Vice President Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia has commissioned an ultramodern skills development center and hostel facility at Madina in the La-Nkwantang Municipality to equip head porters popularly known as Kayayei with decent job opportunities for sustainable livelihoods.
The initiative under the Kayayei Empowerment Programme and spearheaded by the Youth Employment Agency (YEA) and its implementing partners is aimed at upskilling 5,000 head porters and providing them with transitional job opportunities to improve their socio-economic well-being.
For a period of three weeks, each batch of 600 head potters recruited from Greater Accra Metropolis and the Ashaiman municipality will undergo skills training in baking and décor, beading and Jewellery, soap and detergent making, makeup artistry, pedicure, manicure, and nails amongst others.
Speaking at the program’s launch, Dr. Bawumia noted that the program had been meticulously conceived and crafted to provide holistic and sustainable economic empowerment to marginalized and vulnerable girls.
According to him “This noble endeavor resonates profoundly with the core values of our mission, as it squarely addresses the pressing needs of a marginalized segment of our society that has long been relegated to the shadows of neglect and indifference.”
He explained that “crucially, the provision of post-training support and the implementation of a track and trace module serves as a linchpin for the program’s efficacy, with participants receiving starter packs to ensure beneficiaries do not return to being head porters”.
With over 1,000 head potters in the country with the majority of them in Accra and Kumasi, the vice president further revealed that similar facilities are currently under construction in the Ashanti and Bono regions to enroll other beneficiaries.
Meanwhile, Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia also revealed discussion is ongoing with state transport operators, the Metro Mass Transit, and Ayalolo to teach these head porters driving skills including ICT skills.
Source: Ghana/starrfm.com.gh/103.5FM/Abdul-Hanan Adam
