Bolgatanga, May 11, GNA – Trax Ghana, a Non-Governmental Organization (NGO) operating in Bolgatanga, has supported some youth in selected mining communities in two districts in the Upper East Region with artisan and craftsmanship training.
The project which was on the theme “Tools for Self-Reliance Entrepreneurship and Life Skills Training” and had its funding from Tools for Self-Reliance (TFSR), UK, an NGO, drew the participants from the Pelungu community in the Nabdam District, Duusi and Gbani communities in the Talensi District.
They would be equipped with knowledge in trade fields including; carpentry, masonry, dress-making, blacksmithing, shoe making/repairs, motorbike repairs, electrical works and bicycle repairs.
Trax Ghana, which operates in the Upper East and the Northern Regions and other regions in the country organised the five-day training as part of its programme known as “Preventing illegal gold mining by supporting self-reliance through artisanship and craftsmanship”
The beneficiaries would be attached to master craftsmen and artisan in the above mentioned trades and undergo twelve months of intensive training in their respective fields to gain in-depth practical experiences.
The initiative, which is also aimed at minimising the damage illegal mining caused to the environment, apprenticeship fee, tools kits and start-up capital with low loans interest to the beneficiaries to start their own businesses when they complete the training.
Speaking at the inauguration of the programme in Bolgatanga, Mr Vincent Subbey, the Director of Trax Ghana commended the participants for patronising the intervention and said the training was part of strategies to re-orient and re-equip illegal miners to learn some trade and avoid engaging in illegal mining business.
While encouraging the youth to take the training seriously to enable them acquire employable skills and knowledge to improve upon their livelihoods and their families, the Director said the project would save them from the dangers associated with illegal small scale mining activities.
The business and life skills training for the youth which is considering the first set of participants, focused on areas including; business management, record keeping, savings culture, through the Village Savings and Loans Associations (VSLA), and how to live in good health to help prevent the spread of HIV/AIDS and STIs.
GNA
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