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Professors and Lecturers in civil and mechanical engineering, have been urged to continuously build their professional competence so as to be able to cope with the advancement of technology in the field.

The acquisition of practical knowledge would help them to provide the needed hands-on training to their students.

Professor Zhao Kunming, a resource person in Mechanical Engineering, from the China Education Association for International Exchange, who made the call, said the increasing technological advancement in the fields of civil and mechanical engineering, calls for intensified practical training for practitioners and teachers to equip students well for the world of work.

He was speaking to the Ghana News Agency on the sidelines of a two-day training workshop organized for lecturers at the Departments of Civil and Mechanical Engineering of the Kumasi Technical University (KsTU).

The on-site training aims at improving the professional and technical capabilities of teachers through practical training and strengthened communication.

Participants were taken through the performance of hydraulic systems, programming the computer numerical control for lathe and milling machine among others.

It was jointly organized by the China Education Association for International Exchange (CEAIE) and Association of Technical Universities and Polytechnics in Africa (ATUPA), as well as the China Aviation Technology International Holdings Co., Ltd (AVIC International).

The training was one of the sub-projects under the "Future of Africa, China - Africa TVET Cooperation Program".

The training program targeted leaders of participating African technical universities and institutes, their curriculum directors and top instructors of related majors.

Its contents included theoretical knowledge, cutting-edge professional technology, educational concepts and teaching methods, as well as curriculum design and evaluation.

This on-site training also aims to improve the professional and technical capabilities of management staff and teachers in African TVET institutes through practical training, strengthen communication between Chinese and African teachers, and help cultivate African technical and skilled talents.

Mr. Joseph Kwame Lewballah, a lecturer at the Mechanical Engineering Department, KsTU, told the GNA that, the in-depth training received would sharpen members’ practical skills, to be able to take students through more hands-on teaching in the field.

“Most universities in Ghana are teaching theories in mechanical engineering and leaving the practical sides, but looking at the new modules in autotronics, mechanical, welding, and civil laboratories, it required exposing students to the practical aspects”, he stated.