Six complete jewellery course at Takoradi

Takoradi, May 5, GNA- Six trainees including three females on Friday graduated from the Western Coast Jewellery Enterprise Learning Centre, which is under the Community-Based Rural Development Project (CBRDP) at Takoradi.

Speaking at the ceremony, Mr. Joesph Arloo Manlenze, Managing Director of the centre, said the graduates underwent six months training in jewellery design, manufacturing, packaging and marketing. He said the CBRDP sponsored the course at a cost of 37 million cedis and provided them with training materials. Mr Manlenze said the former trainees have formed a cooperative known as the Millennium Co-operative to manufacture jewellery for sale. He said the CBRDP is supporting the co-operative with a loan of 37 million cedis to buy equipment.

Mr. Manlenze advised the youth to take advantage of the various training programmes of the government to acquire skills. Miss Emily Akwatia, officer in-charge of rural enterprises development of CBRDP in the Western and Central regions, urged the district assemblies and entrepreneurs to take advantage of programmes of the CBRDP to provide skills training for the youth. She said the jewellery programme could provide alternative livelihood for people engaged in galamsey to go into processing of minerals. Miss Akwatia said programmes of CBRDP being implemented in the western region included grass-cutter and pig rearing, beekeeping and shoemaking. In an address read for him, Mr. Maxwell Ayuub Morgan, Shama-Ahanta East Metropolitan Director of Education, said a Council for Technical and Vocational Education Training (COTVET) has been formed to formulate policies for skills development and the promotion of technical and vocational education and training.

He said technical and vocational education training forms a key component of the educational reforms. 5 May 07