The Ahafo mine of Newmont Ghana Gold Limited (NGGL), on Tuesday held a matriculation ceremony for 15 trainees under the company's maintenance apprenticeship programme, at its Plant site at Kenyasi Number one in Asutifi District of Brong-Ahafo.
The cost of training for the fixed plant mechanical and fixed plant electrical apprentices will be 255,000 dollars, with an average of 17,000
dollars to be spent on each apprentice.
Thirty-seven students pursuing various courses under the four-year programme were also promoted at the ceremony.
On completion, trainees would be awarded certificates of City and Guilds of London Institute, and Newmont would employ them.
Mr. Dan V. Michaelsen, General Manager, Environment and Social Responsibility, who disclosed this, explained that Newmont realized that the apprenticeship was an excellent opportunity to develop local skills to meet
the rising demands of its operations.
He said the introduction of the programme had deepened the company's social responsibility commitment to affected communities of the mine.
"All of these are in keeping the mutual aspiration we share with our host communities, which is to create a sustainable future by investing in our people," he said.
Mr. Michaelsen added that to ensure that the trainees had the best tuition comparable to anywhere else the company had invested in, top-of-the range equipment that suit its objectives.
"We have recently introduced a hydraulic simulator in the apprenticeship programme at the cost of 70,000 dollars," he said, explaining
that, the "hydraulic simulator allows students to safely experience the functions of hydraulic systems without shutting down a valuable piece of
mining equipment".
Mr. Michaelsen said the Process Maintenance and Mine Maintenance Departments of Newmont had donated expensive components to the maintenance
training programme to enhance the knowledge, skills and ability of the apprentices, adding, "We already have over 85,000 dollars worth of tools and equipment for use in the workshops".
He said the programme was going on along side with scholarship packages being offered to tertiary and Senior High School students from the company's host communities under the Newmont Ahafo Development Foundation (NADeF).
Mr. Michaelsen disclosed that 406 tertiary and Senior High School students drawn from communities in Ahafo were benefiting from a scholarship package worth about GHC 368,000.
Construction works on five educational facilities at Wamahinso, Gyedu, Susuanso and Afrisipakrom are at various stages of completion at the total cost of more than GHC 204,088.38, he added.
These are a six-unit classroom block with office, store, staff common room and computer library at Wamahinso, a three-unit classroom block with an office and a store at Susuanso, as well as a library complex also at Susuanso.
The rest are a library complex for the people of Afrisipakrom and four-unit teachers' quarters at Gyedu, Mr. Michaelsen mentioned.
Mr. Enoch Tei Mensah, Minister of Employment and Social Welfare commended Newmont for its social responsibility programme put in place to
alleviate the plight of the affected communities.
He advised Ghanaian workers of the mine to be disciplined and to adhere to the rules and regulations governing their work to avoid being dismissed.
Mr. Mensah noted that unemployment among the teeming youth was a major challenge that faced the government, and advised the local women workforce to eschew apathy and work hard to secure their jobs.
Earlier in a welcoming address, Mr. Agbeko Kwame Azumah, Manager, Communication of NGGL said Newmont recognized that adequate staffing would
continue to be a problem until a pipeline that could supply the necessary skills to effectively run the maintenance programme was created.