The Patriotic Intellectuals (PI), a group of teaching and non-teaching staff of the Takoradi Technical University (TTU) and sympathizers of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) have outlined major interventions undertaken by President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo in the Western region.
Discussing his achievements at a press conference, the PI said the President and the NPP government have performed marvelously well in the first term of office and deserved a second term to do more.
The press conference, which was the second in the series of its “Ghanaian must know: Separating fact from hard fact”, aimed at heightening the achievements of the President and the NPP.
Mr Michael Asare Appiah, Chairman of PI said the NPP per its 2016 manifesto and policy on education, focused on providing linkage on high enrolment in Ghana’s educational set-up and provision of adequate infrastructural projects in schools.
He said several infrastructural projects were undertaken in basic and Senior High schools with the Western Region receiving its fair share.
He mentioned some of the projects to include the construction of a dormitory block at Takoradi SHS, a 12-seater toilet facility at Methodist SHS with another 12 -unit roofed classroom block which was near completion at the same school.
The rest are 12 unit classroom block at Fijai SHS, 2,500-seater auditorium at GSTS, three-storey 12 classroom block, three-unit science laboratory block at Mpohor SHS, and a 12 unit classroom block at Huni Valley SHS.
Additionally, 20 Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Mathematics Education (STEAM) centres were being constructed at Tarkwa Nsuaem and Prestea Hunni valley Municipal Assemblies.
On vocational training, Mr Appiah said new apprenticeship offices, laboratories, workshops, hostels, and administration offices were being refurbished at the National vocational training institute.
He indicated that an Accident and Emergency unit had been constructed at Half Assini government hospital as well as a six-unit classroom block for the Effia Nkwanta Nursing School.
Touching on interventions made in cocoa growing areas of the Western Region, Mr Appiah said cocoa road projects have been revived after an audit and proper alignment of funds had been made available to execute the projects.
To address the challenges in the cocoa sector and to boost cocoa production, he mentioned that the NPP administration initiated and completed 13 interventions which include, the Cocoa rehabilitation Programme, Mechanization, Hand Pollination, the introduction of early mass spraying, Free Seedling distribution, and Cocoa Farm Irrigation project.
Others are the improved extension agent to farmer ratio, Women and Youth in Cocoa Farming, Education and Welfare, Cocoa Pricing, Living Income differential, Value addition/Cocoa processing, and Pension Scheme for cocoa farmers.
He said the government had increased the price of a bag of cocoa from Ghc475.00 in 2017 to Ghc660.00 in 2020.
Mr Appiah said the Petroleum Commission had signed a service agreement with TTU to train 100 Ghanaians to acquire competence in mechanical, electrical, instrumentation, and process in both upstream and downstream oil and gas industry.
The idea, he said was to help achieve the realization of the local content act and to curtail the importation of expatriates in the oil and gas industry.
He revealed that for the 2019 /2020 academic year GNPC Foundation awarded a scholarship to 93 students who were perusing Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) at the TTU.
Source: GNA