Tetrefu (Ash) Dec. 19, GNA - Mr. Seth Victor Apraku-Mensah, National Director of the Integrated Community Centre for Employable Skills (ICCES), on Thursday announced that with effect from next year, ICCES instructors and other workers would be put on the Controller and Accountant General's Department payroll.

He explained that ICCES, which was under government subvention, could not negotiate for upward adjustment of salaries for its workers since they were not on the Department's pay roll. Mr. Apraku Mensah was speaking at a ceremony to inaugurate projects and start-up tools and the passing out of 46 students of the ICCES at Tetrefu in the Bosomtwe District.

He said plans were far advanced for ICCES to establish production units in each of the ten regions to be registered by the Register General's Department and supported by the Government. Mr. Apraku-Mensah said this would enable ICCES to engage in income generating ventures to raise funds to support their activities and programmes.

He commended the U.S Embassy in Ghana, the Bosomtwe District Assembly and the Centre by Stiching Gereed Gereschap, a Holland non-governmental organization (NGO), for contributing to the development of the centre.

Mr. Apraku-Mensah appealed to the graduands to form co-operative societies to enable them to have access to loans from the Micro-Finance and Small Loans Centre (MASLOC) and other financial institutions to expand their businesses.

Mr. Kapil Gupta of the Economic Section of the U.S. Embassy, said since 1990, the Embassy had released grants of more than 1,000,000 dollars towards execution of more than 380 projects through out the country.

He said that the project was among 12 projects funded by the Embassy at the cost of 70,000 dollars in 2007.

Mr James Fosu, the Bosomtwe District Chief Executive, said the assembly was committed to promoting education in the area. He appealed to the people to vote massively for the NPP in the in the presidential run-off on December 28.

Mr. Amo Daniel, the Manager of the Centre, said the facility that was established 21 years ago, had so far trained about 900 youth most of whom were self-employed and others working in the public sector. He said the Centre which has an enrolment of about 100 offers courses including Electrical Installation, Carpentry and Joinery, Dressmaking and Catering.

Mr Amo enumerated problems facing the Centre as lack of adequate classroom blocks, water, Computer laboratory and means of transport and appealed to the government, the Assembly and other NGOS to come to the aid of the Centre.

The graduands were later presented with certificates. The projects included the construction of an electrical workshop and KVIP toilet jointly funded by the United States Embassy in Ghana and the Bosomtwe District Assembly at the cost of over 12,000 Ghana Cedis. The tools including 17 sewing machines were donated to the Centre by Stiching Gereed Gereschap, a Holland non-governmental organization (NGO), at the cost of 7,000 Ghana Cedis. 19 Dec. 08