Kuntanase (Ash), Oct. 4, GNA - The Government has made available GH¢3.0 million under its National Apprentice Program (NAP) to train 5,000 Junior High School (JHS) graduates, who could not gain admission to Senior High Schools (SHS) in employable skills, this year. The training would be in areas such as cosmetology, garment, auto mechanics and electronics.

Mr Kwabena Adu Amaniampong, Informal Sector Coordinator of the Counci= l for Technical and Vocational Education Training (COTVET), said on Monday that the programme was being piloted in 75 selected metropolitan, municipal and district assemblies.

The facilitators will be paid allowances while the apprentices receiv= e stipends. The NAP is meant among other things to encourage youths to choose technical and vocational education training (TVET) as another path of progression in life. Mr Amaniampong was speaking at the inauguration and presentation of training equipment and tools for the NAP to the Bosomtwe District at Kuntanase.

The other beneficiary districts of the programme in Ashanti Region include Asante-Mampong, Adansi North and South, Konongo and Kumasi. He said COVET with support from the Ghana Education Trust Fund (GETFund) had already trained 1,200 master craft persons to train the apprentices. Mr Amaniampong invited the assemblies to give every necessary support to the programme to ensure its successful implementation. Dr Joseph Oteng Adjei, the Energy Minister, advised the youth to take advantage of the program to acquire skills that would make them economicall= y self-supporting.

He said it was in their own interest to show more seriousness and commitment towards the apprenticeship training. The District Chief Executive, Mr Nti Berko, asked parents to make sur= e their children, who failed to make it to the SHS, were enrolled for the NAP= ..