Principal of the Applied Institute of Technology (ATI), Ing. Emmanuel Kottey Ashie, highlighting the high cost of the country’s current energy sources, has advocated for a nationwide transition to solar energy.

He mentioned that all the sources of energy in the country are very expensive compared to solar energy, which needs only light and heat to function.

"When you look at our sources of energy; hydro, thermal, gas, and all, you see that they are expensive. But when you look at solar, it needs heat and light, and Africa has a lot. So, as a country, if we all decide to shift to solar, it will help a lot,” Ing. Ashie stated.

Ing. Emmanuel Kottey made this statement in an interview with GhanaWeb at the official launch of a solar training project at the Applied Technical Institute, themed "Empowering Ghana's Solar Workforce."

According to Ing. Ashie, statistics show that the use of solar energy in Ghana is low, even though the country experiences a lot of sunlight.

He is certain that a shift from other sources of energy to solar power can immensely reduce energy costs and strengthen the country's energy independence.

He added that when more people are trained, the knowledge of solar energy will spread rapidly, and people will understand the importance of using solar energy.

"If we train people and our students here, it will help people who don’t understand solar to understand. Because right now we have engineers, artisans, technicians who are able to fix solar panels. When it comes to maintenance, they will do it for you; they will do repairs. If we have plenty of people like that in Ghana, everybody's attention will be drawn to solar. It will lead people to buy solar panels. There will be no problem; the country will not worry about getting power from elsewhere. Everybody will generate power in his or her house.”

Ing. Emmanuel Kottey Ashie encourages everyone interested in solar energy to participate in the training program.

RAD/NOQ