The Jewellery Design Centre of the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST) has launched a training programme under which unemployed youth would be aided to acquire skills in jewellery making.

About 600 young people as well as small, micro and medium enterprises have been targeted to benefit and this would come at a minimal fee.

The training would span a period of two years and would officially take off before the close of this month.

Mr Joseph Kojo Arthur, Principal of the Centre, announced this at a “project inception workshop” to herald the start of the training at the Noda Hotel in Kumasi.

The theme was “Enhancing the competitiveness of the SMMEs’ in jewellery through technology and Innovation.”

It provided the platform to assist stakeholders with the details of the project, to have a better understanding of their expected roles.

Mr Arthur said with its state-of-the-art infrastructure and a team of experts and professional instructors, the Centre was ready to teach the trainees to master the art of jewellery design.

An opportunity would also be offered to those already in the industry to learn highly specialised technologies.

They would have access to up-to-date information on computer-aided designs and manufacturing technology to improve their competitiveness in the global market.

He spoke of plans to partner the Department of Computer Science to develop computer software for the beneficiaries.

Mr Williams Obour, the Coordinator, said the goal is to develop the entrepreneurial skills of the youth and promote innovation in industry.