TVET can make young people good citizens

By Caleb Kuleke, GNA

Ho, March 13, GNA – Dr Mrs Leticia Osafo-Addo, Board Chairperson, Vocational Training for Females (VTF) Programme, a church-based Non- Governmental Organisation (NGO) has underscored the importance of Technical Vocational Education and Training (TVET) in shaping and preparing the youth for nation building.

She said there was the need to pay serious attention to TVET as a tool for societal development because it had the potential to induce creativity, innovation, employment and prepare young people to be good citizens.

Dr Osafo-Addo was speaking at a day’s stakeholder’s roundtable conference organised by VTF in collaboration with National Technical Vocational Education and Training (TVET) Advocacy Committee in Ho, the Volta Regional capital.

The forum dubbed: “The role of TVET in local and rural development," aimed at bringing stakeholders together to reflect and discuss the relevance of TVET as a tool for economic growth and national development and the role the various stakeholders could play to sustain it.

It is also to complement government’s effort at drawing attention to the TVET sector as an area of empowering and building the capacities of the youth through skills training to enhance their lots to reduce unemployment rate.

Dr Osafo-Addo said a lot of economies globally were fast developing as a result of the premium they placed on TVET, and it was therefore important for the country to have “a paradigm shift in our education architecture to focus more on TVET.”

She said TVET had what it takes to build a knowledge and skilled workforce, capable of providing solutions to most challenges facing the country, and therefore called for attention to be given to the sector.

Mrs Patricia Boso, Co-Chairperson, National TVET Advocacy Committee, said the country would continue to be behind the rest of progressive societies “if we continue to downplay TVET," and urged policy makers to give much attention to the sector and develop it.

She said her outfit would continue to champion issues concerning TVET in the country because “if we want to become a competitive nation and technologically advanced, then we have to give more attention to TVET."

Mrs Boso also urged policy makers to develop policies that would standardise apprenticeship in the country as it would enable the apprentices have easy access to jobs wherever they found themselves in the country and also reduce rural urban migration.

She called on traditional authorities, religious leaders and other stakeholders to join the campaign to sensitise the youth, especially females to venture into TVET to enhance their lots.

GNA

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