GIZ Ghana Upgrades Skills Of Female Mechanics And Solar Technicians

The Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) Ghana, has trained over 100 female motorcycle mechanics and solar technicians in the northern regions, in various entrepreneurship course areas.

This was done through GIZ Ghana’s core entrepreneurship training and employment promotion implemented projects in Tamale, Bolgatanga and Wa respectively.

The three-day training programme exposed beneficiaries to various entrepreneurship course areas to enhance their business operations. Some of the training topics include improving market access, managing business risks, understanding the concept of savings and improved customer relations. In addition, the Ghanaian-German Centre for Jobs, Migration and Reintegration (GGC) provided training to the graduates to enhance their soft skills.

The Female Motorcycle Mechanics and Solar Technicians (FeMMSTECH) is an initiative of GIZ Ghana, aimed at creating employment opportunities for women and raising their income through development of skills and business opportunities. It is implemented under the Employment for Sustainable Development in Africa (E4D) programme, in partnership with Japan Motors Ghana Ltd, Northlite Solar Ghana Ltd and the Northern Development Authority (NDA).

In his remarks, the Team Leader of E4D, John C. Duti, explained that GIZ Ghana was “complementing the efforts of the Ghanaian Government in improving the livelihoods of women, by providing them capacity building in technical and business training.” Duti added that “this will enable them to take charge of their own economic progress”.

The head of the Ghanaian-German Centre for Jobs, Migration and Reintegration (GGC), Benjamin Woesten, stated that part of the services the GGC provide are soft skills trainings, referral into vocational and entrepreneurship trainings and start-up support (trainings, equipment and business registration) among others. Thus, he expressed his delight at partnering with E4D to empower female entrepreneurs, and hoped that beneficiaries would “put to practice all the knowledge they had gained during the programme”.

Since 2016, GIZ Ghana has trained and graduated 126 females, which comprises of 92 solar technicians and 34 motor mechanics. All graduates sat for and successfully passed the National Vocational Training Institute (NVTI) external examinations.