By Mildred Siabi-Mensah, GNA
Sekondi, Oct. 12, GNA – Seven instructors from the Tema and Takoradi Technical Institutes have been trained in modern composite boatbuilding to ensure up to date knowledge transfer in the sector.
The training carried out by ProZero Ghana Limited is the first of its kind in Ghana to transfer formal technical training and the development of a skilled workforce for the country’s maritime manufacturing industry.
ProZero Ghana Limited, based at the Sekondi Fishing Harbour, constructs modern composite vessels and supports skills development, technology transfer, and local manufacturing within Ghana’s maritime sector.
The Training of Trainers (ToT) programme was in partnership with the Ghana Employers’ Association (GEA) and the Confederation of Danish Industry (DI), in collaboration with the Commission for Technical and Vocational Education and Training (CTVET).
Mr. Peter Amakye, Managing Director of ProZero Ghana Limited, said developing a sustainable boatbuilding industry required not only facilities and equipment but also a skilled workforce.
“By training instructors, we are laying the foundation for a new generation of Ghanaian boat builders and creating pathways to quality employment for young people,” he said.
Mr. Amakye said the initiative was part of efforts to establish Ghana’s first formal boatbuilding training pathway and strengthen local expertise in modern composite vessel construction.
ProZero Ghana said the development of local boatbuilding capacity could support the fisheries, marine transport, and maritime services sectors, while improving vessel safety, expanding domestic manufacturing and creating skilled jobs.
It said strengthening local capacity in vessel construction, maintenance and technical training would also support economic activities in coastal and lakeside communities.
Dr Clement Abas Appak, the Deputy Minister for Education said the achievements were both personal and national, marking real progress toward Ghana’s industrial transformation and technical excellence.
The government, Dr Apaak assured, was committed to technical and vocational education to become the driver of economic development in line with policy that tested whether community training in skills could match labour market needs.
“This programme has passed that test. What Pro Zero Ghana Limited, the Confederation of Danish have built here with the support of the Governor of Denmark is precisely the type of partnership at this moment in our country’s history from technical institutions,” he said.
The training, he said, would have investment multipliers as graduates reached hundreds of learners across technical institutions in the years ahead.
Modern composite boat- building, the minister said, opened the door to industrial growth, technology transfer, stronger safety standards, greater local manufacturing capacity, and real employment opportunity for the youth.
Dr Apaak thanked the partners for the collaborations and instructors for efforts to boost Ghana’s drive to strengthening the workforce, adding that the modern maritime manufacturing sector required a genuine hub for industrial skills in the West African sub-region.
GNA
Edited by Justina Hilda Paaga/Linda Asante Agyei
Reporter Mildred Siabi-Mensah