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600 graduate from Liberty Specialist Institute
A TOTAL of 600 trainees graduated last Saturday during the 38th graduation ceremony of the Liberty Specialist Institute in Koforidua.
They were trained in various Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) programmes, including Hospitality and Catering Management, Fashion Design Technology, Hairdressing, Information Technology, Cosmetology and Electrical Engineering Technology.
Out of the total number, 115 completed a three-year regular course, while 394 were admitted and trained under the Ghana TVET Voucher Project, a donor-supported initiative implemented by the school and its partners.
These beneficiaries underwent eight months of intensive training. Additionally, 154 trainees were enrolled through the Ghana Jobs and Skills Apprenticeship Programme, completing a one-year course in similar disciplines.
Twenty others, admitted through the Youth Employment Agency (YEA) Programme, received six months of training.
The ceremony featured an impressive display of practical skills as the graduates mounted an exhibition showcasing their work in fashion design, hairdressing, cosmetology and other areas.
The Principal of the Institute, Mr Emmanuel Danso, highlighted the school’s long-standing contribution to vocational training since its establishment in 1987 by Mr and Rev. Mrs Ametameh in partnership with donors.
He noted that the institute has trained thousands of students over the years and remained committed to expanding skills training to support national development.
Mr Danso described the graduation as a significant milestone that reflected the institution’s dedication to providing multiple pathways for skills development and youth empowerment.
He explained that in light of the government’s 24-Hour Economy initiative, it had become critical for young people to acquire practical, digital and artificial intelligence (AI) skills to meet emerging industry demands.
TVET institutions, he emphasised, were essential in realising the 24-hour economy, as they played a key role in job creation, economic development and addressing youth unemployment.
Mr Danso also appealed to the government to include private TVET institutions in the Free TVET Education Policy to ensure that students from schools like Liberty Specialist Institute can benefit fully from national training interventions.
The Director of the Institute, Rev. Mrs Edna Akofa Ametameh, encouraged the graduates to uphold the values they have acquired and to use their skills to advance their personal development while supporting others.
She described TVET as a major driver of the global economy, noting that digitalisation has further strengthened opportunities for the youth.
From Ama Tekyiwaa Ampadu Agyeman, Koforidua
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Hundreds of street children received a special treat during the Christmas festivities as a result of a collaboration between the management of the La Beach Hotel and the Street Academy in Accra.
It was part of the Hotel’s current arrangement to provide lunch for the children of the Academy every Friday.
Courtesy that partnership, management of the La Beach Hotel feted hundreds of street children housed by the Street Academy, creating a partying moment for the children.
According to officials of the Hotel, the gesture was to let the children feel part of the festivities and not left out.
The children enjoyed delicious meals and snack after which they danced as they enjoyed the moment.
According to the Hotel officials, “the season represents one that every parent gathers their children and shower them with gifts and others to make them happy but sadly, these unfortunate children are left on their own, having no one to care for them.”
“This is an event we intend to make an annual one. Through this, we hope to put some smiles on their faces. It is not proper to leave them on their own.”
The Executive Director of the Academy, Ataa Lartey, expressed gratitude to the management of the hotel, saying that, “this has gone a long way to excite the children and make them feel part of the celebration.”
He said due to the number of children that join around this time of the year, it becomes difficult for the Academy alone to shoulder this responsibility.
“It is not easy to organise such activities alone because it draws a lot of children, that is, those in the Academy and their friends that follow them but with such cooperate supports, we are able to bring them together to share in moments like this,” he told The Spectator.
By Spectator Reporter
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A 30-year-old surrogate mother has delivered a set of quadruplets at The Walking Egg Medical and Fertility Centre at Pokuase in Accra, in a rare surrogacy success that has brought renewed attention to assisted reproductive care in Ghana.
The babies-two boys and two girls- were delivered through a caesarean section in the early hours of Tuesday at 36 weeks and weighed an average 2.5 kilograms each, a weight doctors say was healthy for a multiple pregnancy.
IUI stands for Intrauterine Insemination, a common fertility treatment where healthy sperm are collected, ‘washed’ and concentrated in a lab, and then directly inserted into a woman’s uterus around ovulation using a thin catheter to help sperm reach the egg for fertilisation, often used for unexplained infertility, cervical issues, or mild male factor infertility, and is less invasive than IVF.
Speaking to The Spectator after the surgery, the Medical Director of the Centre, Dr Nana Yaw Osei, said the pregnancy was achieved through Intrauterine Insemination (IUI) and was not planned to result in multiple births.
“With IUI, you introduce prepared sperm into the uterus and have no control over how many eggs fertilized.”
“Unlike IVF, where embryos are formed outside the body and the number transferred can be controlled, this outcome was left entirely to nature,” Dr Osei explained.
He said unlike IVF which could result in multiple babies, this is “possibly the first IUI leading to quadruplets in Ghana.”
He revealed that the surrogacy arrangement was necessary because the intended mother had lost her uterus during surgery to remove fibroids, making it medically impossible for her to carry a pregnancy.
“She had no womb of her own, through no fault of hers,” Dr Osei said, adding that “Surrogacy was the only option available for her to have a biological child.”
When scans later showed that the surrogate was carrying four fetuses, the medical team considered fetal reduction, a procedure sometimes used to reduce risks in multiple pregnancies. However, the option was rejected.
“As a strong Christian, fetal reduction is abortion to me,” Dr Osei said. “After discussions with the intended parents and the surrogate, we all agreed to continue with the pregnancy.”
Despite concerns commonly associated with multiple pregnancies, Dr Osei noted that the surrogate experienced no major complications, and the delivery was smooth. Paediatric assessments conducted after birth confirmed that all four babies are healthy.
Dr Osei again indicated that surrogacy, though still widely misunderstood, is recognised under the Registration of Births and Deaths Act, 2020 (Act 1027).
He urged the public to engage the subject with greater understanding.
“Surrogacy is not about convenience,” he said. “It is about restoring hope to people who have lost the ability to carry a child.”
Describing the moment of delivery, he added, “I was in tears in the theatre. It reminded me why I chose this profession.”
By Esinam Jemima Kuatsinu
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