Parliament has expressed concern about the fact that the majority of funding to the Council for Technical and Vocational Education and Training (COTVET) comes from donors.

Donors, as it stands, contribute about 51 percent of the council’s total allocation for the 2016 operational year, and the committee responsible for education in Parliament is much concerned about the situation as planned programmes and activities of the council could be halted should donors fail to release funds.

COTVET was allocated GH?2.2million -- comprising GH?700,223 from government, a donor component of GH?1.1million and internally generated funds of GH?393,610 for 2016.

As part of its programmes for this year, COTVET expects to use some of the funds to improve technical vocational education training quality assurance, build the capacity of TVET providers, and promote TVET policies, and mainstream gender and TVET for persons with disability.

In pursuance of these objectives COTVET will expand its ‘trainer of trainers’ programmes to cover chief apprentices -- who will in turn facilitate training for 400,000 apprentices in the non-formal sector.

The council will, in consultation with key stakeholders, continue to rebrand TVET to ensure that subject combinations in secondary technical schools and technical institutions are reviewed to facilitate the progression of technical students into tertiary institutions.

But the Parliamentary Committee on Education believes these cannot be realised if donors fail or delay paying the money, as the Council would be cash-strapped in pursuing its objectives.

The Committee’s concern come at a time when TVET experts have criticised institutions responsible for technical education for not doing much to ensure technical education becomes attractive to the youth and training artisans will lead the country’s infrastructural development agenda.

Dr. Henry Fram Akplu, a TVET expert, told B&FT at a COTVET stakeholder workshop in Accra that the country’s big problem results from neglecting technical and vocational training, which has made it unable to produce goods and services that satisfy its people.

“Ghana is paying dearly for the neglect of TVET. We can’t produce goods and services that we ourselves are satisfied with, so we import almost everything.”

At that same workshop, it was revealed that if COTVET is well-resourced it will be able to discharge its mandate and cater for institutions which are under the 12 ministries.