Mr. Daniel Kwarkyi, a Certified Welding Educator , on Monday said the oil and gas industry offered qualified welders numerous job opportunities that they could take advantage of and better their lives.

He said welding also played significant role both in manufacturing, construction and industry in general and therefore expressed worry about the country’s inability to train and certify qualified welders particularly for the offshore, onshore oil and gas industry.

Mr. Kwarkyi told the Ghana News Agency (GNA) that the lack of a national policy for training, qualification and certification of welders in the country was a big challenge in meeting international standards.

Mr. Kwarkyi who operated the Welder Training and Testing Centre and also a member of the American Welding Society said pre-colonial welders who were trained some 50 years ago to work in companies like Tema Oil Refinery are now phasing out at a time the country has discovered oil.

He said due to the lack of experts or certified welders in Ghana, companies especially those in the oil and gas had to bring in expatriate to take up such jobs.

He said Ghana must take advantage of the job opportunities offered by the oil and gas industry and develop a national welding policy that confirmed to International Standard.

A body should be set up to research and adopt these best practices in educating, training, qualifying as well as certifying welders who will be of international repute, he added.