By Solomon Gumah, GNA
Tamale, March 6, GNA – SOS Children’s Villages Ghana has presented Technical and Vocational Education and Training working tools and start-up kits to about 2,000 youth in communities within the Tamale Metropolitan Assembly.
The gesture is expected to support beneficiaries in the areas of aluminum fabrication, tiling, carpentry, weaving, barbering, welding, beauty and fashion design.
The initiative, tailored to enable young people acquire skills and establish their own businesses, would benefit both young men and women drawn from Bamvim, Adubiliyili, Fooshegu, Gbulahibila and Chansegu, all suburbs of Tamale.
It also formed part of the organisation’s Tamale Communities Project aimed at empowering young people with employable skills and resources to promote economic independence and reduce unemployment.
The items presented included industrial and manual sewing machines, scissors, stoning machines, hairdressing sinks, standing dryers, make-up kits and boxes, hand dryers, rollers, combs, and towels.
The rest were welding machines, drilling machines, angle grinders, vices, extension wires, clippers for barbers, sterilizers, swivel chairs, aprons, mirrors, weaving machines, thread, hack saws, router machines, electric cutting machines, jigsaw machines, hammers, tiling machines, mallets, nailing machines and riveting guns.
The presentation ceremony, held at the forecourt of the Paramount Chief of Bamvim, Naa Ziblim Abdulai, was attended by religious and traditional leaders, community members and youth groups.
Mr Alexander Mar Kekula, National Director of SOS Children’s Villages Ghana, speaking during the ceremony, said the initiative was designed to help young people utilise their vocational skills to generate income and create employment opportunities.
He said, “We are here today to distribute tools, start-up kits and equipment to young people to enable them gain and utilise their skills to create jobs and other employment opportunities.”
He explained that the support targeted both youths currently undergoing skills training and those who had already acquired vocational skills but lacked the necessary tools to establish their own businesses.
Mr Kekula said the initiative also sought to ensure that young people were actively engaged in productive ventures rather than remaining idle.
He emphasized that “The overall goal of this initiative is to ensure that our youth are not idle but engaged in meaningful economic ventures that will translate into income generation and sustainable national development.”
He said the initiative also aligned with the global development agenda, especially the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal (SDG 8), which focused on promoting decent work and economic growth as well as reducing poverty.
Mr Kekula urged the beneficiaries to make effective use of the tools to expand their trades and contribute to development within their communities.
Alhaji Adam Abubakari Takoro, Tamale Metropolitan Chief Executive, whose speech was read on his behalf during the ceremony, commended SOS Children’s Villages Ghana for the support.
He said the initiative would complement government efforts to create more jobs and improve livelihoods among the youth in the metropolis.
He reaffirmed the Assembly’s commitment to collaborating with stakeholders and non-governmental organisations to promote inclusive and sustainable development in the area.
Madam Karim Asimawu, a beautician from Chansegu community and a beneficiary, expressed gratitude to the organisation for the support.
She said although she had acquired the necessary vocational skills, she lacked the tools to establish her own beauty shop, and the equipment would enable her to start her own business and generate income to support herself and her family.
GNA
Edited by Eric K. Amoh/George-Ramsey Benamba