a member of the Women in Aviation International, the world body.

According to the Minister, although aviation is often perceived to be a male-dominated industry, there were numerous career opportunities for women.

“Many women have found successful and rewarding careers in the industry. From aerospace engineers to air traffic controllers, fire officers, airport planners, accountants, Information Technology professionals and lawyers, there are many inspiring stories of successful women in aviation,” Ms Dapaah noted.

She further inspired the girls to be ready to take up jobs in aviation since the outlook for Ghana’s aviation industry remained bright, with many exciting and challenging job opportunities.

She informed the girls of the existence of training avenues in the sector such as the Ghana Civil Aviation Training Academy which trains people in International Air Transport (IATA) accredited courses, air traffic management and others.

The contribution of the aviation sector is expected to rise in the future, in line with the strong demand for air travel in the country. To achieve this, it is imperative to continually build a strong core of aviation specialists and professionals, starting with our youth,” she said.

President of the WAI, Ghana Chapter, Juliet Aboagye-Wiafe, said among WAI’s objectives are the mentoring of young female professionals in the industry as well as mentoring and encouraging girls in basic, second cycle and tertiary schools to develop interests in aviation and if possible take up careers in the industry.

“We encourage our young ladies to develop a passion for the various careers in the industry. We also want you to participate in future programmes to understand how to follow your dreams through the mentoring sessions with role models,” she told the girls.

The event, which was sponsored by Emirates and Delta Airlines, also saw the girls participate in a Foreign Object Debris (FOD) walk to collect foreign objects on flight operations surfaces at the KIA.