Biriwa (C/R), March 5, GNA – The Deputy Central Regional Minister, Mr Aquinas Tawiah Quansah has announced plans to upgrade the Vocational Training and Rehabilitation Institute at Biriwa in the Mfantseman Municipality to a Polytechnic to produce middle level manpower for the country.

Mr Quansah, who is also the Member of Parliament (MP) for Mfantseman West appealed to Ghanaians not to look down on vocational and technical schools as institutions for students who are academically weak.

He said with Ghana's oil find, the roles of vocational and technical schools had become more paramount than before.

The Deputy Minister made the appeal at a durbar at Biriwa to welcome 50 Nigerians who were on a skills training programme known as Niger Delta Amnesty Programme in Ghana.

Two hundred Nigerians are in the country to be trained in vocational skills to go back and facilitate the development of the oil-rich Niger Delta.

A source said the government of Nigeria in November 2010, signed a memorandum of understanding with the National Vocational Training Institute (NVTI) to train 1,000 Nigerian youth with employable vocational skills in Ghana to accelerate the development of the Niger Delta.

Mr Quansah said arrangements were being made for the acquisition of a bus for the institute as early as possible to facilitate students' mobility.

The Deputy Minister also pledged five computers for the institute to augment the stock in the Information Communication Technology laboratory.

Mr Henry Kweku Hayfron, Mfantseman Municipal Chief Executive urged the students from Nigeria to take good advantage of the opportunities given them to work hard to bring honour to the governments of both Nigeria and Ghana.

He advised them to be law-abiding and fraternise with their Ghanaian counterparts.

Mr Godwin Kudese, Head of Institutional Training of NVTI urged the students to count themselves lucky that out of the large population of Nigeria, they had been selected to pursue the course.

He urged them to justify their selection by completing the course with flying colours.

Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP), David Ashong, who deputised for the Central Regional Police Commander, said anyone of them who broke the law would be dealt with.

He assured them of the maximum protection whilst in the country.

Deputy Superintendent of Immigration, Peter Osei Osafo briefed the gathering on the functions of the Ghana Immigration Service and said the service would not hesitate to repatriate any person who flouted immigration rules and prosecute all immigration breeches.

Mr David Fankule who represented the Federal Government of Nigeria on the Niger Delta Amnesty Programme said 601 training centres worldwide had been created for the training of citizens of Nigeria by the programme.

Mr Samuel Kwashie Amegbor, Manager of the Institute told the students that Ghana was in its election year, admonishing them to concentrate on their training and refrain from involving themselves in Ghanaian politics.

He said the institute trained 37 students from Nigeria for nine months last year out of the first batch of 200 sent to Ghana on the programme, and announced that the best adjudged student in the first batch was trained at Biriwa Vocational Training and Rehabilitation Institute.

The nine-month training course for the Nigerians in Ghana is taking place at Abetifi, Accra, Kumasi, Winneba and Biriwa Vocational Training Centres.