The National Commission for Civic Education (NCCE) has held a training workshop for Civic Education Club patrons for senior high schools in the Central Region.

It was part of measures to expand the “Project Citizen Ghana”, programme to more schools.

Project Citizen Ghana is a flagship programme of NCCE, adopted from a United States model in 2006 with the aim of promoting qualitative participation of the youth, especially students, in local and national issues.

Sponsored by Hanns Seidel Foundation; a German based non- governmental organisation, the project, achieves its aim by training the students to identify and gather information on problems in their communities that need public policy solution.

The three- day workshop, held in Cape Coast was attended by 10 patrons from Wesley Girls High School in Cape Coast, Winneba School of Business, Mankessim Secondary Technical High School, Nana Khadijah Islamic Girls Senior high School and Swedru School of Business.

Participants were taken through topic such as “Public Policy Formulation”, “Characteristics of an Effective Citizen”, “Steps of Project Citizen Ghana”, “Electronic presentation of portfolios”, “Evaluating the oral presentation and portfolios” and are expected to further train their colleagues on the skills acquired.

Mrs Asiedua Manteaw, Assistant Project Director, Project Citizen Ghana in an interview with Ghana News Agency said the workshop which had been organised in the various regions since last month was aimed at expanding the project beyond the 195 schools in which it operates.

She said at the end of the training, the students should be able to monitor and influence public policy, develop intellectual, participatory and critical thinking skills to participate in a regional competition.

She expressed optimism that the project is achieving its aim and urged the various schools and stakeholders to give it the needed support and attention.

Mr Kenneth Sowah, a participant from Winneba Secondary School, who spoke with Ghana News Agency, commended the workshop and the project saying it would enhance his teaching and learning skills which would help him and other participants train their students on problem solving.

He emphasised the need to involve the youth in decision making since it is an inevitable fact that they are the future leaders, adding that such projects would give them a positive attitude to problem solving.