Students of Takoradi Vocational Institute on demonstration

Takoradi, March 2, GNA - Students of the Community Development Vocational Institute

in Takoradi, yesterday went on a peaceful demonstration to impress on the authorities to

move the institute to its new facility at Anaji-Namibia. The students wore red bands and carried placards some of which read "We are closing

our school today", "We want to move to our new site", "We do not have classrooms",

among others.

In an interview with the Ghana News Agency (GNA) on the demonstration, Mrs

Georgina Baba Otoo, Headmistress, said the institute is congested and most of the

facilities, teaching aids and equipment are outmoded. She said the school is depending on the Sekondi-Takoradi Metropolitan Assembly for

support and appealed to individuals and organizations to come to their aid. Ms Millicent Mark-Robertson, Compound Overseer of the Institute, said the school does

not have adequate classrooms for studies. She said the first year students study under canopies whiles final year students of the

dressmaking department face difficulties whenever they have practical studies. Ms Mark-Robertson said the institute's new site at Anaji-Namibia has enough

classrooms and hostel facilities conducive for teaching and learning, adding that the

project is almost completed. Mr Gershon Ben Roylance, the Sekondi-Takoradi Metropolitan Director of the

Department of Community Development, said the new site has been in existence since the

1990's. He said the contractor executing the project abandoned it in 1996 for lack of funds with

the classrooms and dormitories yet to be completed and that apart from the place not

fenced, there is no electricity, water, septic system, furniture at the new site and is not

fenced. "Initially, the European Union (EU) decided to support the project but because of a

litigation over the land, they did not do so", he said. Mr Roylance said the Education Sub Committee of the Sekondi-Takoradi Metropolitan

Assembly (STMA) has decided to take over the project. He said evaluation work on the project has been completed and hopefully work will

resume. Mr Roylance advised the students to be patient and wait for funding to be acquired for

the project and assured that work would be completed by the end of the year.