Takoradi Polytechnic presents HNDs to 2,688 graduands
The Takoradi Polytechnic on Saturday awarded Higher National Diplomas (HND) to 2,688 students who completed their courses six months ago at its 11th Congregation.
In an address read for her, Mrs Betty Mould Iddrisu, Minister of Education, said it was imperative that polytechnics which are earmarked for the training of middle level manpower adopt and teach appropriate technology so that products could live up to the task of transforming the country.
She said technology education has proven to be a transformational device to be taken advantage of in the quest of development in societies and communities.
Mrs Mould Iddrisu said the Government would continue to support science and technology education in the country.
As a step, the Government through the Ministry of Science and Technology, has introduced Mathematics, Science and Technology Scheme (MASTESS) at the tertiary and pre-tertiary levels since 2009.
She said records from the MASTESS Secretariat indicate that 24 students who are pursuing various science and technology programmes at the polytechnic have benefitted from the scheme.
Mrs Mould Iddrisu said construction of additional lecture halls at the Polytechnic was in the pipeline.
This and other projects yet to take off would empower the Polytechnic to play a leading role in the emerging oil and gas industry and also build the human resource base of the country, she said.
Dr. George Oduro, chairman of the Takoradi Polytechnic Council, said the graduands included 14 students who for the first time in the history of the polytechnic have completed a hands- on programme leading to the award of an International Professional Certificate in Logistics and Transport.
He thanked the Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport, Ghana (CILT, Ghana) for collaborating with the Department of Purchasing and Supply to deliver the programme.
He appealed to the Minister of Finance through the Ministry of Education to expedite action on the migration of senior members of the Polytechnic onto the Single Spine Salary Structure (SSSS).
This appeal is critical because the delay in enrolling lecturers onto the scheme has created anxiety among staff and is adversely affecting their performance, he said.
Reverend Professor Daniel Nyarko, Rector, said the Polytechnic has acquired a 155-acre plot of land at Akatakyi in the Ahanta West District for a new School of Petroleum Studies.
He said the Polytechnic would take advantage of its proximity to the oil fields and train the critical mass of technicians needed in the merging oil and gas industry.
Professor Nyarko said his office has received a list of projects from the African Development Bank (ADB) through the Council for Technical and Vocational Education and Training (COVEAT) that the Bank hopes to implement for the polytechnic.
He said the bank’s assistance include projects such as a three-storey lecture theatre, library, playground and various workshops and laboratories.
Source: GNA