National Conference On Education/Training And Industry Ends In Accra

The national conference on bridging the gap between education, training and industry in the world of work has ended in Accra. The conference, organised by the Ministry of Education, provided a platform for a national discourse on the challenges and opportunities presented by the educational system to industry in creating employment for national development. About 300 participants, including policy makers, educationists, representatives from the academia, industry, Civil Society Organisations (CSOs), the media, development partners, the informal sector and other relevant stakeholders, took part in the two-day conference which was organised on the theme: �Achieving a stronger partnership between education and industry―The way forward.� In her remarks at the end of the conference, Prof. Jane Naana Opoku-Agyemang, Minister for Education, implored industry to support young people and underscored the importance of collaboration and continued engagement between the educator and the employer. Prof. Opoku-Agyemang said the role of the community and parents was very critical in making Ghana�s education system more relevant. A communiqu� issued at the end of the conference called for a structured collaboration among education and training institutions, government and industry in a broader national framework aligned to the development goals of the country. The communiqu� recommended that industrial attachment should be provided with competency certification and extended beyond the current 3-month period to give students sufficient time to link the classroom work with what occurs at the workplace. The communiqu� also stressed the need to establish specialised institutions at the senior high and tertiary levels that will focus on training in science, technology and engineering graduates to provide specific training needed by critical areas in the economy. The communiqu� recommended that the education system be reviewed to equip school leavers with productive skills and inculcate in them the values and norms as a country to distinguish Ghanaian graduates from the rest of the world. It said the foundation of education in the country should be strengthened by improving the quality of basic and secondary education through conscious efforts to enhance the governance system and decentralise supervision, management and accountability at the school level. In terms of Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET), the communiqu� said, TVET should be strengthened to facilitate employability of the youth, particularly in the informal economy and stressed the need to bring together all TVET institutions under one sector as part of the governance restructuring and institute targeted support. The communiqu� called on industry to invest in a top-up skills training to suit their needs and for the introduction of short courses at the polytechnic and technical institutions for graduates to impart world of work skills. The communiqu� urged the National Council for Tertiary Education to consider the establishment of a unit to liaise between the academia and industry and restructure Counselling Centres in Senior High Schools and tertiary institutions into Resource Development and Counselling Centres. The communiqu� called for the establishment of science and technology parks and also stressed the need to ensure the deepening of the use of technology in teaching and learning at all levels of education and facilitate better outcomes of the partnership between education industry and industry.