St. Basilides Technical and Vocational Training Institute-Nadowli/Kaleo District in the Upper West Region has launched its 50th anniversary with a call for support to enhance quality in technical and vocational education in the country.
The anniversary, which is to be celebrated in early 2023, will focus on the impact of the institute in developing and producing human resources for the industries that have helped to boost socio-economic activities.
The institute, established on the 5th of February, 1973, started with a few students but now can boast thousands of graduates who received quality education and training to contribute their quota to the development of the country.
The establishment of the school came as an idea from three Catholic brothers – John Van Winden, Henry Schurs (Borgias), and Jos Van Dinther – as a result of their great concern to create opportunities for young people.
The original concept to establish a technical institute in the area was introduced in 1972, after realising that there was no formal training institute to give the youth of the area any formal education under the then Upper Regions, of which the present Upper West Region formed part.
It was realised that the nearest place to seek for technical education was in Bawku in the Upper East Region and Tamale in the Northern Region. This long-distance challenge for students led to the establishment of the institute.
In spite of the fact that the school is set to celebrate its golden jubilee anniversary, physical infrastructure is a huge problem for the school.
According to the management of the school, turning attention to resourcing technical and vocational educational training (TVET) to ensure the provision of quality education in these institutions would help churn out qualified personnel for the job market.
The Upper West Regional Minister, Dr. Hafiz Bin Salih, represented by his personal assistant, Meigoro Abdul Rahman, emphasised that without skilled manpower produced by TVET institutions for industries, national development would totally grind to a halt.
He said there is, therefore, the need to attach more importance to technical and vocational education in building the nation as they are the major agent of change for industrial and social development of the Upper West Region.
The Acting Principal of the school, Fabian Bezel, said management has worked very hard to turn the challenges into opportunities; but it is still saddled with some challenges.
“The inadequate classrooms, problems relating to furniture, lack of fence wall for the school, and lack of modern equipment for workshops to facilitate practical training continue to hamper the delivery of quality education, coupled with the school’s dining hall and kitchen being in a dilapidated state,” Brother Bezel said.
He, therefore, appealed to all stakeholders within the education sector to help address the numerous challenges facing the institute.
On his part, Sregeous Dery of the Financial Intelligence Centre (FIC) appealed for resources for the school to enable them to deliver quality training for potential future leaders.
“The quest for an effective and efficient Technical and Vocational Education Training (TVET) system for our dear country would be incomplete without meeting the resources and motivation needed for the TVET schools,” he said.
