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160 students benefit from Newmont Akyem Development foundation
Janet Serwaa Setugah and her colleague operating a wielding machine at the AVTI 2
One hundred and sixty students of the Akyem Vocational and Technical Institute (AVTI) at New Abirem in the Eastern Region have benefitted from the Newmont Akyem Development Foundation (NAkDeF).
The aim was to provide the students with the necessary entrepreneurial skills that would make them self-sufficient and enable them to start their own businesses to employ others.
The training was oganised by Newmont Gold Corp Ghana in collaboration with the German Agency for International Cooperation (GIZ), an International enterprise, under its Akyem Skills Entrepreneurship and Enterprise Development (A-SEED) programme.
The programme was to improve the unemployment situation of about 600 youth in the Akyem mines host communities, of which 35 per cent were females.
The 160 youth underwent technical and vocational training in different courses, including welding and fabrication, masonry, plumbing and electricals.
The Community Development Manager and Executive Secretary of the NAkDeF, Mr Paul Apenu, told the media during a tour of the project that since the inception of the programme in 2022, about 256 students have so far been enrolled on the programme.
That, he said, would help to reduce the high unemployment rate in the area and the country as a whole. He revealed that a 35 per cent target has been allotted to females to encourage them to enrol on the vocational and technical training programme.
“We have strict standards in terms of ensuring equitable distribution between males and females. Our target is to get at least 35 per cent of female students within the communities to enrol.
He noted that the women were encouraged to acquire vocational and technical skills to be self-employed in areas perceived to be male-dominated.
Mr Apenu advised the women to overcome such perceptions and take advantage of the opportunity offered them to acquire such skills to enable them get meaningful source of income that would make them self-sufficient.
He also mentioned the establishment of the Pempamsie Co-operative Credit Union as another component of the A-SEED programme, revealing that it currently had 2,629 members and has mobilised about GH¢20 million as well as given loans totalling GH¢3,7 million in disbursement to 497 members of which GH¢2.8miilion was repaid.
Mr Apenu indicated that all those interventions under the programme were to reduce unemployment in their host communities to help reduce poverty.
A student studying welding and fabrication at the AVTI, Janet Serwaa Setugah, encouraged females to enrol at the institute, and said that although the males were more in taking up such courses, she felt encouraged to sign onto the course.
Ms Setugah said it was fun to learn and hoped that at the end of the course she would set up her own garage.
She encouraged other women to also come on board to change the narrative that the area was male-dominated.
From Ama Tekyiwaa Ampadu Agyeman, New Abirem
Massive celebrations were recorded countrywide as the Black Stars opened their 2026 World Cup campaign with a 1-0 victory over Panama in Toronto on Wednesday.
Midfielder Caleb Yirenkyi scored the only goal of the match late in the game as he shot in a decent cross from substitute Brandon Asante.
The win gave Ghana a positive start in the competition, placing them in second position behind England, also with three points but with a superior goal aggregate.
After the final whistle, the streets and other viewing centres were turned into partying grounds as fans, mostly clad in the team’s paraphernalia, danced to several World Cup-themed music.
Others blew the vuvuzelas in joyous mood with others putting up a spirited ‘jama’ session.
Former New Patriotic Party (NPP) parliamentary candidate for the Adentan Constituency, Akosua Manu, has urged party members to move away from what she describes as an “entitlement mentality” and focus on unity, sacrifice and hard work as the party prepares for the 2028 general election.
In a statement titled “Is Loyalty a Queue?”, and posted on facebook, Ms. Manu argued that loyalty to the NPP should not be judged by how long a person has been in the party but by their contributions and commitment to its growth.
According to her, the NPP’s history shows that many of its leaders faced significant opposition from within the party before eventually leading it to electoral success.
She cited former President John Agyekum Kufuor as an example, saying he had to overcome resistance from influential figures within the party before winning power for the NPP in 2000.
Ms. Manu noted that after the party lost power in 2008, former President Kufuor faced criticism and accusations from some party members.
However, she said supporters eventually put their differences aside and worked together to rebuild the party.
She pointed to the experience of former President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, who, according to her, faced opposition from some factions within the NPP despite his long service to the party.
“His trials were ten times what Kufuor endured,” she stated, adding that Akufo-Addo eventually overcame the challenges and became President of Ghana.
Turning to the NPP’s current flagbearer, Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia, Ms. Manu said he also faced resistance from different groups within the party while seeking leadership.
She praised Dr. Bawumia for contributing to policy-based political discussions in Ghana and for remaining composed following the NPP’s defeat in the 2024 elections.
According to her, party members must now rally behind him in the same way they supported former Presidents Kufuor and Akufo-Addo.
Ms. Manu, however, warned that internal divisions and a sense of entitlement remain major threats to the party’s future.
She argued that some party members place too much emphasis on how long individuals have belonged to the NPP rather than on their contributions and capabilities.
“This entitlement does not question impact. It does not ask what you sacrificed or what you built. It asks only how long have you been here,” she said.
The former parliamentary candidate cautioned that such attitudes could discourage committed members and prevent the party from selecting the best people for leadership positions.
She further called on the party’s incoming national executives to strengthen the NPP’s core values of sacrifice, honesty, integrity and dedication to national development.
Ms. Manu addressed the concerns of young party supporters, many of whom she said became discouraged following the NPP’s electoral defeat in 2024.
According to her, many young people remain eager to see the party return to power but are unwilling to support internal conflicts driven by personal ambitions.
She urged party elders to place the interests of the NPP above their individual goals and to demonstrate leadership that attracts rather than alienates members.
“The NPP is bigger than any one of us. It always has been. Our collective responsibility is to act like it,” she stated.
By: Jacob Aggrey
