Prof. Amankwah delivering his address

The Vice Chancellor of University of Mines and Technology (UMaT), Tarkwa, Professor  Richard Kwasi Amankwah, has appealed to the Ministry of Railway Development, to help secure a land deed the School of Railways and Infrastructure Development  (SRID) at Essikado, in the Western Region.

This, he argued, would help  SRID  prevent future litigation and also expand its infrastructure to service the needs of the industry.

Prof. Amankwah made the appeal last Saturday when UMaT’s  SRID observed the rail transport day on the theme ‘Ghana’s Rail Transport: Challenges and Future  Prospects’.

“I appeal to the minister to approve the pending agreement to fully operationalise the Memoranda Of Understanding (MOU) and help in the development of SRID,” he added.

SRID, Prof. Amankwah said, was ready to expand and provide accommodation to prospective students but was faced with land deed.

“Somebody is ready to build a 2, 500 bed facility for us but the issue is that the land does not belong to us. In two years time, SRID will become a college and if government wants to proclaim it as a university, we are ready to release,” he added.

He stated that presently SRID, which  began  operations  in 2020/21 academic year, had about 800 students offering  BSc Engineering and seven Certificate Programmes tailored for the railway sector, including Locomotive Engineering, Permanent Way Engineering  and Signalling and Telecommunication.

Again, Prof Amankwah said, as part of the  school curriculum, BSc students would undertake at least three railway related courses to enable them to earn additional qualification  in Railway Engineering at the  end of their four-year  programme.

Plans  for a Post Graduate Certificate  Programme  in Railway Engineering was also underway.

In 2021, the VC said, SRID  in  collaboration with  AYA Engineering and GIZ began a Summer School Training programme  on railway engineering and allied disciplines

UMaT SRID, he explained, championed  the rail transport day, in solidarity with gallant railway staff, who worked tirelessly for the  benefit of the  country and shared ideas on sustainable implementation of the  railway master plan of Ghana.

Prof. Amankwah believed  the railway  sector would  continue to see significance  improvement  to become  the once  vibrant sector   of the economy.

Western Regional Minister, Kwabena Okyere Darko-Mensah, also  spoke about   operations  of  railway which he said reduced pressure and traffic  on road networks and also  improved the internal and external trade among neighboring countries.

Noting  challenges of  GRCL, Mr Darko-Mensah assured that “government  was working hard with the craftiest technology and stakeholders to aid in the lifting of the  glory of our reputable institutions again.”

Reminiscing the railway days, Omanhen of Essikado, Nana Kobina Nketsiah V, also reiterated that Ghana could work again with railways.

From Clement Adzei Boye, Essikado