Eight Ghanaian teachers from Technical Universities and Colleges across the country have been selected to pursue enhanced skills certification in Canada under the government’s Accelerated Oil and Gas Capacity Programme. 

The Chief Executive Officer of the Petroleum Commission, Mr. Egbert Faibille, who led the beneficiaries to the Office of the President today January 12, 2022 at the Jubilee House in Accra said they will receive training at the Northern Alberta University to become Master Instructors in Pipe Fitting, Neorite or Mechanical Technicians and Welding. 

According to him, the multiplier effect, under this arrangement is after the 10 months training, the beneficiaries who are being trained at the sole cost of the Petroleum Commission will upon return be mandated to introduce Pipe Fitting alongside other competencies that they are going to obtain, in their various institutions. 

Marking out the basis for this move, Mr. Faibille stated that “when you look at the Oil and Gas industry, almost every engineering aspect or the end products pass through pipes. Unfortunately, in Ghana, we do not have Pipe Fitting as a stand-alone course in any of our technical institutions; aspects of it are done but they do not qualify our technicians as Pipe fitters to enable them work in the industry. So, on the FPSOs, Drill Ships and Allied industries, when they are looking for Pipe Fitters, we always have to bring in expatriates to do the real work.” 

Therefore, he continued, “the Petroleum Commission as the entity tasked with ensuring job role localisation in the upfield space has resolved under the leadership and direction of the Ministry of Energy that we need to train our own and introduce Pipe Fixing as a course.” 

The beneficiaries are Daniel Kyei Kankam, Abdul Hameed Mohammed, Isaac Oppong, Frank Nana Osei, Mrs. Gladys Perpetual Awuni, Mr. Samuel Gariba, Wise Klomerga Quarshie and Emmanuel Marcus Abaidoo. 

He indicated further that the Commission will put up a world class Centre of Excellence for Welding and Pipe Fitting at the Takoradi Technical University so that when young boys and girls complete training in these institutions where the eight beneficiaries are coming from, they move on to that Centre as a finishing school under the framework of a Ghana Welding Bureau for Certification, Regulation and a training body for all welders. 

Describing the move as encouraging, President Akufo-Addo on his part stated that, “the steps that are being taken to ensure that we are self-sufficient in the management of our natural resources is a key aspect of the journey to reach the Ghana Beyond Aid target.’ 

He said we need to ensure that, “these resources which we have offshore, onshore, are managed and developed by us and that we don’t have to depend on foreign expertise, and foreign capital to be able to do so”, maintaining that “to attain that objective, the skills enhancement of Ghanaians in the industry is absolutely critical.” 

“If we are really going to develop our resources, we can no longer count on them, we have to count on ourselves, that is why the initiatives that are being taken, in the sector, at the level of the GNPC in trying to develop greater capacity to be able to be an operator of fields and then at your level, enhancing the skill of Ghanaians, the technical aspects of the industry are conjoined, part and parcel of the same process, and they are absolutely essential for the future of our country,” he emphasised. 

He reminded the beneficiaries to represent the country well and note that they are part of a nation building exercise and if God willing, “we succeed, in developing our country and bringing prosperity to it, you have a very coveted place in that narrative and that story.” 

The AOGC was established in November 2017 with the intent to enhance the capacity of Ghanaians to enable them to work in the Oil and Gas sector. The programme will be in effect for five years and aims to train individuals in various technical and vocational areas, build the capacity of educational institutions to be able to train students and provide internationally recognized training certificates, provide business and management training for SMEs, and to ensure the continuous professional development of employees of various public institutions connected to the Oil and Gas industry.