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Vocational education key to financial liberation – OBI tells youth
Technical and vocational skills acquisition isa long-term profession to empower the youth who venture into Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET).
This, according to Mr. Okai Boamah Isaac popularly known as OBI, the Chief Executive Officer of OBI Roofing Systems, would serve as an intervention to bridge the unemployment gap among Ghanaian youth and also act as economic intervention for the nation as a whole since it would generate revenue for the country. 
Mr. Okai said these when The Spectatorinterviewed him on the genesis of his career and personal life in Accra.
The CEO has trained many youth to acquire the skills and knowledge in good and quality roofing installation which has made such individuals become independent workers contributing their quota to national development.
Background
In his quest to make life worth living, and surmount every impediments on his way, Mr. Okai made conscious efforts by rising through the ranks of being a worker at various roofing companies, and now a CEO of his own company.
Mr. Okai who hails from Kwahu-Abetifi, in the Eastern Region and lived in a village called Hweehwee also at Kwahu was brought up by his parents, Madam Adwoa Serwaa Sabina a native of Kwahu-Abetifi and Mr. Philip Havor from Ada in the Greater Accra Region.
He lived with five siblings, a brother and four sisters Mr. Okaiis the first born and lived at Hweehwee from 1994 to 2000.
Education
He had his elementary school education at Hweehwee but the family later moved to Nkawkaw and settled at Atta ne Atta a suburb of Nkwakaw.
He wrote the Basic Education Certificate Examination at Nkawkaw Kuma Anglican Basic School, and enrolled at National Vocational Training Institute (NVTI) at Kokomlemle in Accra.
He did extensive courses alongside his practical works in roofing and Construction, Building and Construction Management, Carpentry and Joinery and Electrical Technician or House Wiring.
Vocation
After his technical and vocational training at the institute, Mr. Okai worked with DBS Roofing Ghana Limited from 2013 to 2015 as a roofing installer.
In 2013, he worked with Big Bond Roofing Company at Industrial Area, Accra, till 2015 and moved to work with Tompoo roofing at Kasoa in the Central Region from 2016 to 2018.
Mr. Okai in 2018, established OBI Roofing Systems where he has been managing and operating his own roofing company to meet the needs of the Ghanaian builder in any type of building.
“The Ablekuma Point 5 branch of the OBI roofing systems has an engineer as its manager and because of that it has aided the company to move at a pace which puts it above other companies in terms of value for money work delivery”, Mr. Okai told The Spectator.
Training Centre
In order to increase the interest of more youth in technical and vocational training, Mr. Okai has set up a training centre to help the youth acquire skills better of their lives.
He lamented that there were a lot of people who had been to technical schools for three years to do welding among other courses but when “you ask them to make a table, they are unable to do the practical works”.
“So at OBI Technical Training Centre, we give you the practical aspect of what you did in school as you learn the estimations and do the real work as you are supposed to do in satisfying your clients with the best work they require from you”, he said.
Since his speciality is in roofing, the trainees get the knowledge on how to install any type of roofing sheets at OBI Technical Training located at Ablekuma Bokoboko, in the Greater Accra Region.
“The training centre is open to men for now and as time goes on, we’ll know how to structure things and involve women because we do practical works which need physical strength to carry equipment at the site”, he observed.
Message to the Ghanaian Youth
“My advice to the youth is that they should use their time profitably on valuable things, by investing our time on things that would be of importance to our lives and eschew irrelevant things that would put our lives at stake like bet staking, among others.
“Ghanaian youth should try as much as possible to use their hands to do something because we use our hands and knowledge to do everything here on earth to succeed so if we do not use knowledge, we would later lament that there is no job in the country but there are actually a lot of jobs in the country which require skills and technical know-how, but because we do not have the knowledge about a particular job, we say there is no work”, Mr. Okai said.
By Alfred Nii Arday Ankrah
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
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