By Deborah Asantewaah SARFO
The outstanding mentee of the Safety Mentorship Cohort 1, Mumuni Eliasu, has received a scholarship worth GH¢8,000 for his exceptional performance throughout the programme.
The programme, an initiative of the Safety Campaign Ghana (SCG), aims to raise the next generation of leaders in Health, Safety, Environment & Sustainability and provide a thorough learning experience to help mentees build skills and manage HSE initiatives at a higher level within any organisation.
Mr. Eliasu was awarded a scholarship worth GH¢8,000 to NEBOSH IGC, followed by Esther Dapaah – the first runner up – with a full scholarship worth GH¢4,500 to IOSH Managing Safely. In addition, they received internship opportunities and certificates of participation.
The initiative brought together 10 tertiary students from diverse fields – including mining, manufacturing, oil and gas, pharmaceuticals, construction and others – who received a three-month mentorship from experts in the HSE industry.
In ensuring that mentees experienced the best form mentorship programme, each was assigned to one mentor who offered guidance and support, shared their experiences and exposed them to best practices in the sector.
In his keynote address, Health and Safety Manager-Atlantic Lithium Limited, Emmanuel Attiah, commended SCG for the initiative and described it as a testament of their unwavering commitment to human development safety and leadership.
While he commended the mentors for their leadership, he charged mentees to effectively utilise skills acquired and share them with others to change their environment .
“You are now equipped with tools and insights to transform your communities, industries and the world. The true impact of this programme will be measured by how you pay it forward and create opportunities for others to grow and thrive,” he noted.
Mr. Eliasu attributed his success to the commitment and consistency he demonstrated throughout the programme, adding that his mentor also played a significant role in his victory.
“Probably, my consistency and commitment made me victorious. I believe ever since I joined Safety Campaign Ghana training I have always been on time, followed all sections and answered all questions. Also, thanks to my mentor who delved deeper into critical safety topics like incident investigation and leadership among others with me,” he noted.
Director-SCG, Damoah Emmanuel Nyarkoh, called on government and relevant stakeholders to help the organisation promote and advocate for Occupational Health, Safety and Environmental sustainability.
Emphasising what must be done to ensure safety at the workplace, he noted that safety issues must be prioritised by passing the Occupational Safety and Health (OSH) bill in parliament.
“We have to prioritise our health and safety issues. So, as a country, what we need to do is pass the Occupational Safety and Health (OSH) bill sitting in parliament. This bill seeks to safeguard all operations and protect the safety of people at workplaces,” he said.
Highlighting some challenges identified in the first edition, he said: “Three months duration for the mentorship was too small and poor network challenges were some issues we had in the first edition”.
Despite those challenges, he described the programme as successful and indicated subsequent editions will have 20 mentees and more scholarship opportunities.
Safety Campaign Ghana is an organisation that seeks to promote occupational health, safety and environmental best practices. It aims to campaign and do more advocacy on issues that pertain to health and safety.
